Boeing and Dubai-based Emirates Airline announced an order for 50 Boeing 777-300ERs (Extended Range) plus options for an additional 20 of the popular twin-aisle commercial jetliner. The agreement was signed during a ceremony at the Dubai Air Show by His Highness (H.H.) Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group, and Jim Albaugh, President and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The order, with a value of $18bn, makes this the single largest commercial airplane order in Boeing’s history by dollar value. It also makes 2011 the best-selling year for the 777 program, surpassing the previous record of 154 orders set in 2005. With the Emirates order, the 2011 net order book for the 777 currently stands at 182. The options for 20 additional airplanes is valued at $8bn.The new ordered aircraft will be powered by GE90-115B engines for which a 12-year OnPoint solution agreement for maintenance was signed. The total value on the engine and services agreement is $6bn.

AAR acquires Trax to accelerate digital solutions strategy
Chicago-headquartered AAR CORP. (AAR) has announced its acquisition of Trax Corp. (trax), a leading independent provider of aircraft MRO and fleet management software to accelerate its digital solutions strategy. AAR is a global aerospace and defence aftermarket solutions company with operations in over 20 countries. It supports commercial and government customers through two operating segments: