American Airlines has placed orders for 260 new aircraft, including 85 Airbus A321neo planes, 85 Boeing 737 Max 10s and 90 Embraer E175 aircraft, the carrier announced Monday morning. The orders include options and purchase rights for an additional 193 aircraft. As part of the Boeing order, American has upgauged 30 existing 737 Max 8 orders to 737 Max 10 planes.
The carrier's purchases are part of its plan to continue to expand premium seats across its narrowbody and regional fleets and support the long-term strength of the airline's domestic and short-haul international network, according to American.
"These orders will maintain the consistency of our fleet, drive premium capacity growth, increase our average gauge and further smooth our deliveries and capex over the remainder of the decade," American CFO Devon May said Monday afternoon during an American investor day presentation.
American also moved 40 airplanes set to deliver in 2025 and 2026 out to 2027 to 2029, and 150 of the 170 Airbus and Boeing orders announced today will deliver in 2029 or later, May said, adding that the Embraer aircraft will start to deliver in 2025. The Embraer planes will be operated by American's regional partners, and the carrier expects to retire all of its 50-seat regional jets before the end of the decade.
May also noted that the Boeing Max 10 order—which will allow American to upgauge the fleet—is a "vote of confidence" in the manufacturer, which has had "recent challenges" since a door plug blew off a Boeing 737 Max 9 after takeoff on Jan. 5. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration earlier today released its audit report on Boeing and Spirit AeroSystems, which manufactured the door plug, and found instances in which "the companies allegedly failed to comply with manufacturing quality-control requirements."
To mitigate potential future issues, American has "negotiated for full flexibility, financial protections, and we have sufficient Airbus option positions that we will execute if Boeing is delayed in certification or in delivery," May said.
With this announcement, American said it has 440 aircraft on order.