Boeing announced that Ryanair ordered 75 additional Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, as rumors were circulating that a deal for aircraft was nearing completion.
Ryanair’s backlog for Boeing 737 MAX jets will grow by 75 units and now will stand at 210 jets, indicated Boeing’s press release. The Irish low-cost carrier has been a firm believer in the aircraft and has kept calling it a “game-changer” despite the groundings following the second fatal crash in March 2019. The newest order is exclusively for the 8-200 version, a variant of the 737 MAX-8 specifically developed for the low-cost market.
“Ryanair’s board and people are confident that our customers will love these new aircraft. Passengers will enjoy the new interiors, more generous leg room, lower fuel consumption and quieter noise performance. And, most of all, our customers will love the lower fares, which these aircraft will enable Ryanair to offer starting in 2021 and for the next decade, as Ryanair leads the recovery of Europe’s aviation and tourism industries,” stated chief executive officer (CEO) of the Irish airline group Michael O’Leary. According to the Irish executive, the airline will take up to 50 Boeing 737 MAXs throughout 2021, with the first one’s slated to arrive in early-2021. The final deliveries of the 210-strong aircraft order are set to be completed in 2024.
Ryanair’s order would be the third-ever firm order for the aircraft in 2020. Enter Air, a Polish charter airline signed up for two 737 MAX aircraft in August 2020, while an unidentified customer ordered three additional units the same month. Since the groundings in March 2019, Boeing logged a total of 41 firm orders. SunExpress signed up for 10, SMNBC, a leasing company, signed up for four, while two unidentified customers signed up for one and 20 aircraft, respectively. Furthermore, one additional Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) was sold in September 2019.
“We are gratified that Ryanair is once again placing its confidence in the Boeing 737 family and building their future fleet with this enlarged firm order,” stated president and CEO of Boeing Dave Calhoun.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) un-grounded the Boeing 737 MAX on November 18, 2020, following 20 months of it being disallowed operating commercial flights. Meanwhile, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has indicated different conditions and a different timetable until the aircraft is un-grounded in Europe.
