RE: Boing21 Aug 2025 17:08
Published Thu, Aug 21, 2025 · 07:14 AM
[HONG KONG] China’s biggest airlines have started dividing up a 500-plane mega-order for Airbus jets from a deal that Beijing is still looking for an opportune time to announce, months after it came together, sources familiar with the matter said.
China Southern Airlines, Air China and China Eastern Airlines each plan to claim about 100 aircraft, said the sources, who asked not to be identified discussing details that are private. Smaller carriers Xiamen Air and Sichuan Airlines Group are targeting agreements closer to 35, one of the sources said.
The order, reported on by Bloomberg News in June, would be among the largest ever for Chinese airlines, which typically order in bulk through the government. It was originally expected to be announced in early July during the China–European Union 50th anniversary meeting in Beijing.
However, with grievances over trade and the war in Ukraine casting a shadow over those talks, no transaction was announced, the sources said.
While China and the EU wait for another appropriate occasion, individual Chinese airlines have been in discussions with local procurement authorities to settle their purchase requests and then negotiate with Airbus directly on plane numbers, the sources said.
Airbus declined to comment. Representatives for China Southern, Air China, China Eastern and Xiamen Air did not respond to requests for comment. Sichuan Airlines could not be reached.
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