Boeing has recently secured significant orders for its 787 Dreamliner and 777 double-aisle aircraft from Japan Airlines and Korean Air. This announcement, made on Monday, comes after Airbus had made gains with these airlines in the wake of issues related to Boeing’s 737 Max. The recent orders indicate that Boeing is responding proactively to regain its foothold in the market.
Brad McMullen, Boeing’s sales operations head, expressed satisfaction with Japan Airlines’ decision to continue modernizing its fleet with the 787 Dreamliner, highlighting the importance of their long-standing partnership.
These new orders were unveiled during the opening day of the Farnborough International Airshow. Japan Airlines has committed to purchasing 10 Dreamliners with the option for an additional 10, while Korean Air has ordered 20 777-9 jets and 20 787-10 planes, also with the option for 10 more 787-10s.
This move comes after reports that Airbus had sold 11 A321neo jets to Japan Airlines, marking its first purchase of a single-aisle aircraft from a manufacturer other than Boeing. The A321neo competes directly with Boeing’s 737 Max, which was experiencing challenges at the time.
Similarly, Bloomberg highlighted that Airbus had recently sold several wide-body jets to Korean Air, which predominantly operates Boeing aircraft. This was seen as a slight against Boeing’s 777x model, which is nearing regulatory approval.
Stephanie Pope, head of Boeing’s commercial airplanes division, expressed gratitude to Korean Air for choosing Boeing’s aircraft to enhance its global network capacity. She emphasized the significance of Boeing’s aircraft in supporting Korean Air’s objectives for sustainability and growth over the past 50 years.