Airbus and Boeing: The Fight for the MENA Skies in 2025

Under the desert sun, the 2025 Dubai Airshow felt less like a trade exhibition and more like a high-stakes industry negotiation. The static display at Dubai World Central was crowded with the latest titanium and composite hulls, but the real action was happening inside air-conditioned offices.

The Order Super-Cycle: Inside the 2025 Duel for the Desert Skies

This was the year of the “Order Super-Cycle“, where airline wealth met a desperate post-pandemic demand for new aircraft, creating an atmosphere of frantic competition between the world’s two largest plane makers.

Airbus A320: Breaking Boeing’s 737 Historic Lead

For eight decades Boeing has flown the skies of Arabia. Airbus entered the market in the 1970s, and since then, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has become the ultimate stage playing out the duopoly between Airbus and Boeing.

However, 2025 will be remembered as the year the chessboard was upended, when Airbus had a record-breaking year due to the historic 12,260th A320 delivery to Flynas in Saudi Arabia. October 7, 2025, was the day Airbus finally beat Boeing’s all-time historical delivery count for their most popular models. (A320 vs. 737)

Beyond the Hype: Firm Orders vs. MoUs & Options

The MENA regional totals given here focus only on firm orders from the 2025 fiscal year, gathered from publicly released press data, and events such as the Dubai Airshow. Complete official statistics from the manufacturers are currently unavailable. Delivery data was extrapolated based on each manufacturer’s global performance adjusted for regional market share.

Disclaimer: These non-definitive figures are compiled from media reports. Distinguishing firm orders from MoUs and options was difficult, and unreported transactions are excluded. This report is only meant to offer a general overview of the regional competition between the two main aircraft manufacturers.

The MENA Orders Scoreboard: Boeing Reclaims the Crown

The 2025 data paints a picture of a region in a hurry. By the time the year had ended, the regional scoreboard was clear. Boeing emerged as both the quantitative and value victor, securing approximately 295 aircraft across the 22 Arabic-speaking nations, compared to Airbus’s 157  aircraft, with an estimated ‘firm order’ value of ~$39.6 Billion for Airbus and ~$158.2 Billion for Boeing. With this, Boeing actually regained the international lead in orders in 2025 for the first time in six years.

MENA Delivery Totals 2025: Airbus Wins & Maintains Regional Lead

However, the delivery numbers painted a very different picture. Airbus maintained its status as the regional leader in aircraft deliveries, successfully liquidating a significant portion of its “glider” inventory in the final quarter.

Airbus handed over roughly 120 aircraft to regional carriers, while Boeing trailed at 85, hampered by global supply chain ripples. In the MENA specific context, 2025 was the year of “Engine-Airframe Diversification.” Carriers that historically operated exclusive fleets broke those loyalties to ensure delivery reliability.

Technical Hurdles and Recalls

The year was not without its unexpected moments. Deliveries were constrained by two key technical issues: the “Sofitac Aero” recall involving faulty fuselage panels and the “Glider Crisis“, caused by severe CFM International and Pratt & Whitney engine shortages, which left finished airframes sitting idle. Delays stemmed from post-pandemic labor shortages, raw material scarcity, and diverting new engines for fleet repairs. However, by late 2025, Airbus had overcome these supply chain issues in a way that Boeing was unable to, resuming record delivery schedules.

From DC-3 to A320neo

To understand the stakes of 2025, one must look back to the 1940s, when a Douglas DC-3 gifted by President Roosevelt to King Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia effectively birthed the region’s commercial aviation. For decades, American aircraft were the undisputed king of Arab skies. It was not until the 1970s that Airbus leveraged a regional desire for diversification, with EgyptAir’s A300 entry in 1977 daring to challenge the status quo.

The Ultimate Battleground: Trading Blows for Supremacy

In the decades following that first challenge, the Middle East became the ultimate battleground for aviation supremacy, with the two giants trading blows as regional fleets swelled.

While Boeing secured its legacy through the massive wide-body orders of the early 2000s, they struggled to maintain its historical dominance amidst a perfect storm of FAA production caps, the delayed 777X flagship, and shifting U.S.-Arab political dynamics.

Tariff Diplomacy: The 2025 Boeing Comeback

However, 2025 saw a Boeing comeback led by the so-called ‘The Trump Effect’ and ‘Tariff Diplomacy’. The $96 billion Qatar Airways deal with Boeing was the centrepiece of President Trump’s May 2025 Middle East tour, explicitly framed as a mechanism to strengthen economic relations between Qatar and the United States.

Airbus’s loss in the 2025 order race is cited by its own Airbus Group CEO Guillaume Faury as a failure of European diplomacy to match US “Tariff-for-Planes” trade negotiations. He stated in late 2025 that Boeing’s order lead was “helped by the American president,” where aircraft orders were utilised as “part of the resolution of trade disputes” in Asia and the Middle East.

Vision 2030: Airbus and the Localisation Strategy

Airbus played it’s own political card. By embedding itself into the ambitious national transformation “Visions” (such as Saudi Vision 2030) of emerging Arab hubs by localizing industrial manufacturing and MRO services through major partnerships with the Saudia Group. This strategic integration allowed the European giant to capitalise on the region’s European industrial and diplomatic alignment.

The A320neo Milestone: Airbus Claims the Crown

This long-standing tug-of-war reached a fever pitch in 2025, a year where supply chain resilience and local industrial investment finally tipped the scales, when in October, Airbus reached a historic peak in its rivalry with Boeing. By delivering its 12,260th A320 aircraft to the Saudi carrier Flynas, the European manufacturer officially moved past the Boeing 737 as the most-delivered commercial jet in history. Despite the ‘glider crisis’, Airbus executives, including CEO of Commercial Aircraft Business, Christian Scherer, highlighted the resilience of their production lines and the central role of the Arab market in driving global demand.

Sub-Regional Breakdown

The GCC: The Global Engine Room

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) remains the region’s engine room, maintaining backlogs exceeding 100% of its current fleets.

Qatar Airways completed the $96 billion deal of the century with Boeing; while it was the airline’s largest ever order, it was also Boeing’s largest ever wide-body order in its history.  An agreement on 14 May 2025 for up to 210 widebody aircraft was witnessed by US President Donald Trump and Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

Boeing sees the Middle East market shifting to regional networks alongside its long-haul model. Despite a fresh $4.9 billion pre-tax charge and a 2027 delivery delay for the 777X program , Boeing strengthened its regional position in the May 2025 deal with Qatar Airways, solidifying the Dreamliner as the region’s main long-haul expansion aircraft for the next decade.

Stephanie Pope, President and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes stated, “We are deeply honored that Qatar Airways has placed this record-breaking order with Boeing, one that solidifies their future fleet with our market-leading widebody airplane family at its center. Our team is looking forward to building 787s and 777s for Qatar Airways into the next decade.”

Saudi Arabia, fuelled by Vision 2030, also dominated the headlines. The Kingdom took delivery of 15 A320s in a single quarter, 8 aircraft to Saudia Group and 7 aircraft to flynas, to fuel its domestic travel boom as the low-cost sector surged. Deliveries that helped propel the A320 family past the Boeing 737 as the most-delivered jetliner in history.

Meanwhile, Riyadh Air diversified its fleet away from a single manufacturer to protect itself from supply chain delays. While Riyadh Air launched commercial operations to London in October 2025, there was a calculated change of direction. The carrier ordered 25 Airbus A350-1000s , favouring Airbus’s delivery certainty over the delayed Boeing 777X.

While not an actual purchase order, Kuwait Airways also committed to Airbus by signing a 10-year lease for 8 Airbus A321neo aircraft in 2025 to mitigate delays in its direct order backlog.

Firm Order Tally: The GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council)

The volume was derived by aggregating confirmed firm contracts announced or finalised during 2025.

Boeing Firm Volume: 288 Units

• Qatar Airways: 160 wide-body jets (130 B787 Dreamliners and 30 B777-9s) finalised on 14 May 2025.
• Emirates: 65 Boeing 777-9 aircraft firmed during the Dubai Airshow in November 2025.
• Etihad Airways : 28 wide-body aircraft (a mix of B787s and B777Xs) confirmed on 16 May 2025.
• AviLease (Saudi Arabia): 20 Boeing 737-8 jets finalised in May 2025.
• Gulf Air (Bahrain): 15 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners firmed in November 2025.

Airbus Firm Volume: 125 Units

• Etihad Airways: 32 wide-body aircraft (mix of A350-1000s, A350Fs, and A330-900neos) secured through direct and lease-back firm agreements.
• Riyadh Air: 25 Airbus A350-1000 aircraft firmed on 16 June 2025.
• AviLease (Saudi Arabia): 40 aircraft (10 A350F freighters + 30 A320neo family) on 16 June 2025 at the Paris Air Show
• flyadeal (Saudi Arabia): 10 Airbus A330-900neo aircraft ordered on 23 April 2025.
• SalamAir (Oman): 10 additional narrow-body aircraft (A320 family) ordered in February 2025.
• Emirates: 8 additional Airbus A350-900 wide-body aircraft firmed on 19 November 2025.

(Note: The 150 Airbus A321neo and 75 Boeing 737 MAX commitments from flydubai were excluded as they were signed as MoUs and remained in the finalisation phase at year-end.)

North Africa: The Quiet Revolution

Further west, a quiet revolution took place. Geopolitics cleared the way for new business opportunities. France’s shift in Western Sahara policy acted as a catalyst, facilitating a massive Airbus re-entry into the Moroccan market, as Royal Air Maroc began evaluating a massive 200-aircraft expansion to support the 2030 FIFA World Cup.

The Libyan private sector bypassed political fragmentation and successfully added narrow-body jets to support growing regional routes. Buraq Air has signed an MoU for 10 A320neos, and new entities like Libyan United Airlines are preparing for a 2026 launch, signalling a robust recovery in post-conflict skies.

Firm Order Tally: North Africa

The volume represents contractually binding agreements added to the official OEM order books in 2025.

Airbus North African Firm Volume: 9 Units

• EgyptAir (Egypt): Stated firm order for 6 additional Airbus A350-900 aircraft on 18 June 2025 during the Paris Air Show.
• Air Algérie (Algeria): Finalised a conversion and top-up agreement in January 2025, increasing its A330-900neo commitment to 10 aircraft. This represents 3 new firm wide-body units (replacing two A350-1000 positions and adding one new airframe).

Boeing North African Firm Volume: 6 Units

• Royal Air Maroc (Morocco): While in “advanced negotiations” for 50 Boeing 737 MAX and ~24 Boeing 787 aircraft, no firm contractual finalisation was reported by 31 December 2025 , though they did sign a firm lease for 6 Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets, which was formalised in October 2025.

The Levant & Iraq: Rising from the Dust

Perhaps the most evocative stories of 2025 came from nations in the process of rebuilding. In Iraq, the national carrier continued its struggle against the “EU Banned List”. In a move designed to satisfy safety regulators, the company focused on upgrading and modernising its fleet with Boeing 787s and 737 MAXs to boost its safety credentials. They also took delivery of 5 Airbus A320s in 2025.

In Syria, the first signs of reconstruction appeared with tentative plans to rebuild the Damascus fleet through regional funding. The removal of U.S. transport sanctions in July 2025 triggered an immediate reconstruction pact, a landmark Memorandum of Understanding signed in August 2025 between the new Syrian government and an international consortium led by Qatar’s UCC Holding. A $4 billion deal was signed to rebuild Damascus International and finance up to 10 new Airbus A320s. Firm Order Tally: The Levant & Iraq

Firm Order Tally: The Levant & Iraq

This volume is restricted to contractually binding agreements added to official order books during the 2025 cycle, excluding deliveries from previous years.

Airbus Levant & Iraq Firm Volume: 20 Units

• Syrian Air (Syria): Firm agreement signed on 15 June 2025 with a Qatar-led consortium for 10 Airbus A320 aircraft as part of the Damascus International Airport redevelopment plan.
• Royal Jordanian (Jordan): No direct orders were placed with Airbus; however, a firm lease-back agreement for 10 aircraft was signed with Avolon: 8 A320neos earlier in 2025 and 2 additional Airbus A321neos on 20 November 2025.

Boeing Levant & Iraq Firm Volume: 0 Units

• Iraqi Airways (Iraq): While the carrier received 6 Boeing 737 MAX and 2 Boeing 787 aircraft in 2025, these were part of a “multi-year programme” firmed in previous cycles.
• Royal Jordanian (Jordan): Formally firmed an order for GEnx-1B engines in 2025 to power its future 787-9 fleet, but the airframe contracts were established prior to the 2025 window.

South Arabia & the Horn of Africa: A Legacy Relaunched

To the south, Yemenia completed a modest relaunch of its operations despite the region’s volatility. Yemenia’s relaunch brought a symbol of hope, with the carrier committing to an all-Airbus strategy despite losing three aircraft to conflict strikes earlier in the year.

While no new orders were placed in 2025, they did add a used Airbus A320 (most likely a lease, though terms were not explicitly stated) in August 2025 to their fleet, with major new aircraft deliveries (A320neo/A321neo) from their 2024 order with Airbus scheduled to start in 2031.

By standardising on a single aircraft family, the carrier is leveraging fleet commonality to drive down maintenance complexity and pilot training costs, essential steps for mitigating the high insurance premiums typically associated with conflict-affected aviation zones.

Simultaneously, Somali Airlines made its first appearance in decades, placing small orders to restart the national service. It edged closer to its debut with the purchase of two A320s, marking 2025 as a year of reclamation for the Horn of Africa.

Sudan Airways has also initiated a phased relaunch, reactivating its global reservation system in late 2025 to reconnect Khartoum with major regional hubs. The carrier is currently pursuing an Airbus-centric recovery plan, focusing on the sole operational A320-200 aircraft to stabilize operations.

Firm Order Tally: South Arabia & The Horn of Africa

This volume represents contractually binding agreements for airframes added to operational registries during the 2025 cycle. Given the geopolitical context, the model includes verified “firm acquisitions” of used aircraft as a proxy for market influence.

Airbus South Arabia & Horn of Africa Volume: 3 Units

• Somali Airlines (Somalia): Firm purchase agreement for 2 Airbus A320-200 aircraft finalised in July 2025 with “Lima Holding Group” to facilitate the carrier’s relaunch after 34 years.
• Yemenia (Yemen): 1 Airbus A320-200 firmed via acquisition in May 2025.

Boeing South Arabia & Horn of Africa Volume: 1 Unit

• Tarco Aviation (Sudan): Finalised the acquisition of 1 Boeing 737-800 on 27 August 2025, sourced from Amman, Jordan, to support its network expansion from Port Sudan.

The Bitter Pill: The Cancellation Sting and Supply Chain Woes

It wasn’t a perfect run for either side as the tally was tempered by global industrial and quality control crises that defined the period. The year 2025 was a complex chapter in the rivalry, as massive regional orders were partially offset by significant global and regional cancellations.

Despite Airbus’s strong regional position, it faced setbacks. Etihad Airways cancelled its remaining A350-900 backlog as part of its “right-sizing” plan, and the expected Emirates A350-1000 order didn’t materialise at the 2025 Dubai Airshow, as President Tim Clark awaits proven Rolls-Royce engine durability in the desert climate.

Meanwhile, Boeing’s global tally was hit by a 38-aircraft cancellation sting in November 2025 alone, led by Etihad Airways rescinding 15 777X and 7 787 Dreamliners. Furthermore, Qatar Airways made a strategic exit from its 25 Boeing 737 MAX 10s as part of its massive widebody pivot, reflecting a broader trend where carriers favoured immediate delivery certainty over delayed flagship models.

Overall View of the Region: A Strategic Synthesis

In 2025, the aviation market saw Boeing decisively surpass Airbus for the first time since 2019 amid industrial volatility. Boeing led the MENA region in volume with approximately 295 firm orders versus Airbus’s approximately 157, also outperforming them in value with Boeing earning approximately ~$158.2 Billion compared to ~$39.6 Billion for Airbus (based on estimated list prices).

However, Airbus excelled in deliveries for the region, providing 120 regional airframes against Boeing’s 85.

This occurred despite the “Glider Crisis” and the “Sofitac Aero” recall. Boeing faced 38 global cancellations and 777X delays, while Airbus saw an international loss of 8 A350F freighters. The market is moving away from brand loyalty to “Engine-Airframe Diversification” as carriers seek protection from persistent production bottlenecks.

As the ledger closes on 2025, the MENA aviation market has transitioned from being hub-centred to a multi-layered ecosystem. The GCC is no longer just buying planes; they are leveraging manufacturing partnerships like Strata, in the UAE and SAMI, in Saudi Arabia, to become integral to the global supply chain.

Boeing currently holds the crown in the Arabic-speaking world, primarily due to Qatar Airways largest-ever aircraft order, marking Boeing’s biggest widebody order and largest 787 order in history. However, Airbus’s delivery comeback in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2025 ensures the duel in the desert is far from over as the two manufacturers continue to trade some serious industry punches.