China Airlines to order five A350-1000, nine 777X, and two 777Fs
China Airlines unveiled the order in a stock exchange filing.
China Airlines has announced that it will purchase five Airbus A350-1000, five 777-9, four 777-8F, and two 777F aircraft, as part of a transaction that has a price tag of no more than $7.8 billion.
In a filing with the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE), China Airlines stated that it will buy 16 widebody aircraft from Airbus and Boeing, split between five A350-1000, five 777-9, four 777-8F, and two 777F aircraft.
The Taiwanese airline indicated that the per aircraft price is no more than $449 million for each A350-1000, $531 million for each 777-9, $519 million for each 777-8F, and $438 million for each 777F, which are most likely list prices that do not include discounts or other variables that would reflect the real amount the carrier is going to pay for the aircraft.
China Airlines listed Airbus and Boeing as the counterparties of the transaction, and did not indicate the potential dates for the deliveries of the 16 widebodies.
A separate and same-day filing stated that the company’s Board of Directors authorized China Airlines’ chairman to “lease or purchase two 777F aircraft.”
This is the airline’s second order in November. On November 7, the same day it released its Q3 results, including an NT$12.5 billion ($399 million) net profit for the first nine months of 2025, China Airlines announced a purchase agreement of three A350-900s.
However, unlike the recent order, it listed ILFC Ireland, a subsidiary of the aircraft lessor AerCap, as the trading counterparty, possibly indicating that it was a lease agreement.
In May, China Airlines placed an order for 10 777-9 and four 777-8F aircraft, with options for nine more, which could indicate that today’s orders for the nine 777X aircraft were options from the order a couple of months ago.
Meanwhile, in March, the Taiwanese flag carrier confirmed an order for 10 A350-1000 aircraft, which was the finalization of a commitment it had announced in December 2024.
Airbus and Boeing’s orders and deliveries files showed that both the A350-1000 and 777X orders from March and May have been present in the manufacturers’ backlogs for a few months now. Boeing’s file also indicated that one unidentified customer ordered two 777F aircraft in January, which could be China Airlines. Or not.
Whatever the case might be, China Airlines’ latest order came less than a week after the Dubai Airshow 2025 ended, where both Airbus and Boeing unveiled several deals for the A350 and 777X aircraft families, including Emirates buying both the A350-900 and 777-9, with options to convert the latter order to the 777-8 or 777-10.
Rytis Beresnevicius
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