Boeing and EgyptAir announced Wednesday an order for nine Next-Generation (NG) 737-800s in a deal worth $864 million and stipulates that eight of the planes will be financed by Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE), according to an EgyptAir statement.

The addition of nine 737-800NGs to the current 20 planes that EgyptAir currently operates will make 737-800NGs the largest single-aisle aircraft type in the national carrier's fleet.

The delivery of the first plane is slated for December 2016, an EgyptAir source told Ahram Online.

"The order is an endorsement of EgyptAir's confidence in the 737, and we hope to continue our long-time partnership with the airline as it further grows and strengthens its operations," said Marty Bentrott, Boeing Commercial Airplanes Vice President of Sales for Middle East, Russia and Central Asia.

The deal was announced at the United Kingdom's 2016 Farnborough International Airshow and comes fifty years after EgyptAir placed its first order from Being for a 707 in 1966.

"Over the years, Boeing has played an important role in our growth plan," chairman and CEO of EgyptAir Holding Company Safwat Musallam said.

EgyptAir aims to increase its fleet to to 105 airplanes by end of the 2020-2021 fiscal year.

"We are delighted to welcome EgyptAir as one of Dubai Aerospace Enterprise's (DAE) new clients in the MENA region," said Khalifa AlDaboos, Managing Director of DAE, a corporation that facilitates aircraft leases and sales.

The 737-800 is known for its fuel efficiency and economic performance. 

"The Next-Generation 737-800s have earned an excellent reputation for reliability, performance and cost efficiency and has added tremendous value to our operations," Musallam said.