Cathay Pacific Airways (Hong Kong) is planning to drop the Hong Kong – Moscow (Domodedovo) route after June 1. The airline cited high operating costs.
Cathay Pacific launched flights to Moscow in July 2010. It currently serves the route three days a week with Airbus A340-300s.
Copyright Photo: Antony J. Best/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A340-313 B-HXO (msn 128) arrives in London (Heathrow).
Cathay Pacific aircraft slide show:ย 
Philippine Airlines (Philippines) (Manila) as planned, departed from Manila yesterday (March 15) for its return to New York. The airline restored regular service to New York after an absence of 17 years. The Airbus A340-300 (above) will operate four days a week via Vancouver.
Philippine Airlines Chairman & Chief Executive Officer Dr. Lucio C. Tan presented a Boeing 777 model aircraft to US Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg during the March 15, 2015 send-off ceremony of the airlineโs inaugural flight to New York.
Photo Below: Philippine Airlines. PAL Chairman and CEO Dr. Lucio Tan and PAL President and COO Jaime Bautista with US Ambassador to the Philippines Phillip Goldberg makes PAL’s New York official with the traditional ribbon cutting in Manila on the departure.
Photo Below: Philippine Airlines. The flight crew for the historic return to New York poses with CEO Dr. Lucio C. Tan.
Top Copyright Photo: Airbus A340-313 RP-C3435 (msn 302) taxies at London’s Heathrow Airport.
Philippines aircraft slide show:ย
South African Airways (SAA) (Johannesburg) has resumed nonstop service on its daily flight from Johannesburg to New York-John F. Kennedy International Airport, effective March 7, 2015. While SAA’s daily flight from New York-JFK to Johannesburg has operated on a nonstop basis for several years, the return flight was making a 1-hour enroute stop in Dakar, Senegal, during the low season winter months. Due to the popularity of this route, SAA’s service between New York and Johannesburg will, once again, operate nonstop in both directions on a year-round basis. The resumption of the nonstop service on the northbound flight from Johannesburg to New York-JFK reduces the overall travel time on the route by nearly 90 minutes, making it the fastest way to travel from South Africa to New York.
SAA’s flights between New York-JFK and Johannesburg are operated on wide-body Airbus A340-600 aircraft, featuring 42 full-flat 180ยฐ beds in Premium Business Class and 275 seats in Economy Class.
Copyright Photo: Jay Selman/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A340-642 ZS-SNI (msn 630) arrives at JFK International Airport in New York.
South African Airways aircraft slide show:ย
LAN Airlines (Chile) (Santiago) is getting ready to replace its aging Airbus A340-300s (above) with the new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners (below). The venerable A340s are currently assigned to the long-range Santiago-Auckland-Sydney Southern Hemisphere trans-Pacific route.
The last regularly-scheduled revenue flight is currently scheduled for the morning of April 17 when flight LA 800 arrives from Auckland at 11:35 am (1135) in Santiago. However the A340 may be kept as a reserve aircraft after this last scheduled flight, pending any last minute changes.
The Chilean carrier took delivery of its first stretched Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner (CC-BGA) on February 5.
In other news, LAN Airlines on January 27, 2016 will start to operate a weekly Boeing 787 flight on the Santiago-Caracas-Miami (on Wednesdays) route per Airline Route.
Top Copyright Photo: Alvaro Romero/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A340-313 CC-CQC (msn 363) arrives back at the Santiago (SCL) hub.
LAN Airlines (Chile) aircraft slide show:ย
Bottom Copyright Photo: Steve Bailey/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner CC-BGB (msn 35318) prepares to depart from Paine Field on a test flight on March 6. It is pending delivery to the carrier.
Cathay Pacific Airways (Hong Kong) will retire its last Airbus A340-300 in 2017. The airline has announced a deal with AerFin to gradually take and dispose the aircraft from this month through 2017. The airline issued this statement:
AerFin Ltd (UK) and Cathay Pacific Airways have announced that AerFin has been selected to provide an end-of-life solution for the fleet of 11 A340-300 aircraft operated by the Hong Kong-based carrier. The agreement will see AerFin acquire and/or consign the aircraft over a three-year period through to 2017. The first A340 will be delivered to AerFin in March 2015 and will be disassembled to provide Cathay Pacific continued support for its operational fleet, and at the same time provide AerFinโs customer base with Serviceable Used Material to support continued operations.
Cathay Pacific is retiring the A340-300s as part of ongoing fleet modernization program that is seeing the airline replace older, less-efficient aircraft with new, more fuel-efficient aircraft. Cathay Pacific currently operates 147 aircraft in what is one of the youngest all-wide-body fleets in the world. The airline has some 79 aircraft on firm order for delivery up to 2024, including 48 Airbus A350s and 21 Boeing 777-9Xs.
UK based AerFin Limited specializes in providing end-of-life fleet solutions for investors, MROs, and airlines exposed to technically challenging assets. US based CarVal Investors LLC took an 80% shareholding in AerFin in December 2014 and their experienced team has navigated ever-changing credit market cycles, investing more than $78 billion in 5,200 transactions across 71 countries.
Copyright Photo: Antony J. Best/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A340-313 B-HXI (msn 220) completes its final approach to the runway at London (Heathrow).
Cathay Pacific aircraft slide show:ย
Air Tahiti Nui (Papeete) is switching to Boeing for its long-range needs. The airline has announced it is committed to finalizing an order for two new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners. The new type will replace its aging fleet of Airbus A340-300s (above and below).
Boeing issued this statement:
Boeing is pleased that Air Tahiti Nui has announced a commitment to purchase two 787-9 Dreamliners (below). The order, valued at $514 million at current list prices, will be posted on Boeing’s Orders and Deliveries website when finalized.
Update: Separately on March 3, 2015ย Air Lease Corporation (ALC) announced an agreement to lease two new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft to Air Tahiti Nui. Both aircraft are from ALCโs order book with Boeing and scheduled to deliver to French Polynesiaโs flag carrier airline in the fall of 2018.
Above Copyright Photo: Joe G. Walker/AirlinersGallery.com.ย Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner N789EX (msn 41988) lands at Boeing Field.
Air Tahiti Nui, the flag-carrier for French Polynesia, has headquarters in Papeete and operates from Faa’a International Airport on the island of Tahiti.
Air Tahiti Nui aircraft slide show:ย
Route Map:
Video: Air Tahiti Nui using a GoPro camera:
Video: Air Tahiti Nui. Celebrating 15 years of flying:
Lufthansa (Frankfurt) has announced its new first class experience is available on all long-haul routes from its Munich hub. The airline issued this statement:
Lufthansa passengers can now experience the airlineโs new First Class service on all long-haul flights from Munich. At the end of last week, the final Airbus A340-600 in the airlineโs Munich-based long-haul fleet was retrofitted with the new First Class cabin. This winter, a total of 24 Airbus A340-600 and A330-300 aircraft will serve 22 intercontinental destinations from Munich.
This summer, the retrofit of the new First and Business Class cabins on the remainder of the long-haul fleet will be completed. By the end of 2015, all Lufthansa long-range aircraft will feature the new Premium Economy cabin. Altogether 11,000 seats are being installed on 105 aircraft.
Photo: Lufthansa.
In the award-winning First Class cabin, passengers can look forward to individual service and a wide selection of top-quality food and drinks. Each of the eight First Class seats can be extended to create a lie-flat bed measuring 2.07 meters in length and 80 cm in width, enabling passengers to enjoy a deep, relaxing sleep. The new Business Class seat offers exceptional comfort, whether in an upright or a reclining position.
At the press of a button, the seat converts into a comfortable bed with a horizontal sleeping surface measuring 1.98 meters in length. In Business Class, passengers can select what they want to watch from the expanded inflight entertainment programme and view it on their personal 15-inch monitor. The new Premium Economy Class offers 50 per cent more space plus an enhanced service, and passengers can also check in two items of baggage. In the course of this year, Lufthansa will offer its Business Class passengers a new, more personalized, restaurant-style service.
Top Copyright Photo: Rob Finlayson/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A340-642 D-AIHU (msn 848) touches down at Los Angeles International Airport.
Lufthansa aircraft slide show:ย
Kuwait Airways (Kuwait City) is returning to Munich. According to Airline Route, the airline will restore the Kuwait City – Munich route (three flights a week) starting again on July 16.
Copyright Photo: Antony J. Best/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A340-300s will be operated on the restored route. Airbus A340-313 9K-ANA (msn 089) approaches the runway at London (Heathrow).
Kuwait Airways aircraft slide show:ย
Virgin Atlantic Airways (London) has moved up the planned date for the final revenue flight of the Airbus A340-300 according to Airline Route. The last flight is tentatively scheduled as flight VS 251 from Shanghai (Pudong) to London (Heathrow) on March 29.
Copyright Photo: Keith Burton/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A340-313 G-VELD (msn 214) departs from London (Heathrow).
Virgin Atlantic aircraft slide show:ย
Thai Airways International (Bangkok) is also planning to retire its Airbus A340-600s. According to Airline Route, the last revenue flight for the aging type is currently scheduled for the Frankfurt – Bangkok route as flight TG 293, departing on FRA late on March 28 and arriving the next day at BKK.
Copyright Photo: John Adlard/AirlinersGallery.com.ย Thai Airways International Airbus A340-642 HS-TND (msn 710) approaches the runway in Sydney.
Thai aircraft slide show:ย
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