American Airlines orders 460 Airbus and Boeing aircraft

AMR Corp, the parent company of American Airlines and American Eagle, has signed agreements with Airbus and Boeing that will allow it to replace and transform American's narrowbody fleet over five years and solidify its fleet plan into the next decade.

Under the new agreements, American plans to acquire 460 narrow-body, single-aisle aircraft from the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 families beginning in 2013 through 2022.

Under the agreement with Boeing, American plans to acquire a total of 200 additional aircraft from the 737 family, with options for another 100 737 family aircraft. American has the flexibility to convert the new deliveries into variants within the 737 family, including the 737-700, 737-800 and 737-900ER.

As part of the Boeing agreement, American will take delivery of 100 aircraft from Boeing's current 737NG family starting in 2013, including three 737-800 options that had been exercised as of July 1.

American also intends to order 100 of Boeing's expected new evolution of the 737NG, with a new engine that would offer even more significant fuel-efficiency gains over today's models. This airplane would be powered by CFM International's LEAP-X engine.

Jim Albaugh, President and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, said, "While the 737 family will continue to serve an important role in American's narrowbody fleet – delivering customer and cost benefits in both its current form and future evolution – as American's primary widebody partner, we are excited to deliver to its customers all of the benefits and cutting-edge technology of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and the 777-300ER. We look forward to strengthening our partnership for the future."

American also will acquire a total of 260 Airbus aircraft from the A320 Family and will have 365 options and purchase rights for additional aircraft. American has the flexibility to convert its delivery positions into variants within the A320 Family, including the A319 and A321.

American will take delivery of 130 current-generation Airbus A320 Family aircraft beginning in 2013. Beginning in 2017 American will begin taking delivery of 130 aircraft from the A320neo (New Engine Option) Family featuring next-generation engine technology. The new aircraft are approximately 15% more fuel efficient than today's models.

Airbus President and CEO Tom Enders, said, "American's order represents a strong vote of confidence in our product in the important North American market, and we feel certain our A320 Family aircraft will help the American team deliver a great experience for customers while helping the airline to achieve cost efficiencies that will benefit its shareholders."

The 737 and A320 families offer significant cost reduction opportunities in replacing American's older fleet. For example, Boeing and Airbus aircraft in the 737 and A320 families offer a 35% reduction in fuel cost per seat versus the MD-80 and a 12% and 15% fuel cost reduction per seat, respectively, versus the 757 and 767-200.

The agreements with Boeing and Airbus will continue American's fleet simplification efforts, allowing American to transition four fleet types (MD-80, 737-800, 757 and 767-200) to two (the 737 and the A320 families, which offer significant commonality benefits within each family).

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