Emirates has taken its aircaft orders up to almost $25 billion in a week at the Dubai Air Show.
The airline followed up a $16 billion Airbus A350 order on Monday with a purchase agreement for 30 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners worth $8.8 billion.
Emirates has exercised a right to substitute the B777X with B787s under an agreement with Boeing,
Deliveries of the B787s are due to start in May 2023 and continue for the next five years.
Emirates will enter into discussions with Boeing over the next few weeks on the status of deliveries for the B777X.
This takes the airline’s total order with Boeing to 126 aircraft. Emirates is the largest operator of B777s with 155 in service.
The announcement took the total value of Emirates’ firm aircraft commitments at the 2019 Dubai Air Show to $24.8 billion, including the $16 billion Airbus A350 order.
Emirates chairman and chief executive Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum signed the agreement with Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Stanley Deal.
Sheikh Ahmed said: “I am pleased to announce a firm order for 30 Boeing Dreamliners. This is an important investment and addition to our future fleet and network requirements, providing us the agility, flexibility and spread of seat segments when it comes to overall capacity to serve a range of destinations as we develop and grow our global route network.
“The 787s will complement our fleet mix by expanding our operational flexibility in terms of capacity, range and deployment to connect new city pairs and expand frequencies.
“We are also pleased to reaffirm our commitment to the Boeing 777X programme and look forward to its entry into service.”
Sheikh Ahmed added: “Our Boeing fleet is key to our business model to serve international demand for travel to and through our Dubai hub, as we continue to contribute to the UAE’s strategy to become a global destination for business and tourism by providing high quality air connectivity.”
Deal added: “Our agreement solidifies Emirates’ plan to operate the 787 Dreamliner and the 777X, which make up the most efficient and most capable wide-body combination in the industry.”