The head of TUI Travel PLC (TT.LN) said Monday that the company is in talks with Boeing Co (BA) to secure early deliveries of its delayed 787 aircraft.

TUI Travel's Thomson Airways unit is the first European customer for the 787, which is due to be launched by year-end with All Nippon Airways Co. (9202.TO, ALNPY).

"Our first priority is to bring forward the deliveries as early as we can so we can get our full 13 aircraft in service as quickly as possible," said TUI Travel Chief Executive Peter Long. He spoke in an interview at the Farnborough International Air Show.

Europe's largest travel operator by revenue said it still expects to take delivery of its first two 787 aircraft Dreamliners in 2012, but Long is pushing for this to be brought forward. TUI Travel last year canceled 10 of its 23 orders.

Boeing has been juggling the delivery schedule for the initial aircraft, and Chile's Lan Airlines SA (LAN.SN, LFL) is among those seeking early slots.

Long said the 787 will open up routes on longer-haul destinations such as from the U.K. to Brazil, Costa Rica, western Mexico, Thailand and Vietnam.

-By Kaveri Niththyananthan, Dow Jones Newswires; 4420 7842 9299; kaveri.niththyananthan@dowjones.com
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