Farnborough International Airshow 2026 - Day 1: Billions in deals, breakthrough tech & packed crowds

[00:00:09]Hello everybody, welcome to Farnborough International [music] Air Show 2026, the biggest in the event's history.

[00:00:16]We've got more aircraft, more exhibitors, more international visitors than ever before. And we have 2/3 of the top 100 CEOs in aerospace and defense.

[00:00:28]So, stay tuned. Over the next 5 days, we'll be bringing you all of the latest news in global aerospace.

[00:00:35]>> [music] >> SMBC kicked off what turned out to be a very good day for Boeing with an order for 100 737 MAX aircraft. [music] The order covers 60 of the yet-to-be-certified Boeing 737 MAX 10, alongside 40 of the 737 MAX 8. It's the first time SMBC has ordered the largest of [music] the 737 MAX family, although it is a firm long-term customer of Boeing with a total of 450 737 [music] MAX aircraft on its books.

[00:01:10]SriLankan Air has exercised options on previously ordered aircraft, [music] added a total of 34 new jets to its backlog with Airbus and Boeing. Among these are 28 787 [music] Dreamliner options converted to firm orders, 20 of which will be the largest of the family, the 787 10. In addition, the airline firmed six more Airbus A350 1000s at the air show.

[00:01:38]Archer Aviation and Anduril have unveiled [music] their jointly developed autonomous VTOL aircraft, which they say is designed for both defense and commercial applications. At the Farnborough Air Show, Anduril is showcasing the defense variant known as Thunder. Thunder is a Group 5 autonomous attack rotorcraft that's been built on Archer's experience in air taxis. The partners say they have already completed multiple test flights with full-scale [music] surrogate aircraft and intend to fly Thunder as soon as 2027.

[00:02:12]As the air show took flight, Bombardier wowed the crowd with an exhilarating performance of its Global 8000 business jet. Despite [music] being the fastest civil aircraft in the world, Bombardier used the display to highlight its low-speed performance. As senior director of communications Mark Masluch explained.

[00:02:32]>> We're really showcasing the low-speed performance. And people often think, well, it's the fastest civil jet in the world, but it really handles the best at low speed. So, if you look at double slotted flaps, the leading edges, this really creates an aircraft that can operate beautifully at low speed. So, low-speed turning, short field airport access, short takeoffs. And that's what's going to be really featured in our flying display.

[00:02:54]>> Also making [music] its Farnborough Air Show debut, and in fact its first public flight ever, was Vertical Aerospace's VX4 eVTOL. The display captured a vertical takeoff, a transition to wing-borne flight, and then back to vertical to land. AGN caught up with chief engineer [music] David King to find out more.

[00:03:15]>> In April we finished our full-scale prototype transition phase, which marked the end of envelope expansion. And now this is our first public demonstration. And then in the 2030s we will all have an opportunity to fly in Bay low and unlock the third dimension.

[00:03:33]>> What an incredible start to Farnborough International Air Show 2026 [music] it's been. We've seen some huge orders. We've had two aircraft making their debuts in the sky. And [music] we had the inaugural Aerospace Global Forum Finance Summit. Tomorrow we pivot to defense with the AGF Defense Summit. And of course more announcements are on their way from the big industry players. We'll see you then.