Negotiating a billion-dollar aircraft deal against the backdrop of a Eurofighter Typhoon flying 60ft overhead is part of the allure of the Paris Air Show.

The noise of fighter jets blasting by is this show’s sound-track and deals are haggled by men and women with their fingers in their ears.

Most of the billion-dollar orders being announced at Le Bourget this week have taken months or years to negotiate, but, with the world’s aerospace industry in one place, new deals are a daily event.

Tony Fernandes, the chief executive of Air Asia, was talking to The Times in the Airbus media chalet when he received a phone call from Louis Gallois, the chief executive of Airbus. Mr Fernandes, who set up Asia’s largest low-cost carrier after being inspired by Stelios HajiIoannou, the easyJet founder, was scheduled to announce an order for 15 new Airbus A330s worth $2.8 billion (£1.4 billion) that afternoon. “I'll be back in 15 minutes,” he said. “I’ve just got to go and screw a few million dollars out of Airbus.”

True to his word, Mr Fernandes returned 15 minutes later having just agreed to buy a further $2 billion-worth of aircraft at attractive discounts. “Gallois is a very easy man to talk to and we spent about ten minutes talking about the show, but John Leahy [Airbus’s chief salesman] was obviously desperate to do a deal. It was a good opportunity and I’ve got a good deal.”

The deal was done so quickly that Mr Fernandes did not even have time to tell his financial backers what was going on.

Air Asia, which plans to launch London-to-Malaysia flights for an average of £90 return this year, announced the extra order at its press conference. An MiG 31 provided the background music. Later Mr Leahy dashed into central Paris to meet another airline customer in the hope of nailing down an order before the end of this week.

The 2,000 small and medium-sized companies exhibiting at the Paris show do the real business, but their successes are overshadowed by Boeing and Airbus.

One of the deals that failed to materialise this week was an agreement between the government backers of Airbus on a funding deal for the new A350. Airbus is seeking about €2 billion (£1.3 billion) to help towards the €11 billion project. Previously this has been done with loans, which the French want to continue; the British support a hybrid bond, instead.

Mr Gallois also failed to secure agreement with the government ministers over an increase in Airbus’s research and development budget. This week he asked the governments to increase their €55 million contribution to a figure believed to be about €250 million. The British are among those opposed to such a big increase.

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