IAG, the group behind British Airways and Iberia, is expanding its fleet with 71 new aircraft. The orders are neatly divided between Boeing, an American manufacturer, and its European rival, Airbus.
The order involves more than 20 billion dollars. The planes would be delivered between 2028 and 2033. IAD did not release how much specifically the company is paying for the aircraft, although top executive Luis Gallego hinted that a “significant discount” was being negotiated, although the amount was not specified. Gallego also indicated that this is a “milestone” for the conglomerate.
38 Boeing versus 33 Airbus
32 Boeing 787-10s are ordered from Boeing, at the list price of 12,7 billion dollars, for British Airways’ fleet. In March, the IAG group had already taken options on six Boeing 777s.
At Airbus, there are 21 Airbus A330-900neo, with a list price of 7.8 billion dollars. Also at Airbus, IAG had already taken options on 12 Airbus A350 in March.
The Airbus aircraft are destined for Iberia and IAG’s other airlines. This brings the total to 71 new aircraft for the group, including 38 orders from Boeing versus 33 from Airbus.
Rolls-Royce would supply the engines for Airbus, and General Electric for Boeing.
Wind in the sails for IAG
Things are currently going very well for the IAG group. Like other airlines, IAG suffered huge losses during the COVID-19 pandemic but recovered strongly afterwards.
Profits increased sixfold in 2023 and reached 2,7 billion euros last year. In the first quarter of this year, IAG made a profit of 176 million euros, compared with a loss of 4 million euros last year.
IAG, which stands for International Airlines Group, currently has a fleet of about 530 aircraft. In addition to British Airways (295 aircraft) and Iberia (97 jets), Aer Lingus, Vueling, and Level also fall under the IAG umbrella.
The order, announced after the recent new US-UK trade agreement, is especially good news for Boeing, the largest US aircraft manufacturer.
As recently as April, Beijing enacted a ban on Chinese airlines placing new orders with the company or taking delivery of new aircraft from Boeing.
The measure resulted from Trump’s introduction of extremely high import tariffs on Chinese goods, although the US and China have reached an agreement today in Zurich to slash tariffs by 115%.
According to the Financial Times, the plane orders were part of “long-term” planning and had nothing to do with the new US-UK trade agreement.
Aerospace companies are faced with the base import tariff of 10 per cent. Engines and aircraft parts from Rolls-Royce may also enter the US free of import duties
