Middle East budget carrier flyadeal to switch to Boeing 737 MAX jets

Aircraft maker Boeing (BA) announced that Middle East carrier flyadeal looks to order 50 aircraft. According to a statement, the airline is committed to ordering 30 airplanes with options for 20 more in a deal that would be valued at up to $5.9 billion at list price.

flyadeal is a unit of Saudi Arabian Airlines that offers budget flights within Saudi Arabia. With its focus on narrowbody aircraft, flyadeal plans to switch to 737 MAX for future orders, despite currently operating Airbus A320s.

Saleh bin Nasser Al-Jasser, Director General of Saudi Arabian Airlines, said, “The demand for air transport services in the domestic market of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has grown exponentially.”

Al-Jasser added, “The low-fares airline will continue to expand rapidly, and the addition to the fleet aligns well with flyadeal’s target to grow its presence in the domestic market and cover new markets outside of Saudi Arabia.”

flyadeal switch to the 737 MAX 8 lifts its capacity for 189 passengers in a one-class configuration, 12 more than the A320s. This works out to a cut in the operating costs per seat by 8%.

“flyadeal has opened up more affordable flights to millions of travelers and we are honored that the airline has chosen the 737 MAX to power its exciting expansion,” said Ihssane Mounir, senior vice president of Commercial Sales & Marketing for The Boeing Company.

Budget carrier flyadeal is based in Jeddah, and it offers flights to eight domestic destinations including Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Qassim, Tabuk, Gizan, Madinah and Abha.

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