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An Airbus A321-100 from the company Alitalia. REUTERS / Stefano Rellandini

United Airlines has just ordered fifty planes from Airbus. A snub for the American manufacturer Boeing, stuck in the 737 MAX crisis.

The 50 A-321 XLR aircraft are expected to replace the 757-200. Aging Boeing that the American company wishes to withdraw from its flight programs.

This order, expected to be delivered in 2024, is one of the first commercial setbacks of the Boeing 737 MAX crisis , which has been grounded since mid-March after two air disasters that killed a total of 346 people.

Delay at Boeing

Busy to obtain the lifting of the ban on theft of his plane, the American manufacturer has fallen behind in the development of a new model able to compete with Airbus in the medium and long-haul segment. These include the NMA (New Model Aircraft), an aircraft expected to replace the 757 and 767, whose entry into service has been postponed to 2025.

As for the European aircraft manufacturer, the model ordered by United Airlines was unveiled to the general public at the Paris Air Show in June. It offers airlines the opportunity to open new long-haul routes. Its asset: a single aisle, easier to fill and therefore more profitable.