(Bloomberg) — Airbus SE is poised to sweep a multibillion-dollar aircraft order from Qantas Airways Ltd. in a blow to Boeing Co. and its 737 Max narrow-body jet, according to people briefed on the matter.
The Australian carrier is set to announce its order decision Thursday morning in Sydney to replace the 75 older-generation Boeing 737 jets that serve as Qantas’s domestic workhorses, according to the people, who asked not to be identified as the discussions are confidential.
The decision is a coup for Airbus as it races to match Boeing’s Max order bonanza by year-end. The European planemaker also landed a commitment from Singapore Airlines Ltd. for its A350 freighter Wednesday and has an opportunity to make headway with Air France-KLM, which is set to announce replacements for its aging Boeing 737s.
The fleet decision means Qantas and its low-cost Jetstar division are likely to be flying mostly Airbus planes on their domestic and international networks for decades to come. Boeing’s Dreamliner, still favored by Qantas on some popular long-haul routes, is now set to be the U.S. company’s main model at the Australian airline.
A Qantas representative couldn’t be reached for comment outside regular business hours.
Shares of Chicago-based Boeing fell before erasing declines in the wake of a Federal Reserve’s annoucement that it expects to raise interest rates in 2022 at faster pace than expected. The stock was up less than 1% to $195.85 at 3:32 p.m. in New York.
The Australian airline is also due to reveal replacements for Boeing 717s at its QantasLink regional arm, with Airbus’s A220 model and the Embraer E2 family in the running.
Betting on Rebound
Qantas is the latest carrier to bet that travel will eventually rebound even with the threat of the new Covid-19 variant omicron hanging over the world. Virgin Australia Airlines, a domestic rival that is emerging from a restructuring, has already unveiled an order for 25 of Boeing’s largest 737 Max model.
Alan Joyce, Qantas’s chief executive officer, has said it’s a great time to buy aircraft because manufacturers are eager to nail down sales and are offering advantageous pricing. The new aircraft will also reduce fuel and maintenance costs, while cutting carbon emissions.
Read more: One airline is set to emerge stronger than ever
And the Australian flag carrier is eyeing even more planes as it pushes ahead with plans to start long-haul flights halfway around the globe. Non-stop services connecting Sydney with New York and London, a project thrown into doubt by Covid, are due to start as soon as 2024.
Qantas has already picked Airbus’s A350-1000 as its preferred aircraft for the flights and is due to decide on a firm jet order in early 2022.
(Updates with context of Qantas betting on rebound, and the timing of its next wide-body order in final paragraph)
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