Reuters Summit-Boeing, Airbus seen facing mass order deferrals

(For other news from the Reuters Aerospace and Defense Summit, click here)

By Bill Rigby

WASHINGTON, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Boeing and Airbus could see up to 70 percent of the planes in their order book pushed back by struggling airlines as the global economic crisis puts a stranglehold on the recently booming travel industry, a leading analyst told Reuters this week.

That could be a serious blow to the world's two biggest aircraft makers, which are counting on six years or so of work in their backlog to keep them busy during the downturn.

"In terms of orders suddenly turning out to be firm as jello, that could be anywhere between 30 percent and 70 percent

(of the backlog)," Richard Aboulafia, an analyst at Teal Group, told the Reuters Aerospace and Defense Summit in Washington. "We are seriously in uncharted territory."

Airlines around the globe have been scrambling to take planes out of service this year, first to counter soaring oil prices, and more recently to adapt to a severe dip in demand from recession-hit travelers.

As a result, some airlines have been forced to curtail growth plans and defer deliveries of planes they cannot profitably put into service.