Boeing and The Norwegian Group have announced that the airline group has placed an order for 30 Boeing 737-8 aircraft.
Norwegian Boeing 737-8 MAX at Stockholm Arlanda – Image, Economy Class and Beyond
The agreement represents the group’s first direct Boeing order since 2017 and increases its 737 MAX order book to 80 aircraft.
Norwegian has predominantly operated Boeing single-aisle airplanes since placing its first order for the Next-Generation 737-800 in 2007. It was the first European airline to take delivery of the 737 MAX in 2017 and was also the first airline to operate the 737-8 model on transatlantic routes between Europe and the U.S.
In 2022, Norwegian restructured its order book, firming its commitment to 50 737-8s with options for an additional 30 aircraft. With this, deliveries have been extended to 2031.
The 737-8 model can carry up to 200 passengers depending on configuration, with a range of up to 3,500 nautical miles (6,480 km). Currently, Norwegian operates its Boeing 737-8 fleet in a 189-seater configuration in a single class.
In 2024, Norwegian carried 22,6 million passengers and maintained a fleet of 86 Boeing 737-800 and 737 MAX 8 aircraft. Under its Widerøe subsidiary, it also operates De Havilland Dash 8-100, -200, -300, -400 and Embraer E190-E2.
In.Quotes
Geir Karlsen, CEO of Norwegian, said;
“This milestone aircraft order is on attractive terms and secures our fleet growth in a way that supports our planned growth and sustainability targets. By exercising the options and adjusting the delivery profile, we maintain flexibility while reinforcing our commitment to operating one of the most modern and fuel-efficient fleets in Europe,”
“These aircraft will not only lower emissions but also provide our customers with an even better travel experience. We are pleased to extend our solid long-term partnership with Boeing through this order.”
Brad McMullen, Boeing senior vice president of Commercial Sales and Marketing, added:
“Norwegian’s impressive performance over the past few years has demonstrated the strength of their network, business model and strategy. Today’s agreement for an additional 30 737-8s will support their ambition to be the airline of choice in Scandinavia, providing flexibility to expand across Europe and beyond,” said
“Norwegian has been a great partner to the 737 program, having placed over 200 orders for the 737 NG and MAX since 2007. We are honored that Norwegian continues to place its trust in our 737 team to grow its business.”
Back to Managed Growth
Norwegian Air Shuttle and Group has been working away at its operations since the airline contracted hard in 2020. With its refocusing on European and Nordic operations, the group is working away at increasing capacity, which supports its growth and at a price that works for Norwegian.
And sometimes, the right price is one of the most important things when running on razor-tight margins, even if it means deliveries will be until 2031.
This could work well for the airline, especially if they use the new capacity for growth or replace existing aircraft within the fleet.
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Perhaps it’s just me having a senior moment but I thought Norwegian had lots of 787’s and was losing a fair bit of money. If that was the case then how would they pay for all these new planes? Am I confusing them with another airline?
Cancelled and Sold, Cancelled and Sold.
Sometimes a pandemic is a great time to reset things. …