The Airbus order book has exceeded 6,000 aircraft for the first time — a figure that the European aerospace giant claims is an industry record. By contrast, Boeing’s order book stands at 5,703 aircraft.

After taking orders for 248 aircraft in November and delivering 61 aircraft in the same month, Airbus’s year-to-date orders added up to 1,031 (including cancellations) and its deliveries to 554. However, Boeing still has the upper hand, with corresponding year-to-date totals of 1,274 orders and 647 planes delivered.

Aviation analyst Howard Wheeldon said that Airbus’s faster response to airlines’ growing demand for efficiency is “helping it gain an edge in the fight for dominance. It was the first of the two companies to begin developing modernised versions of its existing jets. The Airbus neos are doing extremely well and making inroads. The group listened to what the market wanted and delivered it first.

“Airbus was into the evolution of aircraft earlier than Boeing, taking out costs by giving them more-efficient engines and reducing maintenance. Boeing was a little slower in its response. Boeing had a different approach, developing the all-new 787 Dreamliner; it in-corporated much more advanced technology and materials such as composites to improve efficiency, which delayed its introduction into service and pushed up costs.”

However, Saj Ahmad, chief analyst at Strategic Aero Research, said that Airbus’s larger order book is “only temporary and the result of the European group falling behind in deliveries. Boeing is clearly delivering more jets than Airbus, and that trend will continue as it increases production. In contrast, Airbus is paring down its A330 production next year, as it revamps the model to the A330neo in 2018.”