Boeing

The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] and Jakarta-based Lion Air today announced that the airline exercised its purchase rights and ordered an additional 30 737-900ERs (Extended Range). Valued at more than $2.2 billion at list prices, deliveries of these additional 737-900ERs are scheduled to begin in early 2010 and continue through 2012.

The agreement was announced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes President and CEO Alan Mulally and Lion Air President Director Rusdi Kirana at the Farnborough Air Show. Lion Air, the launch customer for the 737-900ER, announced its first order for 30 737-900ERs and 30 purchase rights in July 2005. These two orders combined total 60 airplanes. Deliveries of the first order are scheduled to begin in 2007.

The order was recently included on the Boeing Commercial Airplanes Orders and Deliveries Web site, attributed to an unidentified customer.

"The Next-Generation 737 is the most efficient single-aisle family today, and we are thrilled that Lion Air has selected the 737-900ER to support its expansion and fleet modernization plans," Mulally said. "The 737-900ER increases the 737 family's range and seat capability, and it shares the same industry-leading reliability of the world's most successful airplane family. Lion Air has been a great launch customer, and we are looking forward to delivering the very first 737-900ER to Lion Air in 2007."

The 737-900ER, the newest member of the Next-Generation 737 airplane family, increases the capability of the 737 by carrying more passengers and flying farther.

"Maximizing the unprecedented economic advantages of the 737-900ER is the key to our future growth as we expand our routes and add new destinations within our growing market," said Kirana. "We look forward to introducing the 737-900ER into Lion Air's fleet and to our growing base of customers."

The 737-900ER is the same size as today's 737-900, but with the addition of a pair of exit doors and a flat-rear pressure bulkhead, it can carry 26 additional passengers, raising the maximum capacity from 189 to 215 in a single-class configuration. Additionally, Blended Winglets, advanced technology wing enhancements and auxiliary fuel tanks will give the 737-900ER an increased range of 3,200 nautical miles (5,925 kilometers) - 500 nautical miles more than the 737-900.

"This fleet will help meet Lion Air's strategic expansion goals," said Dinesh Keskar, Boeing Commercial Airplanes vice president of Sales, South-Southeast Asia. "With more range and the lowest operating cost of any single-aisle jet in its class, the 737-900ER is an ideal fit to deliver superior economics and premier service."

Lion Air operates an all-Boeing fleet and is the largest low-cost airline in Asia with traffic reaching one million passengers a month since the airline's inception in June 2000.