aircraft order
Lufthansa purchases 30 Airbus A320neo and A321neo aircraft
Lufthansa has placed a firm order for 30 Airbus A320neo Family aircraft. This contract follows the selection by the Lufthansa Supervisory Board of the A320neo Family in March this year. The order comprises 25 A320neo and five A321neo aircraft. These will be powered by new-generation Pratt & Whitney PW1100G turbofan engines. With this latest order the Lufthansa Group, Airbus’ biggest airline customer, will have purchased a combined total of 443 Airbus aircraft.
The Airbus A320neo Family also incorporates large “Sharklet” wing tip devices, which together with the new more efficient engines, will deliver up to 15 percent in fuel savings. This will represent some 3,600 tonnes less CO2 per aircraft, per year. In addition, the A320neo will provide a double-digit reduction in NOx emissions and reduced engine noise, thus being a good neighbour at any airport where Lufthansa is operating the aircraft.
“We are proud that Lufthansa has chosen the eco-efficient A320neo Family as its solution for sustainable growth, and one which will fit seamlessly into its existing Airbus A320 fleet,” said John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer, Customers.
“Since its launch in December last year, around 1,200 orders and commitments for the ‘neo’ have given it the fastest rate of sales ever for any commercial aircraft.”
Today the Lufthansa Group is Airbus’ biggest operator worldwide with more than 360 Airbus aircraft currently in service. These include: 254 A320 Family; 38 A330 ; 65 A340 ; and eight A380 aircraft. With this latest order for 30 aircraft, the Lufthansa Group has an order backlog which includes 85 A320 Family aircraft, eight A330 and seven A380 aircraft.
The Airbus A320 Family (A318, A319, A320 and A321) is recognised as the benchmark single-aisle aircraft family. Over 7,500 Airbus A320 Family aircraft have been ordered and more than 4,700 delivered to more than 330 customers and operators worldwide.
The Airbus A320neo Family will have over 95 percent airframe commonality with the existing models making it an easy fit into today’s fleets while offering up to 500 nautical miles more range or two tonnes more payload at a given range.
Malaysia Airlines orders 25 passenger and freighter Airbus A330 aircraft
Malaysia Airlines has this week ordered up to 25 Airbus A330-300 widebody aircraft covering the firm order of 15 Airbus A330-300 with options for another 10. This follows the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with Airbus in December last year.
In addition, the airline has also placed new orders for up to 4 Airbus A330-200F freighters comprising two firm orders and another 2 options.
Deliveries of the passenger aircraft will begin in the first half of 2011, with the first Airbus freighter joining the MASkargo fleet in September 2011.
Seating 283 passengers in a high comfort two class layout, the Airbus A330-300 will become the mainstay of the carrier’s medium haul passenger fleet and will be used on services to destinations across the Asia-Pacific region, as well as to the Middle East. In the freight market, MASkargo will fly the aircraft on sectors of up to 3,200 nautical miles, with the capability to carry payloads of almost 70 tonnes.
“The Airbus A330s complements the other aircraft orders under our fleet modernization plan. The ability to add capacity will enable us to offer more frequencies to key destinations and fly to new destinations. This strategy complements our continuous investment in people, systems as well as infrastructure, and positions us in high gear for growth,” said Malaysia Airlines Managing Director/CEO, Azmil Zahruddin.
“On the cargo side, the new freighters will enable us to better serve the intra Asia route, and offer direct services to Europe from India and Bangladesh. This complements our expansion plans in China, and will strengthen our position us as a key niche player in the region,” said Azmil.
By 2015, Malaysia Airlines expects to have one of the youngest, most fuel efficient and environmentally friendly fleets in Asia.
In preparation to add capacity with the availability of new aircraft, Malaysia Airlines has been simulating demand by adding new frequencies which began on the 28th March 2010. These include offering 7 flights weekly from Kuala Lumpur to Paris, 5 weekly flights to Auckland and 10 weekly flights to Perth. There are also new twice weekly direct flights to Brisbane via Kuala Lumpur.
The national carrier is also expected to announce new destinations beginning second quarter of the year.
“The latest order from Malaysia Airlines underscores the position of the Airbus A330 family as the most efficient and versatile product line in its class,” said John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer, Customers.
“In addition to the proven reliability and low operating costs of the passenger aircraft, the MAS group will also be one of the first airlines to benefit from the new levels of efficiency coming to the freight market with the Airbus A330-200F,” he said.
Malaysia Airlines is a long-standing customer of Airbus and currently operates 14 A330s, comprising 11 A330-300s and three long range A330-200s.
