Shanghai Airlines to buy 5 A321

Shanghai Airlines announced that it will purchase five A321 aircraft from Airbus to beef up its fleet, and sell four of its B757 to Aircastle and then lease them back. This is part of the airline’s plan to improve service and cut costs. The five Airbus planes will cost Shanghai Airlines about US$370 million. Delivery will be between 2011 and 2012. The company will sell four B757 to Aircastle, an aircraft leasing company, for US$66 million and then lease them back. China is expected to buy more than 3,000 new jets in the next two decades as air traffic continues to grow based on industry forecasts. On the other hand, Boeing Co. identified Xiamen Airlines as the airline that ordered 25 single-aisle 737 jets with the option to purchase an additional 10. The order was worth US$1.9 billion, according to Boeing.