TUI Travel Announces Commitment for 60 Boeing 737 MAX Jets, with Rights on 90 More

TUI Travel PLC has announced a firm commitment for 60 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, valued at $6.09 billion (£4 billion) at list prices.

The firm commitment by TUI Travel PLC includes 40 Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets and 20 737 MAX 9s, which TUI Travel says will carry 10 per cent more passengers than the 737 MAX 8s.

Boeing’s Advanced Technology winglet design for the 737 MAX family combines rake-tip technology with a dual-feather winglet concept into one advanced treatment for the wings of the 737 MAX. According to Boeing, the Advanced Technology winglet for the 737 MAX family fits within today’s airport gate constraints while providing more effective span, thereby reducing drag

TUI Travel PLC reveals it obtained a “significant” discount to list prices for its planned order. The deal requires TUI Travel to buy eight additional CFM International LEAP-1B engines as spares to support the committed 60 aircraft, at an aggregate cost of $104 million (£68.7 million).

The company also says the deal includes options on another 60 737 MAX jets at the same terms as the first 60 aircraft and purchase rights on an additional 30, at  terms to be finalized when it exercises those rights.

Deliveries of TUI Travel PLC’s first 60 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft are due to begin in January 2018 and continue until March 2023.

Boeing says it looks forward to working with TUI Travel to finalize the details of the order, at which time the order will be posted as a firm order to the Boeing Orders and Deliveries website.

Compared to today’s wingtip technology, which provides up to a 4 per cent fuel-burn advantage at long ranges, Boeing’s Advanced Technology winglet will provide a total fuel-burn improvement of up to 5.5 per cent on the same long routes, according to the manufacturer. Pictured here is an artist’s rendering of a 737 MAX 9 with new Advanced Technology winglets. The 737 MAX rendering is updated to reflect design decisions made since the launch of the program in August 2011. Note the lower-fuselage fairing near the nose to accommodate the longer nosewheel leg of the 737 MAX, compared with today’s 737s

“A major part of TUI Travel’s strategy is to provide our customers with unique holiday experiences that they can only get from us,” said Peter Long, chief executive of TUI Travel. “This multi-billion pound investment in the Boeing 737 MAX – representing the future generation of more fuel-efficient aircraft for our short and medium-haul programs ‒ will be a further driver in delivering this.”

“Boeing and TUI Travel airlines have a relationship which goes back almost 50 years” said Todd Nelp, vice president of European sales for Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “TUI Travel’s airlines currently operate more than 135 Boeing airplanes and the commitment for 60 737 MAXs marks the next chapter in their continued fleet expansion.”

The Boeing 737 MAX incorporates the latest-technology CFM International LEAP-1B engines and Boeing says airlines operating the 737 MAX will see a 13 per cent fuel-use improvement over today’s most fuel-efficient single-aisle aircraft.

This computer graphic image shows the three members of the Boeing 737 MAX family: in the foreground, the 737 MAX 9; in the middle, the 737 MAX 8; and farthest away, the 737 MAX 7

Boeing’s 737 MAX also features the Boeing Sky Interior. The interior boasts modern lines, a spacious cabin with more headroom and LED lighting that offers a plethora of color options.

TUI Travel PLC is one of the world’s leading international leisure travel groups and operates in approximately 180 countries. It serves more than 30 million customers in over 31 source markets.

Headquartered in the UK, the group employs approximately 54,000 people and operates six European airlines ‒ Thomson Airways of the UK, Germany’s TUIfly, Swedish carrier TUIfly Nordic, ArkeFly of the Netherlands, Belgium’s Jetairfly and French airline Corsair ‒ which operate a total of 141 aircraft.

The company is organized and managed through three business sectors: Mainstream, Specialist & Activity, and Accommodation & Destinations.

In the financial year ended 30 September 2012 TUI Travel had revenues of £14.46 billion ($21.93 billion) and an underlying operating profit of £490 million ($743 million).