by CHEN Yixuan

China Eastern Airlines said on Wednesday it had agreed to buy 101 A320neo-family aircraft from Airbus in a deal worth about $15.8 billion (108.9 billion yuan) at list prices, one of the largest aircraft orders by a Chinese airline since 2022.

The order covers A320neo, A321neo and A321XLR models, with deliveries scheduled between 2028 and 2032, starting with 9 aircraft in 2028 and rising to a peak of 30 in 2030 before tapering off. Airbus said the order was on track.

China Eastern said the aircraft would mainly replace older jets and support future capacity growth. It expects at least 53 A320-family aircraft to leave its fleet over the delivery period as leases expire or aircraft age out of service.

The airline said the newer narrow-body jets would raise capacity, reduce fuel burn and lower unit costs.

The order comes as Chinese airlines step up fleet renewal. In 2022, China's three major state-owned carriers jointly ordered 292 A320neo-family aircraft from Airbus, including 100 jets for China Eastern.

Orders have picked up since last year. By the end of 2025, carriers including Air China Ltd, Spring Airlines, Juneyao Airlines, China Express Airlines and China Aircraft Leasing Group (CALC) placed orders for a combined 148 Airbus aircraft, mainly from the A320neo family.

China's narrow-body fleet is dominated by older A320ceo and Boeing 737-800 models, many of which were introduced between 2011 and 2016 and are set to enter a retirement cycle over the next five years.

According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the average age of China's civil aviation fleet is about 8 to 9 years. Older aircraft tend to have higher maintenance and fuel costs and longer downtime, weighing on airline profitability.

China Eastern is also expanding its international route network as it builds out its Shanghai hub network. The airline plans to add routes including Shanghai–Adelaide, Shanghai–Tashkent, Xi'an–Vienna, Shanghai–Cheongju and Shanghai–Tbilisi.

International routes, particularly long-haul services, are a key profit driver for airlines, helping to spread fixed costs.