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 The move comes two months after Boeing said it was studying plans
to offer more seating in its upcoming 737 MAX by introducing a
modified version with 200 seats, 11 more than the current maximum.
A deal for about 100 of those aircraft could be reached as early as
the middle of September, one of the people said, asking not to be
identified because the talks are confidential.
"Ryanair does not comment upon, or engage in, rumor or speculation,"
a spokesman for the airline said.
A European spokesman for Boeing Co declined to comment.
Coming months after Ryanair expanded a previous order for the
existing 737 to 180 aircraft, a new order Europe's biggest no-frills
carrier would mark a new phase in efforts by Boeing and European
rival Airbus to appeal to ultra-low cost carriers.
Both manufacturers are adding seats to drive down the operating
costs per seat, the key driver of aircraft economics.
In June, Airbus said it would increase the maximum number of seats
on its revamped A320neo to 189, matching the capacity limit on the
main variant of Boeing 737 MAX and providing fuel savings of 3.5
percent per seat.
Weeks later, Boeing leapfrogged its European rival by announcing
plans to offer a 200-seat version of the 737-8 MAX, which Boeing
Commercial Airplanes Chief Executive Ray Conner said would offer
unspecified cost savings of 5 percent per seat.
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One industry source said Ryanair was expected to place a large order
for the modified version of 737-8 MAX and that this could happen
"soon".
Ryanair uses solely Boeing aircraft but has so far held back joining
a wave of orders for the next generation of fuel-saving 737 MAX
aircraft with newer engines, saying it wants more seats.
In July, Chief Executive Michael O'Leary welcomed the decision to
study a higher-density version and said he would maintain the
existing order for 180 aircraft.
"We will take those aircraft as is, but for the next round of
aircraft, (for the period) 2019 to 2025, we are looking at the
189-seat Airbus or what I hope will be a 197- to 198-seat 737," he
was quoted as saying by Flightglobal.
(Reporting by Tim Hepher, Conor Humphries, Editing by Geert de
Clercq)
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