Mikhail Tereshchenko | TASS | Getty ImagesA350 jets, the Dubai state-owned airline announced at the Dubai Air Show on Monday.
The order's list price sits at $16 billion, but a steep discount is typically negotiated by airlines. Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury told a press conference that the European multinational planemaker's flagship A380 would now have a "younger but very talented brother in the Emirates family." The A350 is a family of long-range, twin-engine wide-body jet airliners, while the A380 is the world's largest passenger airliner. The 50 jets ordered by Emirates are its cornerstone A350-900 variety, accommodating between 300 and 350 passengers.
The announcement of the order comes after an underwhelming first day for the Middle East's flagship aerospace expo, with only two jets sold on Sunday.