LONDON – Air Tanzania, in the last few moments, has just signed a deal with Boeing for one 787-8 Dreamliner, one 767-300 Freighter, and two 737 MAX jets at the Dubai Air Show.

The $726m deal adds more sales to the Boeing portfolio, and is, more importantly, the first orders confirmed for the 787 and the 737 MAX at the air show, which will begin to place Boeing in a better tact sales-wise.

Commenting on the news was Ladislaus Matindi, the CEO of Air Tanzania who expressed the reasons for this order:

“Our flagship 787 Dreamliner is popular with our passengers, providing unrivaled in-flight comfort and ultra-efficiency for our long-haul growth,”.

“Adding to our 787 fleets, the introduction of the 737 MAX and 767 Freighter will give Air Tanzania exceptional capability and flexibility to meet passenger and cargo demand within Africa and beyond.”

Also commenting on the order was Ihssane Mounir, Boeing’s Senior VP of Commercial Sales & Marketing who was honored by the commitment from the carrier.

“Africa is the third fastest-growing region worldwide for air travel, and Air Tanzania is well-positioned to increase connectivity and expand tourism throughout Tanzania,”

“We are honored that Air Tanzania has chosen Boeing for its fleet modernization program by adding an additional 787 and introducing the 737 MAX and the 767 Freighter into its expanding network.”

Air Tanzania is quite clearly taking advantage of Boeing’s Market Forecast Outlook which has predicted the need for 1,030 new airplanes valued at $160 billion by 2040.

For Boeing, this is a solid order to start Day 3 with, although we yet need to see some more orders to catch up with Airbus.