MTU Aero sees at least $1.1 billion of orders at show

German aircraft engine maker MTU Aero Engines said its order intake at this year's Paris Airshow will reach at least $1.1 billion thanks to demand for Pratt & Whitney's geared turbofan model.

The figure, which includes options, is well above the 600 million euros ($804 million) booked at the 2011 Paris Airshow but still short of the record 1.3 billion of orders netted at last year's Farnborough show, Chief Executive Egon Behle said.

"More came in than we had expected," he said on Wednesday, referring to demand for the geared turbofan.

The PW1000G geared turbofan engine was chosen to power the next-generation Embraer E-Jet, which launched on Monday with up to 365 potential orders.

It is also on the Bombardier CSeries jet due for first flight later this month, as well as three other platforms.

"We are well on our way to reaching our target of 6 billion euros of annual sales by 2020," said Behle, who is leaving the company at the end of the year.

Asked whether the orders boost at the show may prompt the company to raise its outlook, he said that was up to his successor, current finance chief Reiner Winkler, and his team.

(Reporting by Maria Sheahan; Editing by James Regan)