United Airlines books 110 aircraft from Boeing, Airbus

In a major agreement to buy more than a hundred aeroplanes, United Airlines announced Tuesday that it has booked as many as 110 aircraft from aviation industry giants Boeing and Airbus, indicating reviving confidence in the sector.  

The airline behemoth also secured options to purchase 90 more aircraft, according to a statement from the company.

The US airline said in a statement it had ordered 50 Boeing 787-9 and 60 Airbus A321neo aircraft, with deliveries due to begin in 2028.

The combined orders are worth $22.4 billion, according to the two firms' most recent publicly available catalogue prices.

"We're building a bright future at United and this order takes our already successful United Next plan into the next decade and beyond," United's chief executive, Scott Kirby, said in a statement.

"I'm convinced our strategy is the right one as we continue to add new, larger aircraft to take full advantage of our growing flying opportunities both internationally and domestically," Kirby added.

The company said it had converted previous options and purchase rights into "firm orders" for the 50 787-9 planes from Boeing, for delivery between 2028 and 2031.

It did the same with the 60 A321neo aircraft from Airbus, for delivery between 2028 and 2030.

Alongside these firm orders, United also announced it had secured new options for 50 more Boeing 787s and purchase rights for an additional 40 A321neos from Airbus "at the end of the decade."

United Airlines said now expects to take delivery of around 800 new aircraft in total between 2023 and 2032.