The Japanese airline will become the first low-cost carrier in Japan to operate A320neo aircraft. The order, worth $1.4 billion, was announced at a signing ceremony in Tokyo attended by the carrier’s managing director and CEO alongside the Airbus president and CEO.
As part of a fleet renewal which has now seen the Gulf carrier retire the last of its A330 and A340 aircraft from commercial operation, Emirates Airline has confirmed it will receive seven of the newly configured 516-seat new-generation A380s this fiscal year, with 51 more on order.
IAG chief executive officer Willie Walsh has revealed that alongside the operations of the Airbus A380 within the fleet of British Airways (BA), he could also present a business case for the Super Jumbo to fly with both Iberia and Aer Lingus.
With the handover last week of an A350-900 to Singapore Airlines it underscored the company’s growth that has transformed a European upstart in the 1970s to a global performer now offering a modern and comprehensive product line ranging from 100 to more than 600 seats.
While it might seem from the outside that nothing has changed, Malaysia Airlines has been completely reborn as a business over the last 18 months. Now, the carrier is planning a growth trajectory across south-east Asia under the stewardship of former Ryanair executive, Peter Bellew.
Previously known as SATA Internacional, the Portuguese carrier Azores Airlines has been providing important connectivity in and out of the Azores since the 1990s, while also providing essential air services within the archipelago.
An amended purchase agreement with Airbus includes an additional 15 Airbus A321ceo (current engine option) and 15 A321neo (new engine option) aircraft, but for deliveries from 2019 JetBlue holds the flexibility to configure the neo equipment to the Longer Range version of the A321 – the A321LR, which would be well-suited to possible future transatlantic flights.
Within ten years China’s domestic air traffic will become the world’s largest, manufacturers Airbus and Boeing once again reinforced in the latest editions of their Global Market Forecast and Current Market Outlook released at the Farnborough International Airshow this week.
AirAsia has signed a firm order with Airbus for the purchase of 100 A321neo aircraft, its first order for the largest model of the A320 Family. Seating up to 236 passengers in a single class layout, the A321neo will enable the airline to increase capacity versus its current A320 fleet while benefitting from the lowest operating costs in the single aisle category.
A new video released by the aircraft manufacturer shows the benefit of utilising their A380 model. These benefits are felt by two very different cities – Birmingham, England and Los Angeles, USA.
Air France's two locally domiciled Airbus A320s fly between Pointe à Pitre, Fort de France, Cayenne, Port au Prince and Miami, operating more than 30 weekly flights between these regional economic centers.
The A350 will primarily be deployed on the airline's long-haul routes to Europe, Australia and the United States, enabling China Airlines to offer its passengers non-stop service on ultra-long routes. However, it will initially operate in local markets for crew familiarisation.
This SuperJumbo commitment is understood to be linked to ANA Holdings’ successful sponsorship of a rescue bid for fellow Japanese carrier Skymark Airlines. The latter had an outstanding commitment for the A380 and Airbus was among its largest creditors with a sizeable voice in deciding a rescue package for the airline.
The carrier will start operating the A350 XWB commercially in January 2016 between Sao Paulo and Manaus, Brazil, as part of continued training and crew familiarisation. This will be followed by operations from Sao Paulo to Miami in March and then to Madrid in April.
Emirates confirms it will retire 26 aircraft next year, including 12 Airbus A330-200s, four A340-300s, one A340-500, six Boeing 777-200ERs, two Boeing 777-300s and one Boeing 777-300ER. In addition, 13 more aircraft will be retired in 2017 and another 13 will be retired in 2018. Balancing its aircraft retirement programme, Emirates will take delivery of 36 new aircraft in 2016, comprising 20 A380s and 16 Boeing 777-300ERs.
The new arrangement will initially debut in the final quarter and will enter service from December 1, 2015 on both the Dubai – Bangkok and Dubai – Copenhagen routes, and will also serve Dubai – Kuala Lumpur and Dubai – Manchester from January 1, 2016.
Optimised for non-stop flights to the US, the aircraft, designated A350-900ULR (Ultra-Long Range), will include a modified fuel system to increase the fuel carrying capacity, an increase in Maximum Take-Off Weight, plus aerodynamic improvements, enabling service to the US West Coast, as well as to New York.
The airline has confirmed it will add two further long-haul destinations to its network from spring 2016 with a three times weekly offering to Fukuoka in Japan and a four times weekly link to Guangzhou in China from its Helsinki Airport hub.
The aircraft will now enter the final production phase including further ground checks and flight tests before being officially handed-over to the Nordic carrier. Finnair has acquired a total of 19 A350 XWBs and will operate its fleet on premium long haul routes to Asia, beginning with services between Helsinki and Shanghai.
The Y18 billion ($145 million) plan will see current shareholder Integral Corporation hold a 50.1 per cent stake in the low-cost carrier, with UDS Airlines Investment – a joint venture between SMBC and Development Bank of Japan –holding a 33.4 per cent shareholding and ANA a 16.5 per cent stake.
The US Patent and Trademark Office recently approved the application from Airbus for the new jet, which says it will travel at 4.5 times the speed of sound – more than 2,500mph according to the documents lodged.
Transaero announced plans to debut the Airbus A320 Family variant into its fleet from July 2015 in March last year when it confirmed a deal with ICBC Leasing, part of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, to introduce six A321 aircraft on operating leases for delivery through March 2016. These are the first of up to 30 A321s that are due to enter the Russian carrier’s fleet within the next five years.
Aeroflot Russian Airlines is reviewing its future long-haul fleet renewal after it was revealed just last month that the carrier had cancelled its order for 22 Boeing 787 Dreamliners. The flag carrier had been due to take delivery of the aircraft in 2014 but previous delays with the programme meant that the deliveries had been put back to 2016.
The troubled Asian national carrier Malaysia Airlines will be completely revamped as a business through the remainder of the year as its new boss takes drastic action to return the loss-making operator to profitability. Christoph Mueller, who joined as chief executive officer earlier this year from Aer Lingus has played important roles in the restructuring the Irish carrier and other European flag carriers.
