Airbus SE is set to win a mega-order for about 100 aircraft from Air Lease Corp that would include a mix of A220 single-aisle jetliners acquired from Bombardier Inc and the plane maker’s soon-to-be unveiled A321 XLR, according to people familiar with the matter.
The deal is due to be announced later on Monday at the Paris Air Show, said one of the people, who asked not to be named as the details aren’t public. The list price of the baseline A321 is $129.5 million (Dh475.6 million), while the smaller A220 goes for as much as $91.5 million. If split evenly between the two, the order could reach $11 billion.
Representatives of Airbus and Air Lease declined to comment.
The contract would be an important win for Airbus because of the significance of the two models. The XLR is a new longer-range variant of the best-selling A320 family aimed at the middle-of-the-market segment that rival Boeing Co is also eyeing with its New Midmarket Airplane still in development. Airbus is also trying to build up the order pipeline for the A220, formerly called the C Series jet.
An order from Air Lease would provide the A220 with a seal of approval from one of the world’s most closely watched jet purchasers. Steven Udvar-Hazy, Air Lease’s founder and chairman, has been nicknamed the “godfather” of aircraft leasing for his role in founding the industry.
