Lufthansa orders 22 long-haul aircraft

Deutsche Lufthansa AG placed orders for 22 long-haul aircraft from Airbus SE and Boeing Co. worth about $7.5 billion at list price, as the airline banks on a surge in demand for air travel after years of restrictions and border closures.

The German carrier group said Thursday that it had ordered 10 Airbus A350-1000s, five Airbus A350-900s and seven Boeing 787-9s, adding that it was in advanced talks to acquire more long-haul aircraft.

Travel restrictions and border closures brought international traffic to a near standstill at the height of the pandemic. Now, airlines are scrambling for planes to expand capacity to meet surging demand for international air travel. Lufthansa is planning to reactivate four A380s, the world's biggest passenger plane, on routes to the U.S. starting in July.

"We have secured the delivery of more than 50 latest-generation long-haul aircraft for the member airlines of the Lufthansa Group since the pandemic began," Chief Executive Carsten Spohr said. "These aircraft will be equipped with our new long-haul cabins, including the latest-generation seats in all classes of travel."

The aircraft will be delivered from the mid-2020s onward. Lufthansa is due to receive a total of 108 long-haul aircraft over the next few years as the group is retiring six older aircraft types, including the Boeing 747-400, the Airbus A340-600 and the A340-300.

-B