Plane giant Airbus has secured new business worth up to £3 billion at the Dubai Air Show.

The deals include firm orders for 15 aircraft worth more than £1.87 billion, plus provisional agreements for a further 18 aircraft.

The company, which employs 5,000 people at Filton, is among a string of UK exhibitors looking for business at this week's five-day show, including Patchway-based Rolls-Royce.

The highlights of the show included firm orders for Airbus' newest products from French company Air Austral, for two A380s, and from Ethiopian Airlines, for 12 A350-900s. In addition, Comlux placed a firm order for one Airbus Corporate Jet.

The provisional deals, known as memorandum of understanding commitments, included: 10 A320s from Yemenia Airlines; four A320s plus two A330-200s from Senegal Airlines; and one A320 plus one A330-200 from Nepal Airlines.

Airbus also announced in Dubai the launch of its new 'sharklet' large wingtip devices, specially designed for the A320 family to reduce fuel consumption by around 3.5 per cent and improve performance and range. Air New Zealand is the launch customer for the Sharklets, specified for its future fleet.