By Tim Hepher

PARIS (Reuters -Airbus suffered a loss of 5% of orders for its A330neo long haul jet in March when its biggest customer had to undergo restructuring. But, the company won other sales for over 100 of its smaller planes, as monthly data revealed on Friday.

AirAsia X has cancelled 63 A330-900 versions of A330neo. This is an upgrade to the A330 wide-body and 10 A321neo models, Airbus stated.

European planemaker Aeroflot also stated that it delivered 142 aircraft in the quarter. This is an increase of more than 13% over the previous year. The net delivery count was still 140, after Aeroflot’s two cancellations due to Russian sanctions.

These delivery numbers are widely watched and confirm a range that Reuters reported this week, quoting sources – higher than analysts expected.

Airbus’ largest-selling wide body jet, A330neo (NYSE: A350), is now fuel-efficient. It fills a need below A350 to compete with Boeing (NYSE) 787 Dreamliner for a cheaper price.

Although the plane received a lot of initial orders, it only saw sporadic demand. It was heavily dependent upon Air Asia X.

Airbus is gradually decreasing the number of orders that are unlikely to be fulfilled while shifting its focus to the A321neo’s booming sales.

“It is always a shock to see a large wide-body cancellation but these aircraft have probably not been counted in investors’ delivery forecasts for at least the past three years,” Agency Partners analyst Sash Tusa said.

It is an excellent opportunity to look at A330neo orders, and clear up any backlogs with the A321neo demand.

Airbus proclaimed that its A321neo was less efficient than Boeing’s 737 MAX 10 in legal testimony. However, analysts described this move as a courtroom strategy in a heated legal dispute between Qatar Airways and Qatar Airways.

Airbus now holds 200 A330neos that have yet to be delivered, as opposed to 265 the month prior. Friday’s order rejig saw Airbus add 200 A330neos. This includes 28 Iranian A330neos under the 2018 Iran nuclear deal, though Tehran has been in negotiations with large powers to get it reopened.

Airbus stated Friday it had sold totals of 253 planes and a net of 83 aircraft after cancellations. The quarterly results of Rival Boeing are expected to be released next week.