Copa Airlines (CM, Panamá City Tocumen International) has placed an order for sixty-one B737 MAX 8 and 9s with Boeing (BOE, Washington National). Valued at USD6.6 billion at list prices, the order is the largest commercial transaction ever between a Panamanian and a US-based company.
Copa says it will use the new jets, which are powered by CFM International LEAP-1B motors, to replace its outgoing fleet of B737-700s and to support its strategic growth plans.
"Copa will be the first airline in the region to operate the 737 MAX 9 on deep South American routes," its said in a communique. "The B737 MAX 9's range and passenger comfort are ideally suited to Copa's long-haul route network."
Copa currently operates seventeen B737-700s, fifty-five B737-800s, and fifteen E190s. Of its fleet, four B737-700s and three EMB-190s are leased out to its AeroRepública (Bogotá) subsidiary operating as Copa Airlines Colombia (P5, Bogotá).
