American Airlines in Talks with Airbus and Boeing for Potential Order of up to 200 New Narrowbody Aircraft
American Airlines is currently engaged in discussions with both Airbus and Boeing regarding a potential order for up to 200 new narrowbody aircraft, as reported by Bloomberg. These talks, which have been ongoing for several months, are focused on the Boeing 737 MAX and Airbus A321-200neo models.
A statement released by American Airlines stated, “We are talking to Boeing and Airbus about our narrowbody aircraft needs for the latter half of this decade and beyond.” The airline highlighted that they continuously assess their fleet and future aircraft requirements.
Should the order proceed, it would be on the higher end of the scale. The final order, ranging between 100 and 200 aircraft, would likely replace the older narrowbody jets in American Airlines’ existing fleet. The airline’s oldest narrowbody sub-fleets consist of 133 A319-100s with an average age of 19.4 years, 48 A320-200s with an average age of 22.4 years, and 303 Boeing 737-800s with an average age of 13.7 years. It’s worth noting that American Airlines is expecting the delivery of 148 narrowbodies, primarily 737-8s, by the end of 2027. These aircraft are part of the carrier’s previous order of 460 units placed with Boeing in 2011.
During a recent earnings call in July, American’s CEO Robert Isom confirmed the consideration of a narrowbody aircraft order. He emphasized that while there is no immediate urgency due to the outstanding Boeing 737-8s, there could be a commitment to new narrowbody aircraft after 2027. Isom also mentioned that the airline anticipates an aircraft capital expenditure averaging around USD 3.5 billion over the remainder of the decade.
As per the latest data from Airbus, there is a backlog of 4,092 undelivered A321neo aircraft, and Boeing’s backlog of undelivered Boeing 737 MAX stands at 4,359. Addressing these backlogs and the trend of large orders placed by other airlines, Isom expressed expectations for “appropriate regard” from both manufacturers in terms of delivery timelines.