DALLAS – On May 23, 1974, Air France (AF) operated the first flight with an Airbus A300 from Paris Orly Airport (ORY) to London Heathrow Airport (LHR).
At that time, the European manufacturer had secured only six orders, all from AF, which was under pressure from the French Government to support the new aircraft.
As aviation journalist Keith Otto states, "The omens for Airbus did not look good, Taking on the big American three of Boeing, Lockheed and Douglas."
Initial Interest
Public interest in aviation was primarily focused on Concorde and its test flights, rather than on this new European consortium. However, Airbus has come a long way since then, with over 11,000 airframes produced and an order book stretching to 2030.
The aircraft that operated the first flight was the F-BVGA, which arrived at LHR in August 1987. Today, Airbus has a wide range of aircraft models and a strong presence in both the passenger and cargo markets.
The World's Top Aircraft Manufacturer
As of May 2024, Airbus is expected to deliver 800 commercial aircraft in 2024, more than Boeing, which has not issued a 2024 production forecast.
Airbus is the world's top commercial aircraft manufacturer based on deliveries, with an order backlog of 8,626 commercial aircraft at the end of March 2024.
In the video below, Airways dives deep into what makes the first-ever full double-decker aircraft so special. Discover the innovations brought by the Airbus Superjumbo jet to the competitive civil aviation market.
Find out more in our latest issue. Explore all the subscriptions plans that Airways has for you. From thrilling stories to insights into the commercial aviation industry. We are a global review of commercial flight.
Exploring Airline History Volume I
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David H. Stringer, the History Editor for AIRWAYS Magazine, has chronicled the story of the commercial aviation industry with his airline history articles that have appeared in AIRWAYS over two decades. Here, for the first time, is a compilation of those articles.
Subjects A through C are presented in this first of three volumes. Covering topics such as the airlines of Alaska at the time of statehood and Canada's regional airlines of the 1960s, the individual histories of such carriers as Allegheny, American, Braniff, and Continental are also included in Volume One. Get your copy today!
January 2025 Issue
