Boeing Commercial Airplanes has another expanded order for multiple 737 MAX aircraft, a reported $3.7-billion booking from 777 Partners. The buyer is a Miami-based private-equity portfolio with holdings that include three budget carriers, Bonza Aviation, Flair Airlines, and Value Alliance.
The new order brings 777 Partners’ total bookings for 738 MAX jets to 68 – and represents its fourth such order this year.
The twin-engine, narrow-body 737 MAX remains Boeing’s best-selling aircraft, despite a 20-month halt in production and deliveries during the investigation of two accidents that killed a total of 346 passengers and crew members, in October 2018 and March 2019.
Since it addressed the flight-control software program identified as the cause of the two crashes and regaining air-worthiness certification from the Federal Aviation Administration and other regulatory bodies, Boeing has scored a number of new orders for the 737 MAX – notably increased bookings from some of its largest customers, like Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, and Ryanair.
To date, Boeing has recorded a total of 4,612 orders for the Boeing 737 MAX since it announced the 737 series update in 2011, and it has delivered 599 of the aircraft since it was introduced in 2017. The total number of orders is updated to reflect more than 600 cancellations during the past year – apparently due to airlines’ revised projections of capacity requirements following the Covid-19 pandemic.
"We're delighted to be able to announce the almost doubling in size of our order with Boeing," stated Josh Wander, managing partner of 777 Partners. "We have long been confident in the economics of the 737 MAX family but we are especially excited about the 737-8-200 variant which represents the bulk of our additional orders.”
He continued: “We're confident that this aircraft will be the hallmark ULCC/LCC asset, particularly in the sub-200 seat market. As travel demand returns, 777 has accelerated our quest for efficiencies in both operating cost and carbon footprint at our operating carriers. In these areas the 737-8 is compelling and the 737-8-200 is simply unrivalled."
ULCC/LCC is a designation for “ultra-low-cost carrier/low-cost carrier”, referring to the operating cost of the 737 MAX: Boeing continues to emphasize the economic advantages to operators of the aircraft, including fuel consumption and carbon emissions (“at least -14% compared to the airplanes it replaces”), as well as cabin design features that promise to please passengers – building brand affinity for airlines.
"777 Partners is enabling growth for its affiliated low-cost carriers by leveraging the 737 family's flexibility, reliability and efficiency to serve passengers for years to come," according to Ihssane Mounir, Boeing SVP of Commercial Sales and Marketing.
