Air France Orders 10 Boeing 777 Jets

The Boeing Co. confirmed Wednesday that Air France has ordered 10 of its new 777 jetliners and taken options on 10 more of the large twinjets.

The order replaces one last year for seven 767-300s and eight 737-500s, said John Dern, a spokesman for Boeing Commercial Airplane Group.

The value of the new order - about $2 billion - is about the same as the previous order, Dern said.

The first of the 777s will be delivered in 1998, Boeing said. The planes will seat 288 passengers in three classes.

Air France chose the 777-200 Increased Gross Weight model.

In Paris, Air France said it also has ordered five more Airbus A340-300 wide-bodied jets.