Rolls-Royce wins lucrative Emirates contract

Engine maker Rolls-Royce was today celebrating a multi-million pound contract to provide engines for airline Emirates.

The €759m deal will see the company provide Trent 500 engines to power 20 Airbus A340s.

In addition, it will provide after-care and maintenance for engines in the Dubai-based airline’s entire A340 fleet.

The announcement, made on the second day of the Paris Air Show, came as Airbus secured an order for 41 new planes from Emirates.

The deal includes 21 new 555-seater A380s together with the 20 A340s. The aircraft will be delivered to Emirates between 2004 and 2009.

Airbus, which is 20% owned by BAE Systems, said it was on target to deliver 300 jets this year despite facing the industry’s worst ever downturn.

This was far above its previous forecast of 175, and means the company looks set to overtake Boeing for the first time in more than 25 years with the number of annual aircraft deliveries.