Biggest-ever airliner order marks first day of Paris Air Show

LE BOURGET, France — European aircraft maker Airbus got the Paris Air Show off to a soaring start with the announcement of the biggest-ever order for civil aircraft, as the French president joined a big crowd for the event's return after a four-year COVID hiatus.

The 500-plane deal with low-cost Indian carrier IndiGo kicked off what organizers have billed as the "recovery airshow" after the coronavirus ravaged the sector and the biennial trade fair was cancelled in 2021.

Fighter jets and civilian aircraft streaked across the sky while suited and uniformed delegations, including Ukrainian military officials and President Emmanuel Macron, toured the stands.

This year's airshow has a new focus on defense following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, as well as the industry's efforts to reduce its carbon footprint, with French President Emmanuel Macron arriving in a helicopter partly using sustainable aviation fuel.

Macron called for "restraint" to protect the environment but said measures for aviation should be "reasonable" rather than "punitive", adding that the world shouldn't "give up on growth".

Huge traffic jams around Le Bourget airport outside Paris were testament to the interest in this year's show, as aircraft makers field hundreds of orders and airlines brace for a near-record number of passengers this year.

The Ukraine conflict has also prompted countries to boost military spending, which could benefit aerospace defense firms.

While Russia has been excluded from the event, Ukrainian military officials toured the huge exhibition space at Paris-Le Bourget airport, some taking photos of missiles on display.

'PASSION FOR AIR HASN'T DISAPPEARED' 

Macron announced that Belgium is to be admitted as an observer to the French-German-Spanish Future Combat Air System (FCAS) program, which is seeking to develop the next generation of air combat technology.

Macron, closing a ministerial conference on European air defense, called it a " major development".

The FCAS is due to come into service by 2040, but has already suffered numerous delays.

Also on the military front, Macron said that France, Estonia, Hungary, Belgium and Cyprus are to jointly purchase Mistral short-range surface-to-air missiles.

"This is a very fine example of sovereign cooperation between Europeans on a range that is entirely relevant and that was not sufficiently covered", the French leader said.

There were star turns for the Rafale fighter made by France's Dassault and the American F-35 jet, with hundreds of visitors turning their phone cameras skyward and some plugging their ears against the deafening flypasts.

Le Bourget offers a forum to announce deals with some 2,500 firms lining up to show off their latest planes, drones, helicopters and prototypes such as flying taxis.

With 125,000 square meters (1,350,000 square feet) of exhibition space -- the equivalent of nearly 18 football pitches -- around 320,000 visitors are expected during the week-long event.

"Passion for the air hasn't disappeared, that's good news," said Bertrand Godinot, easyJet's Netherlands and France director.

BIG DEALS 

Along with the Farnborough airshow in England, which takes place in even numbered years, Le Bourget is a key sales event for the civil and defense industries.

Airbus and rival Boeing compete fiercely in announcing orders for aircraft running into the billions of dollars.

Monday's IndiGo-Airbus deal covers A320 family planes at a list price of $55 billion.

Although closely held actual sale prices are usually lower, it marks the largest ever civil aviation order by volume, hailed by Airbus chief executive Guillaume Faury as "an enormous milestone".

Airbus and Boeing are also battling to solidify supply chains as they increase production to meet growing demand.

The United States has a strong presence with 425 exhibitors, while firms from 46 other nations are present.

China, which lifted COVID restrictions only at the beginning of this year, is also represented.

However, Beijing is not displaying its first homegrown medium-haul passenger jet, the C919, built to compete with the Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 MAX.

FLYING TAXIS 

The airshow also hopes to open a window into the future as projects for flying taxis and other vertical take-off aircraft abound.

Several prototypes will be on display as part of a "Paris Air Mobility" exhibition to showcase the latest innovations that developers hope will change how people travel.

Macron arrived aboard Airbus' latest helicopter, the H160, in a flight fueled with 30 percent sustainable aviation fuel before visiting the European group's stand where it laid out its net-zero-by-2050 plan.

Macron had on Friday announced $2.2 billion to help develop technologies to reduce aircraft emissions.

Air travel accounts for nearly three percent of global CO2 emissions but serves only a small minority of the world's population.

With the industry targeting net zero emissions by mid-century, firms are turbocharging efforts to achieve it.

The initial focus is on SAF, made from sources such as municipal waste and agricultural waste.

But companies are also working to develop battery- and hydrogen-powered aircraft.

Agence France-Presse

Omicron coronavirus cases surge in UK, scientists see bigger wave

LONDON - Britain reported a surge in cases of the omicron coronavirus variant on Saturday which government advisors said could be just the tip of the iceberg, and London's mayor declared a "major incident" to help the city's hospitals cope.

The number of omicron cases recorded across the country hit almost 25,000 as of 1800 GMT on Friday, up by more than 10,000 cases from 24 hours earlier, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said.

Seven people believed to have had the omicron variant had died as of Thursday, up from one death in the UKHSA's previous data which ran up to Tuesday. Admissions to hospital of people thought to have the variant increased to 85 from 65.

The government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) said it was "almost certain" that hundreds of thousands of people were being infected with the variant every day and were not being picked up in the figures.

SAGE said without a further tightening of COVID-19 rules, "modelling indicates a peak of at least 3,000 hospital admissions per day in England," they said in minutes of a meeting on Dec. 16.

Last January, before Britain's vaccination campaign gathered speed, daily hospital admissions in the United Kingdom as a whole surged above 4,000.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has faced a rebellion in his governing Conservative Party over some of the measures he has taken so far to try to curb COVID-19's latest spread. A newspaper said on Saturday that Johnson's Brexit minister, David Frost, had resigned in part because of the new rules.

The advisors said it was too early to assess the severity of disease caused by omicron but if there was a modest reduction compared to the Delta variant, "very high numbers of infections would still lead to significant pressure on hospitals".

London Mayor Sadiq Khan declared a "major incident" - which allows for closer coordination between public agencies and possibly more central government support - as COVID-19 hospital admissions in the city rose by nearly 30% this week.

He said health worker absences had also increased.

"This is a statement of how serious things are," he said.

Khan, from the opposition Labour Party, also declared a major incident in January, when rising COVID-19 cases threatened to overwhelm hospitals.

The omicron variant is estimated to account for more than 80% of new COVID-19 cases in London, officials said on Friday.

Emergency meeting

Johnson was due to chair an emergency committee meeting over the weekend with the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, which have their own powers over public health.

A report in The Times newspaper said officials were preparing draft rules which, if introduced, would ban indoor mixing in England -- except for work -- for two weeks after Christmas when pubs and restaurants would be limited to outdoor table service.

People would be able to meet in groups of up to six outdoors, the newspaper said, adding that ministers were yet to formally consider the plans.

Johnson said on Friday "we are not closing things down".

A government spokesperson said the government would continue to "look closely at all the emerging data and we'll keep our measures under review as we learn more about this variant".

The number of all new COVID-19 cases reported in official data fell to 90,418 from a record high of more than 93,000 on Friday, but that was still the country's second-highest daily toll. Figures typically dip at the weekend.

Cases were up 44.4% over the seven days to Dec. 18 compared with the previous week.

Police clashed with a group of protesters opposed to the latest COVID-19 restrictions near Johnson's Downing Street office and residence on Saturday. A number of officers were injured but so far no arrests had been made, police said. (Editing by Helen Popper, Timothy Heritage and Catherine Evans)

-reuters