Boeing nears $5 billion in deals with Asian airlines

Orders may come next week for longest 737 jetliner, sources say

Boeing Co is closing in on about $5 billion in orders from two Asian carriers for its longest-ever 737, people familiar with the matter said.

The US planemaker is discussing a deal with India’s SpiceJet for about 20 of the 737 Max 10 aircraft, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the discussions are private. Indonesia’s Lion Mentari Airlines PT is studying an order for at least 20 planes and perhaps as many as 50 from a combination of commitments and conversions of existing orders for smaller 737 Max jets, the people said.

The deals may be announced as early as next week, when Boeing is likely to unveil plans for the Max 10 at the Paris Air Show. The Chicago-based manufacturer is seeking a groundswell of orders to catch up to the fast-selling A321neo, Airbus SE’s largest narrow-body jet, which is capturing routes once dominated by Boeing’s out-of-production 757.

Negotiations haven’t been finalised, and agreements involving Boeing, SpiceJet and Lion could be delayed or fall apart, the people said. The 737 Max 10 is expected to sell for a little more than the shorter Max 9, which has a list price of $119.2 million before discounts that are customary for aircraft purchases.

Boeing is in talks with other companies including United Airlines for the Max 10, Bloomberg News reported last week.

Doug Alder, a Boeing spokesman, declined to comment. Representatives of SpiceJet and Lion didn’t immediately comment outside normal business hours.