NEW YORK (Reuters) - United Parcel Service Inc (N:UPS) said on Thursday it ordered 14 Boeing (N:BA) 747-8 cargo jets, a deal worth $5.3 billion at list prices that potentially breathes new life into an aircraft Boeing had warned it might cancel.
The UPS order, which includes options for 14 more of the hump-backed planes, suggests the freight company expects an upturn in air cargo after years of anemic growth.
"These aircraft are a strategic investment for increased capacity for UPS customers around the globe," Brendan Canavan, president of UPS Airlines, said in a statement released by Boeing.
"The 747-8 will allow UPS to upsize our network in both new and existing markets," he added.
The purchase adds significantly to Boeing's order book in a year in which it and rival Airbus (PA:AIR) have struggled to sell widebody aircraft.
Sales of the 747-8, the latest version of the four-engine plane that first flew in 1969, have been slowing. Boeing has cut production to six a year, and in July warned it might end production of the plane altogether.
Similar-sized two-engine planes that are more fuel efficient have largely eclipsed the 747's passenger mission. Sales have also slowed for Airbus' competing four-engine A380.
But the 747-8 freighter has a special hinged nose that gives it a unique ability to carry large cargo.