Airbus sells 460 planes in Jan-Oct, trails Boeing

European planemaker Airbus won 460 aircraft orders in the first 10 months of the year, less than half the score by Boeing as its U.S. arch rival continued to benefit from a surge in demand for its new fuel-efficient 737 MAX model.

Airbus said net orders in the period from January to October reached 403 after taking into account 57 cancellations, compared with 1,009 for Boeing in the period to November 6. The U.S. company has received 990 net orders for 737 narrow-body jets this year.

Boeing also outpaced Airbus in terms of deliveries in the period through October, handing over 486 aircraft to customers, including 342 737s, against 462 for Airbus.

The latest data show Boeing is still on course to reclaim the top spot in commercial aircraft production from Airbus this year. The U.S. group lagged Airbus on deliveries for the ninth year in a row last year.

Boeing's market share sank to its worst level in the history of its 40-year rivalry with Airbus in 2011 as it took longer to decide on a strategy to meet demand for more fuel-efficient single-aisle jets in response to Airbus' new A320neo.

But its new 737 MAX is helping it overtake Airbus this year.

Airbus said last week it expects to deliver 580 aircraft this year, with gross orders of 600-650.

Airbus' new business in October included the purchase of 15 A330-300s by Turkish Airlines and an additional order for four A350 XWB jetliners from Libya's Afriqiyah Airways.

The planemaker added that it delivered five A380 superjumbos last month, taking the total since January to 22 and keeping Airbus on track to deliver 30 of the planes this year.

The company also previously targeted selling 30 of the superjumbo planes this year but has since said that could be tough to achieve. Airbus only sold four A380s during the 10-month period.

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Boeing's 737 MAX is selling like hotcakes while the 320 is fizzling out. The delivery numbers of Boeing also triumph Airbus'. Is the American giant making a big comeback to regain the spot as the biggest market share in commercial aviation?

On the other hand, the A380 is performing poorly with low orders. Fuel prices is probably the biggest culprit for such a poor showing. Unless the A380 becomes cheaper to operate, airlines will continue buying twin-engine airplanes that are more efficient over the same kind of range as the jumbojet.