AerCap, Boeing and Neos announced the delivery of the Italian leisure carrier’s first Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Neos is leasing the 787-9 through an agreement with AerCap and is the first Italian operator of the airplane.

“With a significant portion of the 787 produced in Italy we are proud to be the country’s first operator of the Dreamliner,” said Carlo Stradiotti, CEO of Neos. “This delivery is the first step of implementation of our fleet strategy, aimed at making sure our customers can always have a state-of-the-art service and the best possible in-flight experience. We look forward to welcoming more 787s into our fleet along with the new 737 MAXs in the next few years.”

Neos becomes the 45th carrier to operate the 787 Dreamliner. AerCap, the world’s largest Dreamliner customer, plans to deliver two additional 787s to Neos by next year.

Italian industry, through Leonardo, is responsible for producing 14% of the 787’s airframe structure, including the two-piece center fuselage section, along with the airplane’s horizontal stabilizer.

“The 787 will be a tremendous addition to Neos’ fleet, providing greater efficiency, range, passenger comforts and flexibility to its operations,” said Monty Oliver, vice president of European Sales, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “We are proud of the confidence Neos continues to place in our products and are delighted to welcome another 787 operator, and the first in Italy, to our family of Dreamliner customers.”

Boeing has delivered more than 625 787s since entering service in 2011, flying more than 200 million people on more than 610 unique routes.