ACG orders 60 Boeing 737 MAX airplanes

US aerospace and defense giant Boeing said Wednesday it had won an order from leasing company Aviation Capital Group for 60 of its new 737 MAX jetliners. The ACG deal, worth $6 billion at current list prices, puts orders for Boeing's planned fuel-efficient aircraft above 1,000 -- a milestone for the program, Boeing said in a statement. ACG ordered 50 737 MAX 8s and 10 MAX 9s in December, Boeing said, bringing total orders for the 737 MAX to 1,029 to date. The 737 MAX is Boeing's newest single-aisle airplane, the next generation of the 737 workhorse that has been the aviation industry's best-selling commercial aircraft. Equipped with a new CFM International LEAP engine, the redesigned aircraft is expected to use less fuel than similar fuel-efficient aircraft currently in service. The 737 Max's first flight is scheduled in 2016 and deliveries to customers are due to begin in the fourth quarter of 2017. "Reaching 1,000 orders in just over a year's time from our first order validates the exceptional value the 737 MAX offers our customers," said Bob Feldmann, vice president and general manager of the 737 MAX.