Chilean Airline Orders Six New 767s

Boeing confirmed Tuesday that Chile-based LAN Airlines recently placed additional firm orders for six Boeing 767-300 airplanes. The order includes a combination of 767-300 freighters and 767-300ERs (Extended Range).

It's part of an apparently aggressive acquisition program on LAN's part. As ANN reported a month ago, the airline ordered 25 Airbus A318s and A319s with options for 15 more.

The six 767s whose sale was unveiled by Boeing Tuesday were previously designated to an "unidentified" customer on the Boeing Commercial Airplanes Orders and Deliveries Web site. These orders are in addition to six 767s ordered by the airline last year.

The announcement came during a delivery ceremony late last week for the first of the 12 airplanes on order. Absa Cargo, an affiliate of LAN Airlines, took delivery of a 767-300 freighter. A second 767 freighter is scheduled for delivery to LAN in October with the other airplanes on order to be delivered through October 2008.

The 767 freighter can carry 64 tons (58 metric tons) of revenue payload at a range of 3,270 nautical miles (6,056 kilometers). LAN took delivery of its first 767-300 freighter in September 1998. It presently operates six 767-300 freighters.

The estimated value of the 12 ordered aircraft at list prices is $1.73 billion.

"We are very impressed by LAN's continued expansion and successes in Latin America using Boeing airplanes," said John Wojick, vice president sales, Latin America and the Caribbean , Boeing Commercial Airplanes. "The 767 is a long range, fuel-efficient airplane which remains an airline favorite for its superior operating economics."

LAN Airlines and its group of affiliated companies plan to use the airplanes for a combination of fleet growth and renewal.

All three ER passenger models are offered in a variety of takeoff weights, which allow operators to choose only the amount of design weight needed to satisfy their requirements. These offer corresponding design ranges from just over 5,645 nautical miles (10,454 km) to as many as 6,600 nautical miles (12,223 km). This range versatility gives the 767 family the ability to efficiently serve routes as short as U.S. domestic and pan-European to long-range flights over the North Atlantic and North Pacific. The 767 crosses the Atlantic from the United States to Europe more often than any other jetliner.

Schedule reliability – an industry measure of departure from the gate within 15 minutes of scheduled time – is nearly 99 percent for the 767. Fleet-wide, daily utilization – the actual time the airplane spends in the air – averages more than 10 hours.

FMI: www.boeing.com