Qatar Airways has announced an order for up to 50 777-8 Freighters, a new cargo variant launched by Boeing as a replacement for the 777F. The announcement came during a visit by the Emir of Qatar to US President Joe Biden, this Monday at the White House.
Launching customer of the new model, Qatar closed an agreement for 34 firm orders for the 777X freighter in addition to 16 purchase options the first aircraft to be delivered in 2027.
“Boeing has a long history of building market-leading freighter aircraft and Qatar Airways is honored to have the opportunity to be the launch customer for the 777-8 Freighter, an aircraft which will not only allow us to further enhance our product offering for our customers, but also help us meet our objectives to deliver a sustainable future for our business,” said Mr. Akbar Al Baker, CEO of Qatar.
The airline anticipated the first technical details of the 777-8 Freighter, based on the longer-range version of the aircraft. The new jet will be capable of carrying 118 tonnes of cargo over a distance of 4,410 nm (8,167 km).
The order includes the conversion to the cargo variant of 20 of the 60 777X passengers, already the result of a previous order. Qatar also said it had ordered two more 777Fs, a model currently in production.
737 MAX 10 in place of the A321neo
Boeing and Qatar also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for a firm order of up to 50 737 MAX 10s, the largest variant of the single-aisle jet, comprising 25 firm orders and 25 purchase options.
Not by chance, the total of 737 MAX is equivalent to the order closed with Airbus for 50 A321neo and which was scrapped by the European planemaker after the controversy over the problems of degradation of the paintwork of parts of Qatar’s A350s.
Boeing had not yet commented until the article was updated. Qatar did not say when deliveries will begin.
