SpiceJet orders 42 Boeing jets in US$4.4b deal

[HYDERABAD] Indian budget airline SpiceJet Ltd has signed a deal with Boeing Co to buy 42 737 MAX jets in a deal worth US$4.4 billion at list prices, the company said yesterday, sending its shares up more than 7 per cent.

The order, which Reuters first reported in January, could help the loss-making Indian carrier, India's fourth biggest airline by market share, as it seeks new investors.

Delivery of the new jets will begin in 2018, SL Narayanan, chief financial officer at SpiceJet's parent, Sun Group, told reporters at an Indian air show here.