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AFX News Limited
Ryanair exercises options to buy 5 Boeing 737-800's valued at 286 mln usd
LONDON (AFX) - Ryanair Holdings PLC said it has exercised five Boeing 737-800 aircraft options valued at 286 mln usd.
The aircraft are to be delivered in 2007, with one in February, one in March, one in April and two in May.
'The Boeing 737-800........has the lowest unit operating cost and the addition of these five aircraft will continue to enable Ryanair to develop more new routes across Europe and bring low fares to many more European consumers,' said CEO Michael O'Leary.
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Irish low cost airline, Ryanair, announced today that it is exercising its options with Boeing to purchase five new 737 aircraft. This brings Ryanair's total number of outstanding orders with the US manufacturer to 230.

The new planes, which come from the 737-800 range, will be fitted with blended winglets to boost fuel efficiency by as much as 3%. Ryanair CEO, Michael O'Leary, justified his choice of Boeing by saying, "The Boeing 737-800 has the best technical reliability and ensures that Ryanair is the number one on-time major airline in Europe"..."In addition, it has the lowest unit operating cost. The addition of these five aircraft will continue to enable us to develop more new routes across Europe and bring low fares to many more European consumers."

Ryanair is the world's most profitable airline, having reported record profits of €269m earlier this year, and is pursuing an aggressive expansion plan which will see it's total number of passengers jump to 70m over the next few years. At present Ryanair has 91 aircraft and 230 on order.