Airbus Wins Delta Order on Promise of Delivery

Richard Aboulafia, an analyst at the Teal Group, said: "Delta's established a rich pattern for buying older planes. The only surprise here is that they actually went ahead with their order. They were the least enthusiastic about new-generation airplanes."

Delta declined to say how much it would pay for the planes, which have a list price of more than $13 billion. But a single bulk order effectively guarantees it will receive a steep discount.

"You get half off just for showing up," Mr. Aboulafia said.