Boeing stages partial comeback at Dubai Airshow with flydubai jet order

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By Federico Maccioni, Ahmed Elimam and Tim Hepher

DUBAI (Reuters) -Boeing hit back at the Dubai Airshow with a provisional order for 75 of its 737 MAX jets from flydubai on Wednesday, a day after the long-time Boeing customer handed an order for 150 competing A321neo aircraft to its arch-rival Airbus.

Flydubai said in a statement that the order would include options for another 75 Boeing jets.

The defection to Airbus had been one of the major talking points of the Middle East’s largest aviation event, held at the site of a new airport that will be flydubai’s home by 2032.

Boeing had continued to negotiate a deal involving dozens of jets to claw back part of its share of the growth of one of its most important 737 MAX operators, Reuters reported this week.

The deal allows flydubai to choose at a later date which of three 737 MAX variants – the MAX 8, MAX 9 or the as-yet-uncertified MAX 10 – it needs, the airline said.

In an interview earlier, CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith described Boeing as “my home” and said the U.S. planemaker would emerge stronger from its recent crisis, but noted the Airbus planes had been chosen mainly for their extra range and size.

EMIRATES DISCLOSES A350-900 ORDER

Airbus has grabbed the lion’s share of the busiest part of the jet market in recent years as the A321neo pulled away from the largest available Boeing equivalent, the 737 MAX 10, which is likely to enter service next year after certification delays.

At the top end of the market, Boeing had dominated day one of the show with a surprise order worth $38 billion for the 777X from Emirates, which continues to back the world’s largest twin-engined jet to meet demand despite long development delays.

Airline president Tim Clark said on Tuesday it was not yet ready to buy the competing Airbus A350-1000 amid questions over engine performance in harsh Gulf conditions, but heaped praise on the smaller A350-900 which Emirates began taking a year ago.

On Wednesday, Emirates revealed a previously undisclosed order for eight more Airbus A350-900s, a day after ruling out an immediate order for larger A350-1000s.

The order had previously been posted by Airbus as a transaction with an unnamed buyer. Although it is not new on the planemaker’s books, the decision to go public during the Dubai Airshow was seen as a gesture of support after Emirates placed its unexpectedly large 777X order on Monday, delegates said.

In other business, the air show continued to reflect demand for freighters despite global trade tensions.

Azerbaijan’s Silk Way West Airlines signed a contract for two additional A350F freighters and Libya’s Buraq Air signed a provisional deal to buy 10 A320neo passenger jets, Airbus said.

(Editing by Conor Humphries)