A China-based cargo carrier has ordered six 747 freighters from the Boeing Co., a move that further bolsters the Everett-based jumbo jet program.
Jade Cargo International will take six 747-400ER freighters, with deliveries scheduled to start in 2006 and run through January 2008. The order is worth about $1.3 billion at list prices, although analysts say airlines have been negotiating discounts of about 25 percent.
With the deal, Boeing has sold 24 747s so far this year. Other customers have canceled or delayed orders for five jumbo jets, leaving a net gain of 19 orders on the books. Still, this is Boeing’s best year for 747 sales since 2000, when the company sold 26.
The order gives Boeing a backlog of 48 747s, a marked turnaround from recent years when orders dwindled and the company began studying whether it should stop building jumbo jets.
That backlog also is key in determining whether Boeing moves ahead with its proposed 747 Advanced. Boeing executives say they need to know whether they’ll have enough orders of current-model 747s to keep the program going until the new airplane comes online in 2009 or 2010.
Jade Cargo is a joint venture of Shenzhen Airlines of China, German freight airline Lufthansa Cargo and German investment group DEG. It was founded last year and is the first Chinese cargo airline to be formed with foreign ownership.
China is the world’s fastest-growing air cargo market, according to Boeing’s recently released cargo forecast. Boeing projects an annual growth rate of 10.6 percent for the Chinese cargo market over the next two decades. Worldwide cargo growth is expected to be 6.2 percent a year, Boeing said.
Reporter Bryan Corliss: 425-339-3454 or corliss@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
