2014: What a year!

Looking back at 2014, I am delighted to see that it has been a year full of excitement, innovation and success for Airbus in Latin America.

Airbus started the year in Bolivia, with the A350 XWB taking part in a variety of extreme weather and altitude tests as part of its rigorous certification program. It wasn’t long before the most modern aircraft in the world found itself back in our region as part of its Route Proving Mission. Our visits to Santiago and São Paulo gave Airbus the chance to showcase our newest wide body to customers as well as government and airport officials.

While it was certainly the year of the A350, there were other newsmakers too. During the Farnborough Air Show, Airbus stole the show by launching the A330neo program. Shortly thereafter, the A320neo had its first flight. And before the year closed, Airbus launched the development and production of five new Belugas to complement the A350's ramp-up and increased production rates.

But our innovation developments only tell part of our success story in 2014. Among several important orders placed this year, one was by Azul, which we were extremely proud to welcome to the Airbus family. The airline announced first in April that they would lease seven A330-200s and five A350s, and later in the year ordered 35 A320neo and agreed to lease 28 A320neo. We were especially pleased that Azul selected the A320neo for its unbeatable productivity and fuel efficiency to expand their growing network.

Also in Brazil, we were very happy to see the certification of A380 operations at Rio de Janeiro’s Galeão International Airport, paving the way for the biggest airplane in the world to finally operate in Brazil next year - - most probably with Emirates, Air France or Lufthansa, all of which have expressed interest in flying to Brazil with the A380.

Clearly, we have set the bar quite high for 2015. I am confident that our team’s dedication and commitment to the region will allow us to help our customers continue growing with the most modern and efficient aircraft.