Boeing sells latest 737 MAX 10 jets to first East European customer

SAN FRANCISCO, March 20 (Xinhua) -- U.S. aerospace leader Boeing Company announced Tuesday that it has struck a deal with Ukraine's new airline, SkyUp, to sell five 737 MAX aircrafts to help grow its Boeing fleet.

The deal, valued at 624 million U.S. dollars at list prices, includes two 737 MAX 8 and three 737 MAX 10 jets, making SkyUp the first customer in Eastern Europe to order the MAX 10 model, Boeing said.

The Kiev-based SkyUp is a new airline that plans to begin charter operations in April with leased Next-Generation 737 airplanes, and the new order of the MAX airplanes will help the airline meet future demand in the Ukrainian market.

"Distinctive dispatch reliability, low operational costs and passenger comfort were the main factors for choosing the 737 MAX," said Eugeny Khainatsky, general director of SkyUp Airlines.

SkyUp is the 95th customer of Boeing's 737 MAX series, and the latest 737 MAX 10 model has a maximum seating capacity of 230 with a range up to about 6,110 kilometers.

Launched in August 2011, the Boeing 737 MAX program has made the MAX family the fastest-selling airplane in Boeing history, accumulating more than 4,300 orders from 95 global customers of Boeing Commercial Airplanes headquartered in Seattle, Washington state on the U.S. Pacific West. Enditem