Chinese Airline Okay Airways Orders 15 737 MAX Airplanes

Boeing and Okay Airways announced today an order for 15 737 MAX airplanes, valued at $1.8 billion at current list prices.

The order consists of eight 737 MAX 10s and seven 737 MAX 8s. Okay Airways becomes one of the launch customers of the 737 MAX 10, the newest member of the MAX family.

The airline also signed a memorandum of understanding for five 787-9 Dreamliners as part of its long-term fleet strategy and expansion.

“We are committed to investing in our aircraft fleet in order to keep growing ahead of the market and enhancing our customers’ flying experience,” said Wang Shusheng, chairman of Okay Airways. “These new airplanes are expected to deliver extraordinary efficiency, reliability and passenger comfort in their segment market, making them very compelling for us in our fleet growth and network expansion.”

“We are very pleased to welcome Okay as a launch customer of the 737 MAX 10 and a new customer of the 787-9 Dreamliner,” said Ray Conner, Vice Chairman of The Boeing Company. “We also appreciate Okay’s reaffirmation of additional 737 MAX 8s, which represents the heart of the single-aisle market. We value our longstanding partnership and look forward to delivering these airplanes to support their ambitious growth plans.”

Okay Airways is headquartered in Beijing with its main hub at Tianjin Binhai International Airport. Its all-Boeing jetliner fleet includes 17 Boeing 737-800s, four Boeing 737-900ERs, and one Boeing 737-300 Freighter, which serves more than 50 domestic and regional destinations.

The 737 MAX 10 will be the most profitable single-aisle airplane, offering the lowest seat costs ever. The entire 737 MAX family has been designed to offer customers exceptional performance, flexibility and efficiency, with lower per-seat costs and an extended range that will open up new destinations in the single-aisle market. The MAX 8 and 9 will be followed in 2019 by the introduction of a smaller, long-range MAX 7 and a 200-seat 737 MAX 8. The MAX 10 will be introduced in the 2020 time frame.