Irish airline Ryanair has agreed to purchase up to 200 new Boeing 737 MAX 200 "gamechanger" aircraft for up to $22 billion in a deal which help the airline grow its passenger numbers by almost 100 per cent to 150 million customers a year by 2024. The growth of the airline will create 3,000 new jobs for pilots, cabin crew and engineers in Europe, and will see its fleet rise to 520 aircraft, Ryanair said.
Announcing the deal in New York at 2.30pm Irish time, the airline disclosed that it has agreed to buy 100 planes, with options to acquire a further 100.
“When finalised and all options exercised, this deal will be worth over $22bn at current list prices,” the airline said.
Ryanair’s CEO Michael O’Leary said that the new “gamechanger” aircraft will allow Ryanair to lower its costs and airfares, “while improving our customer experience with more leg room and the Boeing Sky Interior, as we roll out new offers, particularly for our Business Plus and Family Extra customers”.
“As many of Europe’s flag carriers cut capacity on short haul routes, Ryanair looks forward to using these new Boeing 737 MAX 200 aircraft to grow at many more of Europe’s primary airports,” he said.
Boeing’s gamechanger aircraft will feature 197 seats (eight more than Ryanair’s existing 737-800s) and new CFM LEAP-1B engines, which, combined with aerodynamic improvements, will reduce fuel consumption by up to 18 per cent in Ryanair’s configuration and reduce operational noise emissions by 40 per cent.
Mr O’Leary is travelling to Seattle tomorrow to take delivery of the first of its 180 new Boeing Next-Generation 737-800 aircraft, a deal it struck X. This order will see Ryanair’s fleet grow from 304 to 420 (allowing for lease returns), and traffic rise from 82m last year to over 112m by 2019.
The gamechanger order will be submitted for approval by Ryanair’s shareholders at an EGM in late November. If approved, it will become Boeing’s largest ever aircraft order from a European airline and, according to Ryanair, represents the largest ever capital investment by an Irish company in US manufacturing and jobs.
