Aircraft leasing company GECAS, part of General Electric said it has placed firm orders for 60 A320 jets in a deal that Airbus said is valued at around $4.4 billion.
Henry Hubschman, president and CEO of GECAS, said he expected demand for the aircraft to come from around the world, although the lowest growth in demand was likely to be in the US.
Speaking at a separate press conference, Airbus chief operating officer for customers, John Leahy, said the deal would be worth around $4.4 billion, based on aircraft list prices.
Mr Leahy added that Toulouse-based Airbus expects to achieve its best-ever tally of orders announced at the show and forecasts that it will exceed 280.