Ryanair ends negotiations with Boeing over new 737 Max 10 order
Ryanair has today walked away from negotiations with Boeing over an order for its new 737 Max 10 after failing to agree on a price for the jets.
Discussions over a deal have been ongoing for 10 months, but the two sides could not close the gap on price, the budget carrier said.
As a result, they have agreed not to waste anymore time on negotiations, Ryanair said.
Michael O’Leary, the airline’s chief executive, said he was “disappointed”, but that the carrier had a “disciplined track record of not paying high prices for aircraft”.
In a jab at the aerospace giant, he added: “We do not share Boeing’s optimistic pricing outlook, although this may explain why in recent weeks other large Boeing customers such as Delta and Jet2, have been placing new orders with Airbus, rather than Boeing.”
His words come days after Jet2 said it would buy 36 new jets from Airbus, rather than its usual supplier Boeing.
Last week in a press conference O’Leary had talked up the prospect of an agreement between the two sides.
“I would be hopeful that agreement might be reached in 2022. I mean the rate and pace of negotiation depends on Boeing,” he said.
“At the moment I think the balance lies in favour of us because Boeing have recorded remarkably few orders for the aircraft, and they need a couple of large Max 10 orders.”
In an ideal world, he said, he would order 250 of the planes over a five-year period.
In a statement, Boeing said: “Ryanair is a long-standing partner. We value their business and are committed to supporting them. At the same time, we continue to be disciplined and make decisions that make sense for our customers and our company.”
The 737 Max 10 order was intended as a follow-up to Ryanair’s order of 200 737 Max jets, which was struck last year.
The carrier will take delivery of the first of these next summer. With the new planes, Ryanair’s fleet will grow to 600 planes in total, capable of carrying 200m passengers a year.