Boeing wins 182 commercial plane orders in third quarter, delivers 580

By Alwyn Scott

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Boeing Co booked 182 commercial aircraft orders in the third quarter and delivered a record 580 planes, putting it on track to easily hit its delivery target for the year and keep its title as the world's biggest plane maker.

However, Boeing's order tally, released Thursday, remained far below arch-rival Airbus Group. Boeing has booked 507 orders this year, compared with 875 for Airbus. After cancellations, Boeing had 447 net orders for the first nine months compared with 815 for Airbus.

Boeing's factories are turning out more aircraft than Airbus. Boeing said it delivered 580 jets in the first nine months, including a record 37 of its 787 Dreamliners. That's 30 percent more than the 446 planes Airbus delivered.

Both plane makers are increasing production rates to reduce order backlogs that stretch out eight to 10 years.

Boeing has said it expects to deliver at least 750 aircraft this year, meaning it has to deliver only 170 more in the next three months to hit that target. Airbus said it will deliver slightly more than the 626 it delivered in 2014.

(Reporting by Alwyn Scott in New York; Additional reporting by Tim Hepher in Paris; Editing by Kirti Pandey and Alan Crosby)