DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, Nov. 17 (UPI) -- The Dubai Air Show began Sunday in the United Arab Emirates with announcements of major orders for passenger jets from Persian Gulf airlines.
The carriers used the air show to announce purchases of jets from Europe and the United States valued at more than $140 billion.
Boeing secured large orders from Qatar Airlines, Etihad Airways and Emirates Airlines. Emirates made a preliminary commitment to buy 150 Boeing 777X jets on a deal worth some $55.6 billion, Britain's The Financial Times said.
Emirates also pulled the trigger on a deal for 50 A380 jets built by Europe's Airbus.
The book value of the sales could be less because the three airlines would likely receive discounts on each plane, particularly the 777X because it is a new design, the newspaper said.
Emirates CEO Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al-Maktoum told reporters the long-range planes would service a rapidly-growing international hub in Dubai, which he predicted could soon be the world's largest airport. "In recent years much of the action in global aviation has shifted to the Middle East because countries like United Arab Emirates and Qatar have tapped into our geographic advantage to build new air transport connections for the world," he said.
