China\\\'s BOC orders 82 Boeing planes worth $8.8 billion

Aircraft leasing firm BOC Aviation said Monday it has ordered 80 Boeing 737 planes and two B777-300ERs worth a total $8.8 billion at list prices, to meet expanding client needs as travel booms in Asia. The Singapore-based company, owned by the Bank of China, said the bulk of the orders were for 50 B737 MAX 8 planes and 30 next-generation B737-800s. The 80 planes have a value of $8.14 billion based on 2014 catalogue prices published on Boeing's website. The orders will allow BOC Aviation to build on its fleet for the next seven years, the company said in a statement. The firm said it has also ordered two B777-300ER aircraft, worth a total $660 million at catalogue prices. Both planes have already been placed with an existing customer, it added. US aircraft maker Boeing said in a separate statement that the order is the ‘largest in BOC Aviation's 20-year history’ and is part of the leasing firm's effort ‘to grow its portfolio of fuel-efficient airplanes’. Robert Martin, BOC Aviation's managing director and chief executive, said the fresh B737 orders followed a similar purchase made in 2006 for 50 B737 next-generation aircraft. ‘This is a continuation of our commitment to be responsive to airline customers who are expanding or replacing older fleets,’ he said, according to AFP.