BALI, Indonesia, 18 Nov. 2011. Officials at Jakarta-based Lion Air have committed to order 201 Boeing 737 MAX and 29 Next-Generation 737-900 ER (extended range) airplanes, with the purchase rights for an additional 150 aircraft, from Boeing (NYSE:BA). This agreement, when finalized, will become the largest commercial airplane order in Boeing's history by dollar volume and total number of airplanes: totaling 230 airplanes at a list price of $21.7 billion. An additional 150 airplanes are valued at more than $14 billion, at list prices. Boeing and Lion Air officials are finalizing details of the agreement.
U.S. President Barack Obama was present for the announcement, made during a ceremony at the East Asia Summit in Bali, Indonesia.
"The 737 MAX will be the future of Lion Air," explains Rusdi Kirana, Lion Air founder and president director. "The highly efficient, technologically advanced airplane will help Lion Air continue to bring low fares and allow us to open new destinations because of the longer range of the airplane."
"The 737 MAX will deliver fuel savings better than any competing single-aisle airplane on the market," says Ray Conner, senior vice president of sales and customer support, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Airlines operating the 737 MAX will see a 10 to 12 percent fuel burn improvement over today's most fuel-efficient, single-aisle airplanes and a 7 percent operating cost advantage over tomorrow's competition, according to a Boeing spokesperson.
To date, Boeing has commitments for more than 700 of its 737 MAX airplanes, while the Next-Generation 737 family has won orders for more than 6,000 airplanes.
Lion Air is Indonesia's largest private airline, with 178 Next-Generation 737s current operating and on order.
