Air Lease Corporation converts 787 orders into additional 737 MAX

Air Lease Corporation (ALC) ordered fifty 737 MAXs. This order consists of 32 new units, with the remainder comprising the conversion of an order for three 787 Dreamliners that the lessor had previously ordered.

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The news came as part of the company’s fiscal 2021 results and is the first major hit to Boeing’s model since delivery problems began in the middle of last year.

According to the lessor, the order for 32 aircraft is instrumented in a memorandum of understanding. And the final purchase price will be negotiated in the future. Deliveries should begin in 2024 and continue until at least 2026.

This order follows one placed with Airbus during the Dubai Airshow. On that occasion, ALC agreed to purchase 116 aircraft: 59 A321neos, 25 A220-300s, 20 A321XLRs, seven A350Fs, and five A330-900s. In total, the company has 431 aircraft on order from the world’s two leading manufacturers for a total of $27.7 billion.

John L. Plueger, CEO and president of Air Lease Corporation, mentioned during the presentation of the results that the company «had a very good fourth quarter and the second half of 2021 thanks, in part, to the continued recovery of the airline industry».

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Pleuger also noted that demand for the MAX is heavily increasing. Hence those orders to be placed in the coming months will not begin to be delivered until «at least 2028». He closed by adding that ALC is «considering buying more freighters, including converting the order for several A330neo».

Nine 737 MAXs for Corendon Airlines

In the same vein, ALC announced that it has concluded a deal with Corendon Airlines’ Turkish subsidiary to place nine Boeing 737 MAXs. Yildiray Karaer, president of the Corendon Group, thanked ALC «for its collaboration with our goal to modernize and expand our fleet».

The airline will take delivery of the units in a staggered and phased manner. Five 737-8s will be delivered in spring 2022, one in the first quarter of 2023, and three 737-9s in the first half of 2023.