China’s largest carrier plans to boost Airbus, Boeing deliveries

China Southern Airlines, the country’s largest airline by fleet size, expects to take delivery of more than 200 Boeing and Airbus single-aisle jets over three years.

The Guangzhou-based carrier’s aircraft delivery and disposal plan released Monday revealed an addition of 103 Boeing 737 aircraft over the period. The report also showed that 111 Airbus A320 series jets will be added, including 46 in 2025 alone. The Airbus deliveries suggest a sharp increase over the figure released in the 2021 report.

Chinese carriers have begun flying the 737 Max again after the country became one of the last to resume commercial operation of the model following the global grounding in the wake of two fatal crashes about four years ago. However, deliveries of new jets have not yet occurred, making the China Southern plan contingent on U.S.-Chinese ties improving.

Part of the deliveries stem from a mega purchase announced in July 2022 by China’s largest state-carriers for almost 300 jets worth $37 billion. The eventual order grew to almost 340 Airbus A320neo family jets months later.

By the end of 2025, the carrier expects to operate 431 Airbus A320-series and 451 Boeing 737-series jets, narrowing the lead the U.S. manufacturing giant had over its European rival in supplying narrow-body aircraft to China Southern. The carrier currently operates 894 jets and plans to grow its fleet size to 1,059 by the end of 2025.