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Saudi Airline Cancels Nearly $6 Billion Order of Boeing 737 Max Jets

The Saudi budget airline, Flyadeal, has ordered 30 Airbus jets instead.

A Saudi airline has ordered 30 Airbus A320neo jets after canceling a nearly $6 billion agreement with Boeing for its 737 Max jets. The budget airline, Flyadeal, has also taken options on 20 additional Airbus aircraft, meaning that its entire fleet will consist of planes from the French company. The move marks a potentially troubling sign for Boeing, which has been working to regain the public’s trust after 346 people died in crashes involving the 737 Max planes off the coast of Indonesia and in Ethiopia. The U.S. manufacturer has not yet seen its customers divert orders to their European rival but has faced threats from a small number of airlines to cancel their orders, the AP reports. Lion Air—the Indonesian airline whose Max jet was involved in the first fatal crash in October—vowed to cancel, but Boeing still lists its orders as active. All 737 Max aircraft have been grounded since March 2019.