International Airlines Group announced its first-half results today. Buried in the release was one line – and it tells where the ordered Boeing 737 MAXs are going.
In the Q2 report, IAG confirmed it has allocated its order for 50 Boeing 737s to Vueling. These are scheduled to be delivered from late 2026.
Vueling currently operates an all-Airbus fleet, with six A319, 85 A320, 18 A321, 23 A320neo and 4 A321neo – around 136 aircraft at the time of writing.
With 50 aircraft going to Veuling, this won’t replace the existing fleet in its entirety, so mixed operation will become the order of the day with the airline (unless another mass order is made from the 100 options IAG holds).
It would be implied that IAG will seek to remove older Airbus aircraft (or smaller ones) from its fleet to improve capacity, whilst reducing its environmental footprint.
IAG ordered both the Boeing 737-8-200 (the high-capacity 737-8) and the Boeing 737-10 (yet to be certified) in 2022, with an initial announcement in 2019.
Fleet deliveries and orders
IAG has been busy on the new aircraft front. During the first six months of 2025, 13 new aircraft were delivered, as expected. This included eight A320neo-family aircraft to British Airways and Aer Lingus, replacing smaller and less efficient aircraft, and another four A321 XLR aircraft to Iberia and Aer Lingus.
In addition, British Airways took delivery of one Boeing 787-10 as it continues to rebuild its long-haul fleet after the retirement of the Boeing 747 fleet due to COVID-19.
In terms of new orders, 71 orders were placed for long-haul aircraft.
The Group placed an initial order for 18 aircraft in March, including 12 aircraft for British Airways (six Airbus A350-1000, six Boeing 777-9) and six for Iberia (six Airbus A350-900).
In May, IAG ordered an additional 53 aircraft. This was for 32 Boeing 787-10s for British Airways and 21 A330-900neos, which can be deployed within Aer Lingus, Iberia and LEVEL.
35 of these 53 aircraft will replace existing aircraft, or, in the case of LEVEL, replace short-term leases, and 18 aircraft will be for growth in IAG’s main markets. These 71 aircraft will be delivered between 2027 and 2033.
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