UAE - June 16 - Deal For 41 Airbus Planes Signed.

Emirates Airlines signs a deal with Airbus Industrie at the Paris Air Show for 41 new planes, including 21 A380s, the superjumbo that the European consortium is building. The order, valued at $12.5 bn, is the largest ever for wide-body aircraft, both in numbers and dollar value. The order for the A380s is a significant sign of support for the 500-to 650-seat behemoth, which has been heavily criticised by Boeing Co., Airbus' rival, for being too big for the needs of the world's airlines. Emirates is trying to transform itself into a globe-circling airline that will fly passengers between Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas through its hub in Dubai. The latest order of planes fits into that business model. The jets are all long-range aircraft built for use in transcontinental hub networks. In addition to the A380s, the first of which is to be delivered in spring 2009, Emirates ordered 18 A340-600s and two A340-500s and agreed to lease two A340-600s and two A380s from International Lease Finance Corp. Emirates has ordered 110 planes from Airbus, making it the consortium's largest customer based in the Middle East. The Emirates order "will enable us to continue development of our network around the world", said Shaikh Ahmad Bin Said Al Maktoum, chairman of the airline's parent company, Emirates Group. Noel Forgeard, chief executive of Airbus, said: "Emirates has now decided where it wants to be in the coming decade".