Japan Airlines orders 10 Boeing Dreamliners

TOKYO/SINGAPORE-Agence France-Presse

AFP photo

Japan Airlines said yesterday that it had ordered 10 new Boeing Dreamliner 787-9 aircraft as part of a five-year business plan.

The announcement is in addition to an existing order for 35 Boeing planes and is part of a capital expenditure program worth 489 billion yen ($6.2 billion).

It also said it had an option to buy 20 more aircraft from the U.S.-based aviation giant.

The Japanese carrier -which is emerging from years of restructuring after filing for bankruptcy in 2010 in one of the country’s biggest ever corporate failures- said it would use the new aircraft on medium and long-haul routes.

During its restructuring, the company cut unprofitable routes, reviewed its fleet, and reduced fuel expenses. It also started using a new revenue management system to improve productivity.

Earlier this month, JAL reported nine-month profit of almost $2.0 billion, saying that the strong yen helped boost its bottom line as more Japanese people went on holiday abroad.

Meanwhile, Indonesia signed yesterday a $325 million contract with Airbus Military for nine C-295 transport planes to be used for defense, logistical and humanitarian purposes.

The first plane will be sent to the Southeast Asian nation this year, with the remainder scheduled for delivery by 2014.