The 100th edition of the Berlin Air Show began with a bang when Emirates Airlines announced a record order of the Airbus A380 jumbo jet.

It was a memorable first day at the air show, referred to as ILA, when Dubai airline Emirates said Tuesday it would buy 32 A380 planes -- the world's biggest commercial airliner -- for an estimated $11.5 billion. In another success for Airbus, Brazil's TAM Airlines ordered 20 A320 planes and five of its new long-haul A350-900 aircraft.

The announcement came shortly after German Chancellor Angela Merkel opened the show at Berlin's Schoenefeld Airport, where it runs until June 13 and will draw an estimated 200,000 visitors eager to glimpse products from more than 1,100 exhibitors.

Especially the Emirates A380 order is handing a significant boost to the Europeans. Louis Gallois, the chief executive officer of Airbus parent European Aeronautic Defense and Space on Wednesday likened it to a successful "acid test" for the plane.

"A company that is operating 10 A380s for more than one year with a good experience ... has chosen to increase its fleet in such a proportion, so I think it's the best referendum for the airplane," he said.

Several European military products took center stage on the second day of ILA, with the biggest star, the large Airbus A400M transport plane taking off for a 10-minute show flight.

The A400M has been controversial because European nations had to fund a bailout package to save it.

The project was agreed to in 2003 with Airbus ordered to construct 180 A400Ms at a fixed price of $29 billion. Technical delays, ballooning costs and political blunders caused delays in project, however, with the plane's maiden voyage taking place only last December in Spain.

Individual nations have since cut back on their orders and are still in negotiation with EADS over the actual price. Gallois said the negotiations are going well, adding that definitive results will be unveiled this summer.

Shortly after the A400M had taken off, the Eurofighter Typhoon roared into the perimeter, flying quick turns, loops and other complicated maneuvers the plane managed effortlessly. Built by a consortium formed in 1986 that includes Britain's BAE Systems, EADS as well as Italy's Finmeccanica, the Eurofighter is a twin-engine canard-delta wing multi-role aircraft that saw its prototype maiden flight in 1994. The Eurofighter, ordered by several European armed forces, isn't as fast but more agile than comparable U.S. fighter jets, observers say.

Earlier Wednesday, the German Bundeswehr showed off two of its helicopters.

The sleek Tiger UHT helicopter, which is currently being tested by the Bundeswehr, demonstrated its versatility in a short show flight. The helicopter's two-person crew is sitting behind each other, enabling the body of the helicopter to remain very narrow - making it harder to detect and to hit in air-to-air combat.

Another multinationally produced helicopter that was presented at the show, the NH90 built by Eurocopter daughter NHIndustries, has been more controversial.

Germany has ordered 122 NH90 for the army and the air force for around $6.2 billion but the testing of the pre-serial model revealed several deficiencies.