Farnborough 2026 has closed, and for once the headline is not a record. Boeing came out narrowly ahead of Airbus in the order race — but the show’s real story was how modest that race turned out to be.

By Reuters’ tally, Boeing booked 173 orders to Airbus’ 154, or 327 aircraft between the two. Ahead of the show, some bullish forecasts had floated numbers as high as 800. The final figure fell well short of that.

A show that stayed calm

The subdued tally was not a surprise to everyone. With order books already stretched years into the future, both manufacturers spent the week managing delivery slots rather than chasing headline deals.

Airbus and Boeing are both still working through record backlogs while wrestling with supply-chain constraints and production bottlenecks. In that context, a quiet Farnborough says less about demand than about how much of it has already been booked.

Who ordered what

One deal towered over the rest: lessor SMBC Aviation Capital ordered 200 narrowbody jets, split evenly between Boeing and Airbus — more than 60 percent of the entire show’s total on its own. Beyond that, the week was filled out by leasing companies and mid-size carriers rather than blockbuster flag-carrier commitments.

The result: Boeing edges the win on paper, but neither planemaker will remember Farnborough 2026 as a vintage year for orders.

Sources: Reuters; Business Traveller; AirInsight; Asian Aviation.