El Al issued a statement last week to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, noting that “The final composition of the deal between purchases from Boeing and leasing from airliner leasing companies will be settled when the purchase and leasing agreements for the planes are signed.”
The company has signed a memorandum of understanding to buy and lease 15 new Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft in its biggest ever plane order, in a deal worth $800-$900 million.
El Al - which has an all-Boeing fleet - said it was examining various options to finance the purchase.
A final agreement must be signed by October 30 or another agreed-upon date, it said in a statement to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. Israel's flag carrier last month said it had opened talks with Boeing to buy and lease the new fuel-efficient 787-8 and 787-9 aircraft for delivery between the first half of 2017 and 2020.
The planes will replace a fleet of seven 747-400s and six 767-300ERs, which serve the North American and Asian destinations of El Al. El Al said the mix between buying and leasing the aircraft will be determined when the deal is agreed.
