Qantas orders 6 additional 787-9s as 747s set to leave

Qantas has firmed options on 6 additional Boeing 787-9s and announced that it will retire its 747 fleet by 2020. Once delivered, the new jets will take its 787 fleet to 14 units, which will feature a common 236 seat configuration and will be powered by General Electric GEnx engines. Qantas has 4 787s in service, with 4 more due for delivery by the end of the year. The new batch will then be delivered from late 2019 to mid-to-late 2020. The arrival of those jets will facilitate the retirement of its remaining 747-400s. Qantas is also advancing with its ‘Project Sunrise’ project, which is expected to see it place an order for Airbus A350-900ULRs or Boeing 777-8s to allow it to operate nonstop flights from Australia’s east coast to Europe and the US west coast. <br/>