El Al has announced plans to replace its B747-400 and B767 fleet with Boeing Dreamliner aircraft.
The Israeli carrier says it will "conduct negotiations" with Boeing for the purchase and lease of 15 B787s, for delivery from mid-2017.
The planned order represents the largest aircraft acquisition in El Al’s history, with the new fleet being used to replace existing wide bodied Boeing aircraft, serving medium and long-haul routes including New York, Boston, Toronto, Bangkok, Beijing, Mumbai and South Africa.
El Al's CEO David Maimon said that the move constitutes "a significant step forward in the optimization of the network of routes, passenger service and flight experience".
The announcement was made as the carrier recorded an increase in second quarter profits of nearly six per cent on the previous year, with a net profit of US$17.3 million.
El Al recently moved from T1 to T4 at Heathrow airport (see news, April 2015), and launched a new three-times weekly service between Tel Aviv and Boston in June.
Mark Caswell
