Boeing sells new airplanes to Indonesian airline

SAN FRANCISCO, April 10 (Xinhua) -- U.S. leading aerospace manufacturer Boeing Company (Boeing) announced Tuesday it had completed a deal on selling 50 of its new 737 MAX 10 airplanes to an Indonesian low-cost airline.

Boeing said the latest deal with the Indonesian Lion Air Group, the country's largest privately run airline and the second largest low-cost airline in Southeast Asia, is the largest incremental order to date of the MAX 10 variant worth about 6.24 billion U.S. dollars.

"This airplane delivers a new level of fuel efficiency and operating economics and fits with our fleet of modern airplanes," said Lion Air President Director Edward Sirait.

The 737 MAX 10, which is the largest variant in the family with a length of 43.8 meters, can transport a maximum of 230 passengers and offer airlines the lowest seat-mile cost ever in a single-aisle aircraft.

The 737 MAX model is the largest narrow-body airplane produced by Boeing that offers about 130 to 230 seats, with the ability to fly up to 7,130 kilometers.

Lion Air Group, also the second largest airline of Indonesia, was the first in the world to put the 737 MAX 8 into service and the first to order the 737 MAX 9. It became the first to receive the delivery of a 737 MAX 9 last month.

Boeing said the 737 MAX is the fastest-selling airplane in history, accumulating more than 4,400 orders from 96 customers worldwide.

The Chicago-based aircraft manufacturer said in its first-quarter report Tuesday that it sold 132 Boeing 737 passenger jets in the first three months of 2018, a year-on-year increase of 16.8 percent. Enditem