New records for Airbus in 2014

At the company's annual press conference held in the Airbus Delivery Centre at Toulouse Airport, France, Airbus said it delivered 490 of the A320 family, 108 A330s, 30 A380s and also the first A350 XWB.
Net orders are also strong, said the company. Airbus had 1,456 net orders from 67 customers, the second best year ever. The 2014 order book was made up of 1,321 single aisle aircraft and 135 wide body aircraft. As a result, by year end, the backlog had climbed to a new industry record of 6,386 aircraft valued at US$ 919.3 billion at list prices - enough for nine straight years of production.
"Among numerous sales achievements was the A330neo’s success in attracting 120 firm endorsements within just six months of its launch'" said Fabrice Brégier, Airbus President and CEO. "Another commercial highlight was Delta’s decision to select the A330neo for its transatlantic services and the A350 for its transpacific routes. A third highlight of 2014 was the enduring popularity of our A320neo and ceo aircraft which together attracted numerous orders especially from the leasing companies."
Clear milestone of the year was the completion of A350 XWB testing and certification culminating in the on-time delivery of the first aircraft for Qatar Airways. Airbus also reached its target of delivering 30 A380s - Asiana, Qatar Airways and Etihad are new operators of the flagship aircraft.
Meanwhile, the A320neo programme is proceeding on track following its first flight September 2014, paving the way for certification in Q3 and first deliveries in Q4. Another maiden flight took place just yesterday - 12 January 2015 - for the upgraded 242 tonne Max Take-off Weight A330.
“2014 has been an excellent year and the teams in Airbus not only delivered on, but exceeded their targets and commitments,” said Brégier.
“Airbus also made strong progress towards a faster, simpler and more agile company, while our strategy of incremental innovation is helping to consolidate our market-leading position in all categories.”
Brégier also revealed 2015 priorities for Airbus:
First deliveries of the A330 242t to first customers in May.
Validation of the A330neo design should be complete by September enabling the programme to move to production.
Production and deliveries of the A350 XWB will start to ramp up, eventually reaching 10 per month in four years' time.
Another increase in deliveries to make 2015 yet another record year.
Fianlly, Airbus officially launched the A321neo with 97 tonnes Max Take-off Weight with a Memorandum of Understanding for 30 more A321neo from Air Lease Corporation (ALC). The US company upped its original order from 60 to 90 and will be the launch customer for the aircraft. The A321neo 97t will have a range of 4,000nm, the longest of any single-aisle aircraft, making it suitable for transatlantic routes.