Delta Air Lines is turning to Boeing for a big order of planes you’ll see on flights between the U.S. and Europe.
The Atlanta-based carrier on Tuesday announced plans to add the U.S. planemaker’s 787 Dreamliner to its fleet for the first time.
Specifically, Delta said it would buy 30 of Boeing’s largest Dreamliner variant — the 787-10 — with purchase options for an additional 30 more.
Deliveries are slated to begin in 2031.
Delta quickly updated its list of aircraft in its fleet and, no surprise here, confirmed that its new Dreamliners will sport a premium-heavy configuration with its Delta One Suites in business-class, along with its Delta Premium Select (premium economy) cabin.
These new aircraft will also come of the features that are standard on all 787s, including cabin pressurization that simulates lower altitude and, Boeing claims, reduces jetlag for passengers.
Read more: Delta now sells ‘Comfort Basic’ tickets: What to know before you book
For Delta, this is a major nod in favor of Boeing.
While the carrier has many older Boeing jets in its fleet — from the 717 to the 737, 757 and 767 — the new planes it’s received (or ordered) in recent years have skewed much more heavily in favor of Airbus.
It’s certainly possible Delta could use these new 787-10s as a replacement for the decades-old 767s it flies on many of its long-haul international routes, though the carrier did not immediately share specific plans about phasing out older planes.
That said, Delta will have a lot of new Boeing planes coming in the next decade, between these new Dreamliners and the 100 Boeing 737 MAX 10s it has on order (the MAX 10 still needs certification from regulators).
In all, Delta now has 286 new jets on order between Boeing and Airbus set to be delivered in the coming years: 232 single-aisle planes, and 54 widebody jets.
This is the biggest new aircraft order the airline has announced in two years — since revealing plans to buy 20 Airbus A350-1000s in January 2024.
The carrier called the Dreamliner the “next step in Delta’s international evolution,” and teased the plane as a future staple on high-demand transatlantic and South America routes.
“Today’s 787 order adds diversity to our widebody order book, while creating cost-efficient scale across all widebody fleets,” Dan Janki, Delta’s chief financial officer, said in a statement announcing hte news Tuesday.
Meanwhile, it’s been a good month for Boeing.
This big-ticket purchase from Delta comes less than a week after the planemaker won the largest aircraft order in Alaska Airlines’ history.
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