Tag Archives: A330-300

SAS expands the number of flights to the USA and Asia

Scandinavian Airlines-SAS (Stockholm) is increasing the number of departures to seven flights a week from Stockholm (Arlanda) to Chicago (Oo’Hare) and seven a week from Copenhagen to Shanghai.

The new departures are part of the SAS plan to expand its long haul fleet network that also includes opening all-new routes.

Earlier this year, SAS announced additional departures from Oslo and Stockholm to New York (JFK) and from Copenhagen to San Francisco.

SAS now announces three additional weekly departures – two extra flights to Shanghai and one more to Chicago. This means a daily service is now available on both routes. The improved services will coincide with the opening of the winter traffic program in late October and means that in winter 2015/16, SAS will offer 108 weekly departures between Scandinavia and the USA and 50 weekly departures between Scandinavia and Asia.

The new departures from Copenhagen to Shanghai will be on Mondays and Wednesdays. The new departures from Shanghai to Copenhagen will be Tuesdays and Thursdays. The new departure from Stockholm to Chicago and return will be on Sunday.

As of the start of the winter traffic program on October 26, 2015, the below five routes will all be upgraded to daily year-round service:

Copenhagen – Shanghai
Copenhagen – San Francisco
Stockholm – Chicago
Stockholm – New York
Oslo – New York

SAS offers long haul flights from Scandinavia to New York, Washington, Chicago, San Francisco, Houston, Beijing, Shanghai and Tokyo. In September 2015, SAS will open a new route from Stockholm to Hong Kong.

Copyright Photo: Stefan Sjogren/AirlinersGallery.com. SAS Airbus A330-343 LN-RKH (msn 497) departs from the Stockholm (Arlanda) hub.

SAS aircraft slide show:

EVA Air signs MOU for four additional Airbus A330-300s

EVA Air (Taipei) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Airbus for the purchase of four additional A330-300s. As with its existing A330 fleet, the new aircraft will be powered by CF6-80 engines by General Electric.

EVA Air currently operates a fleet of 29 Airbus aircraft, including 14 A330s and 15 A321s.

Copyright Photo: Yuji Wang/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A330-302 B-16333 (msn 1274) in the third version of the Hello Kitty special livery arrives in Shanghai (Hongqiao).

EVA Air aircraft slide show:

Saudia-Saudi Arabian Airlines to be the launch operator of the new up to 400-seat Airbus A330-300 Regional

Saudia-Saudi Arabian Airlines (Jeddah), the national carrier of Saudi Arabia will become the first airline in the world to operate the new Airbus A330-300 Regional.

The new aircraft will join Saudi Arabian Airlines’ existing Airbus fleet of twelve A330-300s and 50 A320 Family.

Passenger demand in Saudi Arabia is experiencing high growth both on domestic and regional routes. The new A330-300 Regional variant, specially designed for regional and domestic operations, is Airbus’ solution for markets with large populations and fast growing, concentrated air traffic flows. The A330-300 Regional is set to boost capacity on several of Saudi Arabian Airlines most in-demand routes, enabling the airline to better serve the Saudi Arabian and regional travelling public.

The A330-300 Regional is optimized to seat up to 400 passengers in Airbus’ best in class 18 inch wide economy seat comfort on missions up to 3,000 nm and offers significant cost savings through a reduced operational weight of around 200 tons. The reduction in fuel burn per seat and maintenance costs will result in an overall cost reduction by up to 26% compared with the today’s long-range A330-300. In addition, the A330 Regional benefits from the latest A350 XWB and A380 technologies.

Saudi Arabian Airlines has signed an operating lease agreement with IAFC for the 20 Airbus A330-300 Regional and 30 A320ceo aircraft, which Saudia is planning to also add with this order.

Top Image: Airbus. The Airbus A330-300 Regional.

Saudia-Saudi Arabian Airlines aircraft slide show:

Bottom Copyright Photo: Tony Storck/AirlinersGallery.com. Saudia is also ordering 30 of the current version of the Airbus A320. Airbus A320-214 HZ-ASF (msn 4955) in the SkyTeam livery taxies at Frankfurt.

Air Canada and the customer service agents union reach a tentative agreement

Air Canada (Montreal) and Unifor, the union representing the airline’s approximately 4,000 Customer Service and Sales Agents, have announced that they have reached a tentative agreement on a new contract for five years.

The airline continued;

“Along with agreements concluded with other employee groups over the past eight months, this tentative agreement with Unifor, subject to ratification, provides Air Canada with added stability and flexibility to support profitable growth. Importantly, it is a “win-win” agreement which acknowledges the contribution of our customer service and sales agents to Air Canada’s success,” said Calin Rovinescu, President and Chief Executive Officer of Air Canada.

“We’re very pleased to have achieved important gains for our Air Canada members,” said Unifor National President Jerry Dias. “We listened closely to what our members wanted in this contract and delivered results.”

The agreement is subject to ratification by the union membership. Details of the agreement will not be released pending ratification and approval by the Air Canada Board of Directors.

The union will recommend ratification to its members and the Company will seek the Air Canada Board of Director’s approval for the agreement.

This tentative agreement with Unifor follows on the conclusion in October 2014 of a new agreement with Air Canada’s pilots on collective agreement terms for ten years. It is the fourth tentative collective agreement reached by Air Canada and its unions, including those with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) representing its U.S. unionized workforce and UNITE representing its U.K unionized workforce.

Copyright Photo: SPA/AirlinersGallery.com. Air Canada Airbus A330-343 C-GFAJ (msn 284) climbs away from the runway at London (Heathrow).

Air Canada aircraft slide show:

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American and United support the Department of Homeland Security’s plan to expand preclearance to 10 additional gateway airports

American Airlines (Dallas/Fort Worth) and United Airlines (Chicago) have publicly come out in support of the announcement of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security of its intent to expand customs, immigration and agriculture preclearance to 10 additional gateway airports:

American Airlines issued this statement:

American Airlines applauds the announcement by the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for their plans to enter negotiations to expand preclearance operations to 10 key gateway airports – seven of which are served by American.

“Expanding air preclearance is a tremendous step forward for improving the overall travel experience for our customers and welcoming more visitors to the United States,” said Robert Isom, chief operating officer for American Airlines. “Preclearance eases the congestion at our U.S. gateway airports and ensures our customers get to their destinations faster. We fully support Secretary Jeh Johnson and the Obama Administration’s plans for bringing more tourists to the United States, and we are excited to begin discussions on expanding preclearance facilities.”

American currently serves seven of the airports on the list for potential preclearance expansion – London Heathrow; Manchester, England; Tokyo’s Narita International; Spain’s Madrid-Barajas; Brussels; Amsterdam Schiphol; and Punta Cana International in the Dominican Republic.

At preclearance facilities, CBP Officers are stationed abroad to screen passengers and their accompanying goods or baggage heading to the United States. CBP Officers retain the authority to inspect these passengers after arriving in the U.S.

American will continue to work with DHS and CBP to ensure the negotiations are successful.

United Airlines issued this statement:

We have worked closely with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and support developments that provide more convenience for our customers. We thank Secretary Johnson and his team at the Department of Homeland Security and CBP for their engagement with United and the airline industry, and we look forward to partnering with them on this initiative to facilitate travel and reduce wait times.

Top Copyright Photo: SPA/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A330-323 N274AY (msn 342) of American Airlines climbs away from the runway at London’s Heathrow Airport.

American Airlines aircraft slide show (current livery):

United Airlines aircraft slide show (current livery):

Bottom Copyright Photo: Paul Bannwarth/AirlinersGallery.com. United Airlines Boeing 767-424 ER N69063 (msn 29463) lands in Zurich.

Delta takes delivery of a new 242-ton Airbus A330-300 aircraft

Delta Air LInes (Atlanta) has formally taken delivery of its first Airbus A330-300 since the Delta-Northwest merger (all previous A330s were ordered by Northwest). Delta is now the launch customer of the new 242-ton Airbus A330-300. The pictured A330-302 N822NW (msn 1627) was formally handed over today (May 29). Delta issued this statement:

Honorees of Delta Air Lines’ Chairman’s Club, the airline’s most prestigious recognition for employees, today took delivery of a new Airbus A330-300 widebody aircraft from Airbus’ headquarters in Toulouse, France.

The aircraft is the first new Airbus purchased by Delta following its merger with Northwest Airlines in 2008, and is one of 10 new A330-300s scheduled to enter Delta’s fleet by 2017.

Eighty nine Delta Chairman’s Club honorees, employees recognized by their peers for their dedication and commitment to exemplifying the highest standards of service and excellence, were on hand for the delivery ceremony to officially induct the new aircraft in to service.

Delta currently operates 32 Airbus A330s, the most economic mid-range international widebody aircraft flying today. The new A330-300s are 15-25 percent more fuel efficient per seat than the Boeing 767-300s and 747-400s they will replace. The A330s will operate primarily on Delta’s Atlantic and Pacific long-range routes and provide Delta’s network with more flexibility to optimally match capacity with demand. The aircraft is powered by General Electric CF6-80E1 engines.

The Airbus A330-300 will feature 34 full flat-bed seats with direct aisle access in Delta One, 32 extra-legroom seats in Delta Comfort+ and 227 Main Cabin seats. Customers will enjoy access to satellite in-flight Wi-Fi featuring the Delta Studio library of free streaming programming as well as more than 1,000 on-demand movies, television shows and music on large, high-definition seatback monitors. Customers also will benefit from modern interiors with LED lighting and extra-capacity overhead bins.

Airbus issued this statement and photo:

The first 242-ton Maximum Take-Off Weight (MTOW) variant of the A330-300 was delivered today (May 29) to Delta Air Lines. The Atlanta, Georgia (U.S.) – based airline is the first to receive the aircraft type from among 11 worldwide customers for the option. Delta has selected GE CF6-80E1 engines to power its new A330-300.

Launched in 2012 as Airbus’ latest evolution to the twin-engine widebody A330 Family, the increased take-off weight A330-200 and A330-300 incorporate a new aerodynamic package, engine improvements and an optional centre fuel tank (the latter for the A330-300 version). These upgrades on the A330-300 allow for an extended range of up to 6,100 nautical miles while offering up to 2 percent fuel consumption reduction. This incremental innovation to Airbus’ A330 Family received airworthiness approval from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in April 2015, and received parallel certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) earlier this month.

The delivery ceremony today at Airbus’ headquarters in Toulouse, France, is particularly notable as the airline brought some 100 employees – each a member of Delta’s Chairman’s Club. The group is selected by their peers annually from 10-thousand nominees in Delta’s most prestigious corporate recognition program.

Delta Air Lines, Airbus’ biggest A330 customer in North America, flies currently both Airbus single-aisle and widebody aircraft, including 57 A319ceo and 69 A320ceo aircraft, plus 11 A330-200s and 21 A330-300s. In addition to nine more A330-300s and 45 A321ceos still to be delivered to Delta, the airline ordered 25 A350-900 and 25 A330-900neo Airbus widebody aircraft last year.

All photos by Airbus.

Delta Air Lines aircraft slide show (current livery only):

Airbus and Intrepid to reject the ANA/Skymark Airlines deal

Skymark Airlines‘ (Tokyo) two biggest creditors, Intrepid Aviation and Airbus, have informed the bankruptcy court that they will reject a rescue plan involving ANA-All Nippon Airways (Tokyo) according to ZipanguFlyer.

Read the full story: CLICK HERE

Copyright Photo below: Akira Uekawa/AirlinersGallery.com. Skylark was an Airbus A330-300 operator and was planning to add the larger A380. The pictured A330-343 JA330B (msn 1491) climbs away from Haneda Airport.

Skymark aircraft slide show:

EASA certifies the new 242 ton version of the Airbus A330-300

Airbus (Toulouse) has issued this statement today:

The latest variant of the highly successful A330 – the new 242 metric ton A330-300 – has achieved certification from the European airworthiness authorities (EASA) following a 100 hour flight-test campaign. Certification from the US authorities (FAA) is also expected soon. Furthermore, and in the near future, the smaller A330-200 model will follow the -300 by benefiting from the 242 ton take-off weight capability. To date 11 customers have already selected their new A330s to have a 242 ton capability.

Eric Zanin, Airbus’ Head of the A330 Program said: “The latest A330’s maximum take-off weight capability of 242 metric tonnes, combined with various aerodynamic refinements and increased fuel capacity means that soon operators will benefit from an extended range of up to 500 nautical miles or carry greater payload. Moreover, they will do so with a fuel consumption reduction of up two percent – yet another concrete example of Airbus’ incremental innovation strategy.”

The initial certified A330-300 242 ton aircraft is powered by CF6-80E1 engines and certification with the other engine types – the PW4000 and Trent 700 – will follow.

The flight-test campaign of approximately 100 hours was shared between two aircraft: an Airbus test aircraft (msn 871) which was used to validate some aerodynamic refinements, and a new production aircraft (msn 1628) whose tasks included the validation of the *center tank activation and overall performance effect on the larger A330-300 platform. Notably, the 242 ton A330’s structure is also the basis for development of the forthcoming A330neo.

The combination of the increased take-off weight, aerodynamic improvements and the optional fuel capacity boost – compared with the previous 235 ton version – means that the new 242 ton A330-300 is capable of flying missions of up to 15 hours, or carry more payload over existing routes. In practice this means that it will allow operators to fly directly between Europe and south-East Asia and could be used for more than 90 percent of typical routes from London airports.

Photo: Airbus. Delta Air Lines is the launch customer.

Delta and Virgin Atlantic expand their trans-Atlantic joint venture schedule this weekend

Delta Air Lines (Atlanta) and Virgin Atlantic Airways (London) are celebrating a significant expansion of their trans-Atlantic partnership with the introduction of six new daily services.

The two airlines begin their summer schedule this weekend and will offer up to 39 return trans-Atlantic flights a day between the U.K. and 15 destinations across North America. The joint schedule now includes 10 daily flights between New York and London Heathrow, with eight daily departures from New York-JFK and two departures from Newark. Customers travelling between JFK and London Heathrow will benefit from a memory schedule* of regular evening departures from New York.

Virgin Atlantic is launching a second daily service between Los Angeles and Heathrow, complemented by significant investment on the ground with the first-ever Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse in Los Angeles due to open next month. Combined with the Delta service launched in October 2014, the partnership will offer three daily flights from Los Angeles to London and expects to carry close to 400,000 annual passengers on the route.

Also launching this weekend is a seasonal second-daily Virgin Atlantic service between Atlanta and London Heathrow and a second service between San Francisco and London Heathrow that will operate five days a week over the summer.

The two airlines are maximizing the benefits of their joint-venture partnership and increasing passenger choice by aligning schedules to best meet customer demand. This will see a transfer of operations that begins this weekend with Delta flying one of the Newark-to-London Heathrow services previously operated by Virgin Atlantic. Meanwhile, Virgin Atlantic will take over Delta’s Atlanta-to-Manchester service.

Further joint-venture services will be introduced later in the summer. These include:

A new daily Delta service between Philadelphia and London Heathrow starting April 26
A new daily Delta service between New York-JFK and Manchester starting May 21
A new daily Virgin Atlantic service between London Heathrow and Detroit starting June 1

Virgin Atlantic is also offering a series of special seasonal services this year from Orlando to Belfast, Northern Ireland (June and July), and Las Vegas to Glasgow, Scotland (September and October).

Virgin Atlantic is resuming flights from London Gatwick to the Caribbean island of Tobago on Sunday and will be offering a weekly service during the summer and a twice-weekly service in the winter.

This summer, Delta flights between London Heathrow and Boston, Los Angeles and New York will operate from Heathrow’s Terminal 3 alongside all Virgin Atlantic services. Delta flights between Heathrow and Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis-St Paul, Philadelphia and Seattle/Tacoma will operate from Terminal 4. Delta One and Upper Class passengers departing from London Heathrow Terminal 3 will be able to enjoy a seamless transfer from car to lounge via the Virgin Atlantic Upper Class Wing. Business class passengers travelling from Heathrow Terminal 4 will enjoy complimentary access to the SkyTeam lounge.

Since the start of the joint venture, more than five million people have travelled on its services with 10,000 people per month connecting between the two airlines last year. The new schedule offers connecting itineraries to 215 destinations.

Delta aircraft slide show (current livery):

Virgin Atlantic aircraft slide show:

Cebu Pacific Air to launch flights to Doha, Qatar

Cebu Pacific Air (Manila) will launch twice weekly nonstop flights between Manila and Doha, Qatar, starting on June 4, 2015.

CEB will be the only Philippine carrier flying between these two cities, serving more Global Filipinos in the Middle East.

The nonstop service departs Manila every Monday and Thursday, at 9:35 pm (2135). It arrives in Doha at 2:45 am (0245) the next day. The return flight departs Doha every Tuesday and Friday, at 4:15 am (0415), arriving in Manila at 6:35 pm (1835).

This new route will utilize CEB’s brand-new Airbus A330-300 aircraft, with a configuration of 436 all-economy class seats. Hot meals, seats with extra legroom and Wi-Fi onboard, among others, are options that can be added to the fare.

The route will serve over 260,000 Filipinos in Qatar, based on Philippine Overseas Employment Administration 2009 stock estimates.

Qatar has the third-largest Filipino community in the Middle East. CEB already serves the other two key markets for Global Filipinos: United Arab Emirates via direct flights to Dubai, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia via Riyadh. CEB is also the only airline flying direct between Manila and Kuwait.

CEB’s 55-strong fleet is comprised of 10 Airbus A319, 31 Airbus A320, 6 Airbus A330 and 8 ATR-72 500 aircraft.

Between 2015 and 2021, Cebu Pacific will take delivery of 7 more brand-new Airbus A320 and 30 Airbus A321neo aircraft.

Copyright Photo: Kok Chwee K.C. Sim/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A330-343 RP-C3341 (msn 1420) arrives in Singapore (SIN).

Cebu Pacific Air aircraft slide show: