Boeing’s Max gets boost with report on Ryanair order talks

Bloomberg

Ryanair Holdings Plc is reported to be in talks to purchase between 150 and 200 Boeing Co 737 Max aircraft, in a deal that would boost confidence in the grounded jet as it prepares for a return to service.
Ryanair is discussing a mix of Max 200s, the version it has already ordered, and the bigger Max 10, the Irish Independent reported, without saying where it got the information. An order could be placed by year-end, the newspaper reported.
Dublin-based Ryanair, Europe’s largest discount carrier, declined to comment, as did a representative for Boeing.
A purchase of that size would total at least $18.7 billion at list prices, making it the biggest plane order in a 2020 market that’s been roiled by the Covid-19 pandemic. It would also provide a morale-builder to Boeing as it brings its most popular jet back into commercial use.
Investors have been gaining confidence that Boeing will meet its latest goal of a return for the Max by year-end. FAA  chief Steve Dickson flew the plane this week, concluding: “I like what I saw.”
A Ryanair order would testify to continued demand for the Max, despite the ravages of the pandemic and the hit to the plane’s reputation. CEO Michael O’Leary has predicted discounters like his own will emerge stronger from the crisis and said in February he’d issued proposals for a Max 10 deal.