Boeing, EgyptAir Exercise Options for Six Additional 737-800s
Cairo (BOEING) - Boeing [NYSE: BA] and EgyptAir today marked delivery of the airline's first Next-Generation 737-800 by announcing the Cairo-based carrier's exercise of options for six additional 737-800s. The total order for 12 airplanes is valued at $850 million at list prices and marks a significant investment by EgyptAir to bolster its regional operations with the highly efficient and reliable 737.
"The Next-Generation 737 is the premier single-aisle commercial airliner available today," said Lee Monson, Boeing Commercial Airplane's vice president of the Middle East and Africa. "The airplane's flexibility to perform difficult missions on various routes with unmatched efficiency and reliability offers airlines throughout the region the opportunity to streamline their operations and enhance profitability."
EgyptAir is also the first airline to begin regular service with a 737 delivered with Boeing's Class 3 Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) installed in the flight deck. The Boeing EFB digitally delivers vital charts and manuals that pilots need to fly an airplane, giving them quick access to the information they require. One available option is an onboard performance tool that gives pilots the ideal speeds and engine settings for an aircraft, in any weather, on any runway, with any payload, and can create vast gains in efficiency, range and payload.
The airline's Next-Generation 737-800s are also equipped with a Heads-Up Display (HUD) system that projects key navigational data directly in front of pilots, allowing for safer operation in difficult conditions such as inclement weather or problematic navigational terrain. HUD enhances the capability to takeoff and land when visibility is low.
EgyptAir placed its original order for six aircraft and six options in August of 2005. The six options confirmed today as orders were added to Boeing's Orders & Deliveries website this past week as being unidentified.
EgyptAir currently has four Boeing 737-500s, five 777-200s as part of their mixed fleet of airplanes.
"Today is a great day for EgyptAir and we're pleased to be adding this remarkable airplane to our fleet," said Engineer Atef Abd El-Hamid, Chairman and CEO of Egyptair Holding Company. "The Next-Generation 737-800 with its performance enhancing Blended Winglets truly meets our needs to maximize our operating efficiency and provide excellent service to our passengers."
Designed 10 years later than its main competitor and boasting one of the highest daily utilization rates in the industry, the Next-Generation 737 is the unmatched leader in the single-aisle commercial airplane market. To date, 100 customers have placed orders for more than 3,300 Next-Generation 737s. Overall, the 737 is the world's best-selling commercial jet airplane family, with more than 6,500 ordered by 236 customers.
EgyptAir operates 400 weekly flights from Cairo and several Egyptian cities providing route connectivity to more than 66 destinations across Asia, Europe, Africa and North America.
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