Boeing finishes 2012 with near record aircraft orders and deliveries

BOEING won 1,203 commercial aircraft orders in 2012, the second highest number in company' records while delivering 601 planes, the most since 1999, as well as 31 deliveries of the 747-8 Intercontinental and Freighter.

"As we look ahead to 2013, we're focused on increasing production and delivering high-quality, reliable products and services," said Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Ray Conner.

"Increasing our deliveries by 26 per cent allowed us to put more airplanes into the hands of our customers and grow our customer base by offering the best products and services," Mr Connor said.

The 737 programme broke order records for any Boeing model in a single year, accumulating 1,124 net orders. The 737 MAX - the new engine variant of the best-selling 737 - recorded 914 of those orders, bringing total orders to date to 1,064. In addition, the Next-Generation 737 set a new single-year record with 415 deliveries to customers worldwide.