Boeing got a boost from Mexican carrier Mexicana, which “reached a leasing agreement for 25 new 717 twin engine jets (for its “Click” low-cost unit), Boeing said Monday,” The Associated Press writes. Aviation Daily says “the 717s will be used to replace Click’s aging fleet of 100-seat Fokker 100s. The low-cost unit is scheduled to take delivery of the first 717 at the end of this month.”
So, where are the out-of-production 717s coming from? The Chicago Tribune notes that 16 of the 25 had been operated by Midwest Airlines, which returned them to Boeing as part of a dramatic downsizing there. And, in an interesting side note, the Tribune says that “according to a regulatory filing by Boeing, (it) received the right to ask Midwest to return the remaining nine aircraft under certain conditions.” The Seattle Times writes “Boeing spokesman John Kvasnosky said the company has not decided whether it will take the remaining nine 717s for Mexicana from Midwest or get them elsewhere.” Kvasnosky noted that Boeing has “other options” for securing the additional aircraft.
And, as you might guess, the Mexicana “deal eases the burden of owning idle aircraft with no revenue coming in,” the Times writes about Boeing. Air Transport World says the 717s headed for Mexicana’s Click unit “will seat 20 in business class and 84 in economy.” The 717s originally were delivered “between 1999 and 2006,” according to Dow Jones/CNN.
Source: USA Today
By: steve rowell - 15th March 2009 at 22:18
I know Cebu had some …i don’t know whether they still do…I think Qantas link run about sixteen of them!!!
By: Spiteful - 14th March 2009 at 21:06
All are still with Airtran at present, and the 25 leaving Midwest are going straight into Mexicana.
AeBal still have there’s and I don’t believe there are any plans to retire them yet. They only have the B717’s. Spanair have 4 aircraft and also MD’s and A320’s.
Olympic only had 3 leased aircraft. AirTran had about 2/3’s of the fleet and is still operating them all. 🙂
By: tenthije - 14th March 2009 at 14:28
AeBal
AirTran
Midwest
TurkmenistanMost of the aircraft have stayed with the original airline…
Also Hawaiian quite like them:
AirTran and Midwest I believe are scaling down. Aebal has retired them and continued with their MD-80s and B738s. Olympic has retired them.
By: Spiteful - 14th March 2009 at 12:29
AeBal
AirTran
Midwest
Turkmenistan
Most of the aircraft have stayed with the original airline…
Also Hawaiian quite like them:
By: cloud_9 - 14th March 2009 at 10:08
Notice how few of the original B717 operators still got them.
Hawaiian is one of them, aren’t they?:confused:
By: tenthije - 14th March 2009 at 08:49
..or the B757, or the MD-11…:rolleyes:
The 717 and ’11 never lived up to promises and where not that popular with the airlines either. By the time they closed the line there were no sales and due to the crappy economy back then no orders could be expected. Since Boeing already had planes in that market range (B736, B763/B772) there really was no reason to keep the line open.
Notice how few of the original B717 operators still got them. Most of them have retired them or scaled back their operations. The MD-11 is much the same. I think KLM i snow the only passenger airline, with perhaps Finnair having one or two pending the delivery of their new Airbusses. Only cargo operators are happy with the MD-11.
The B752 line was very popular. But there where no orders and the economy was in the crapper. It is prohibitively expensive to keep the production line in slumber-mode waiting for the economy to pick up again. In retrospect you could argue they could have made a few dozen white-tails but even that would have been a mayor financial risk.
I would not be surprised if the B767 joined the B717, MD-11 and B757 before the years over. Now the USAF tanker project has been shelved there really is not need for it anymore. The few that where sold the last 2 year where sold at heavy discount just to keep the line open, or where used as compensation for the B787 delays.
By: steve rowell - 14th March 2009 at 02:06
I never understood why B rushed to put the 717 out of production ….
Poor sales and lack of orders for both the 717 and the MD11
By: Hand87_5 - 13th March 2009 at 16:47
I never understood why B rushed to put the 717 out of production ….
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March 12, 2009 at 7:14 am