Lufthansa orders 20 Boeing 737 MAX 10s in $3.4B deal

Lufthansa Group on Thursday approved the purchase of 20 Boeing ↗ 0.56% 737 MAX 10 aircraft, exercising options from a 2023 agreement and bringing its total firm orders for the MAX family to 60 jets.newsroom.lufthansagroup

The supervisory board of Deutsche Lufthansa approved the deal, which carries a list price of approximately $3.4 billion, though airlines typically negotiate discounts from published prices. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in the early 2030s, and the aircraft will gradually replace older Airbus A320-family jets across the group.airdatanews+2

Expanding a Flexible Order

The original December 2023 agreement covered 40 firm orders for the 737 MAX 8 along with 60 purchase options for additional MAX-family aircraft. Thursday's decision converts the first 20 of those options into firm commitments, leaving Lufthansa with rights to purchase 40 more.simpleflying+1

All 40 MAX 8s from the original order have been assigned to Eurowings, Lufthansa's point-to-point carrier, with deliveries planned between 2027 and 2032. Those aircraft will replace aging A319s and older A320-family jets in what Eurowings has called the largest fleet modernization in its history. Lufthansa Group has not disclosed which airline will operate the newly ordered MAX 10s.airdatanews

Why the MAX 10

The MAX 10 is the largest member of Boeing's 737 MAX family, offering greater seating capacity than the MAX 8. Lufthansa Group said the variant consumes around 30 percent less fuel than the older aircraft it will replace and reduces unit costs by approximately 20 percent.newsroom.lufthansagroup

The order comes as Boeing nears certification of the MAX 10. Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg said this week that certification is "very soon," with all flight testing completed and only a few deliverables remaining before the FAA completes its review.airdatanews

A Broader Fleet Strategy

The purchase fits within a wider modernization program. Lufthansa Group expects to take delivery of more than 250 new aircraft by 2035, drawing from both Boeing and Airbus. In May, the group also approved orders for 10 Airbus A350-900s and 10 Boeing 787-9s for long-haul routes, with deliveries scheduled between 2032 and 2034.simpleflying+1

Lufthansa was the launch customer for the original Boeing 737-100 in 1968, but its namesake airline retired its last 737 in 2016. The MAX orders have returned the type to the group's fleet planning — though not yet to Lufthansa Airlines itself.airdatanews