Boeing just attacked Airbus' most dominant plane with $30 billion in orders
With room for as many as 230 seats, the 737 MAX 10 is Boeing's answer to the Airbus A321neo which has been outselling the smaller MAX 9 at a rate of five-to-one.
"Airlines wanted a larger, better option in the large single-aisle segment with the operating advantages of the 737 MAX family," Boeing Commercial Airplanes President and CEO Kevin McAllister said in a statement.
"Adding the 737 MAX 10 gives our customers the most flexibility in the market, providing their fleets the range capability, fuel efficiency and unsurpassed reliability that the 737 MAX family is widely known for."
The 220-seat MAX 9's inability to compete against the 236-seat A321neo has been a sore spot for Boeing in an otherwise highly successful 737 MAX sales campaign. With the MAX 10, which was first teased by Boeing Commercial Airplanes sales boss Randy Tinseth in March, the company has certainly closed the gap.
As part of the launch, Boeing announced that it has taken more than 240 orders and commitments for the MAX 10 worth as much as $30 billion at list prices. This includes a 50-plane order from Indonesia's Lion Air Group worth more than $6.2 billion at list prices and a 40 aircraft order from India's SpiceJet - 20 of which were converted over from other MAX models.
General Electric Commercial Aviation Services also placed an order for 20 MAX 10s while leisure travel giant TUI Group agreed to convert 18 of the company's 70 outstanding 737 orders to the pricier MAX 10.
The MAX 10 will be 66 inches longer than the MAX 9 and will feature a new levered main landing gear. In addition, Boeing promises the plane's fuel-sipping CFM International LEAP-1B engines, advanced aerodynamics, and state-of-the-art avionics will help the MAX 10 deliver the lowest unit costs of any single-aisle airliner in history.
However, the MAX 10 doesn't solve all of Boeing's 737 MAX problems. Even when equipped with an auxiliary fuel tank, the MAX 10's 3,700-mile range can't match that of the extended range A321neo LR's claimed 4,600-mile range.
With that said, the 737 MAX 10 is certainly a major step in the right direction for Boeing.
Here's a video Boeing put together touting the 737 MAX 10's attributes to potential airline customers.
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