Airbus A320 Vs Boeing 737: French Aerospace Major's Jet Beats Boeing 737 As Most-Delivered Jetliner In History

Europe's Airbus broke a major commercial barrier on Tuesday when its A320 family of planes overtook the Boeing 737 to become the most-delivered jetliner in history.

Boeing's decades-old record fell as a jet was delivered overnight to Saudi carrier Flynas, bringing deliveries to 12,260 since the A320 began service in 1988, according to data from UK-based consultancy Cirium, which is used across the industry.

Decades Of Transatlantic Rivalry

The A320 was launched in 1984 at a time when many questioned whether Airbus would last another decade after painfully launching two wide-body jets. It first flew three years later. Airbus engineers in Toulouse, France, gambled on introducing fly-by-wire computer controls for the first time to a mainstream airliner, a pioneering technology that faced resistance from unions and some carriers but later became widely accepted.

Airbus is now expanding production in the U.S. and China. Boeing set the standard for narrow-body aircraft production with its popular 737, first introduced in the 1960s, but plunged into crisis following fatal accidents in 2018 and 2019. 

The company is gradually restoring output under regulatory limits.

The two plane giants are expected to introduce new models sometime next decade but both told the ISTAT conference in Prague on Monday they were unlikely to start development any time soon as they wait for advances in engine technology.