Boeing and Copa Airlines announce order for up to 60 737 MAX jets | News
Boeing and Copa Airlines have announced that the Panamanian airline has ordered 40 737 MAX aircraft. Under the agreement, Copa Airlines also has options to acquire an additional 20 aircraft from the single-aisle family.
Copa Airlines CEO Pedro Heilbron and Boeing Commercial Airplanes President and CEO Stephanie Pope were joined by Panama President José Raúl Mulino, U.S. Ambassador Kevin Marino Cabrera and other government representatives at a signing ceremony in Panama to acknowledge the previously unknown purchase.
Copa Airlines plans to expand its fleet by more than 100 737 MAX aircraft between this agreement and its existing order book. The airline will leverage the efficiency, range and capacity of its larger 737 MAX fleet to modernize and expand its network from its Hub of the Americas® to fly to popular destinations in the Americas and the Caribbean.
“For Copa Airlines, the signing of this agreement represents an important step in further strengthening the operations and connectivity we offer from Panama,” said Heilbron, CEO of Copa Airlines. “Through the Hub of the Americas®, we have built a connecting hub that today allows us to respond to market demands in a safe, efficient and reliable manner. The addition of new aircraft will be critical to further expanding our operations and route network, while supporting the economic development of Panama and the region and generating new jobs and growth in the tourism sector.”
Heilbron said the airline benefits from operational commonality across its fleet of more than 110 737 jets, including the Next-Generation 737, 737 MAX and 737 Boeing Converted Freighters.
The versatility and reliability of the 737-9 and 737-8 aircraft enable Copa Airlines to fly shorter, high-density flights and some of the world’s longest 737 MAX routes, connecting Panama to North America, Latin America and the Caribbean.
“This major order builds on more than 40 years of partnership with Copa and the airline’s history of success with the Boeing 737 family,” said Pope, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “The additional 737 MAX aircraft will help Copa maintain one of the world’s youngest and most capable fleets, while further supporting Panama as a major business and tourism destination.”
The legacy 737 operator connects 88 destinations in 32 countries in North, Central and South America and the Caribbean.
According to Boeing’s Commercial Market Outlook, airlines in the Latin American and Caribbean markets will need more than 2,300 new aircraft over the next two decades, with single-aisle aircraft such as the 737 MAX accounting for nearly 90% of deliveries.
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