Ryanair Reported to Consider Order for 737 MAX Aircraft

Irish ultra-low-cost carrier Ryanair may be considering adding a number of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft to their fleet, just weeks after the troubled airframe was re-certified by the Federal Aviation Administration. While the airline currently has 135 737 MAXs on order, they may expand it with financial concessions from the Chicago-based aerospace company.

While airlines are slowly considering how to re-introduce the troubled Boeing 737 MAX into their fleet, Ryanair may be banking their future on it. CNBC reports the Irish ultra-low-cost carrier may be considering adding even more MAX aircraft to their current order as part of a compensation deal between the two companies.

Ryanair May Add Over 135 737 MAX to Fleet

Currently, Ryanair has 135 outstanding orders for 737 MAX-8 airframes from 2014. None of them were delivered to the carrier before the worldwide grounding of the airframe after two fatal MAX  accidents within six months killed a combined total of 346 people.

While the airline still plans to take delivery of their 135 aircraft, the potential exists for even more to come into their possession. According to CNBC, Ryanair is reportedly looking for compensation from Boeing over the grounding and inability to deliver aircraft over the last 20 months. The recompense could come in the form of deep discounts on additional orders.

The list price of a Boeing 737 MAX is $125 million, but airlines usually negotiate lower prices per aircraft for large orders. Because the Chicago-based aerospace company has lost over 300 MAX orders in 2020, they may have an incentive to offer even further price cuts to Ryanair for additional orders.

Neither Boeing nor Ryanair have commented on the rumors.

With Ungrounding, More Airlines Line Up for Re-Certified Aircraft

Now that the aircraft has a new airworthiness directive, carriers have been slowly determining how to integrate them into their fleets. In November, Alaska Airlines announced they would lease 13 MAX airframes to replace some of their permanently grounded Airbus A321 family aircraft. Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines is reportedly considering accepting a number of completed “white tail” finished MAX aircraft as part of their deliveries.

The rumors coincide with the Federal Aviation Administration issuing airworthiness certificates for completed airframes so they can be delivered to airlines. Reuters reports the first certificate for a new 737 MAX was issued on Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020.