AerCap Orders 15 Boeing 787-9s at Farnborough, Boosting Its 787 Fleet to About 140

AerCap, the world’s largest aircraft lessor, said Tuesday it placed a firm order for 15 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners at the Farnborough Airshow, a sign that demand remains strong in the leasing market for newer, fuel-efficient long-haul passenger jets.

The order matters beyond a typical airshow announcement because AerCap sits between manufacturers and airlines: it buys aircraft and leases them out to carriers. That makes fresh commitments from a major lessor a useful read-through on how airlines are planning for future widebody capacity without necessarily placing direct orders themselves.

Boeing and AerCap announced the deal July 21 from Farnborough, United Kingdom. The agreement covers 15 787-9 aircraft and includes substitution rights for the larger 787-10 variant. Boeing says the 787-10 carries about 50 more seats than the 787-9. Boeing also said the purchase will lift AerCap’s 787 Dreamliner portfolio to approximately 140 airplanes.

That scale reinforces AerCap’s position as a major owner of long-haul passenger jets. The Dublin-based company, listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker AER, serves about 300 customers worldwide, Boeing said. In its 2024 annual report, AerCap said it owned and had on order about 127 Boeing 787s as of Dec. 31, 2024, making Boeing’s updated total of about 140 broadly consistent with the new order.

The announcement is separate from recent cargo aircraft news at Farnborough, including MSC Air Cargo’s order for five Boeing 777-8 freighters. AerCap’s purchase instead points to continued appetite in the passenger leasing market for widebody aircraft used on long-haul routes, where airlines are looking for range and lower fuel burn.

“The addition of these 15 Boeing 787 Dreamliner airplanes to our fleet further strengthens our position as the world's largest owner of 787 jets,” AerCap CEO Aengus Kelly said in the Boeing press release.

The 787 family has become a key aircraft type for intercontinental flying, and lessors play an important role in placing those jets with airlines that want flexibility in how they add capacity. AerCap’s decision to add more 787s, with the option to shift some of the order to the larger 787-10, suggests leasing customers are still seeking modern widebody aircraft that can support long-distance networks while offering efficiency gains over older models.

Neither Boeing nor AerCap disclosed delivery dates, pricing or financing terms for the order.