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Boeing
Business Jets has confirmed that it has received its first order from an operator in the People's Republic of China.
The identity of the operator was not revealed at the customer's request.
"We are absolutely thrilled and confident that this order will be the first of many in the growing China market for VIP airplanes," said Steven Hill, BBJ president. "The
order also brings us closer to our 100th sales order, which we hope to achieve before the end of the year."
With this order, the total number of BBJs ordered since the program's inception in 1996 is 98.
Of the 57 customers who have ordered these ultra-large-cabin jets, 39% are private individuals, 38% are government heads of state, 13% are corporate
operators and 10% are operated by charter companies. There are currently 84 BBJs in service around the world. About 10% of BBJs delivered are based in
the Asia Pacific region today.
"Over the next few years, we anticipate steady growth throughout Asia, and the BBJ's spacious cabin, long range and sophisticated communication systems make it an
ideal airplane for that region," Hill said.
Boeing recently established a dedicated BBJ field service office in
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, which provides technical support to BBJ operators in the Australasia region and India.
The BBJ and BBJ 2 are high-performance derivatives of the commercially popular Next-Generation 737-700 and 737-800, respectively.
The BBJ cabin offers 807 square feet (75 square meters) of space, while
the BBJ 2 offers 25% more cabin space and twice as much cargo capacity as the
BBJ.
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