Jet Airways orders 50 Boeing 737 Max planes

Analyst Saj Ahmad commented on the order: “Kuwait Airways has recently been in the press, procrastinating over swapping its recent Airbus order with Boeing, but with both OEMs heavily sold out on new generation A350 and 787 jets well into the next decade, it's no surprise that they are seeking capacity from the likes of Jet Airways who are trimming their A330 fleet. The real issue for Kuwait Airways though is that they should not be wasting money on leasing jets.

 

“They had a deal back in 2007 to take all the 787s that ALAFCO ordered initially (12) when ALAFCO topped up its 787 order with ten further jets. Had they stuck to that plan, Kuwait Airways could well have been flying 787s today, if not very soon. And if they do buy Boeing, unless they can find a lessor ready to give them 787s before 2018, it would be a miracle.”

 

Ahmad concludes: “It is possible Kuwait Airways could get the bigger 777-300ER faster now that Boeing is producing almost 100 a year - however, this is a very poor performing airline - we probably know less than even they do at this stage. They're so far behind their GCC rivals that without state support, they'd have probably folded by now if left to their own devices - and pussyfooting around order decisions like these, first buying Boeing via ALAFCO, then committing to Airbus and then entertaining Boeing again - all this time, their fleet ages, costs rise and they're no closer to any new jets arriving.”