Tag Archives: Airbus A330

Air China to open a Beijing – Minsk – Budapest route

Air China (Beijing) plans to start Beijing – Minsk – Budapest services from May 1, 2015. The will be the only direct route from China to Belarus and Hungary.

The four-time weekly Beijing – Minsk – Budapest services CA721/722 will be operated on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sunday. The outbound flight departs from Beijing at 13:00 Beijing time and arrives in Minsk at 16:50 local time and in Budapest at 18:20 local time. The return flight departs from Budapest at 19:00 and arrives in Beijing at 11:50 Beijing time on the second day. The route is to be operated with Airbus A330-200

By December 2014, Air China had a fleet of 523 passenger aircraft and freighters of mainly Boeing and Airbus families (including those of the carriers which Air China has a majority stake in). It operates 322 routes, including 82 international routes, 15 regional routes and 225 domestic routes. It serves 159 cities in 32 countries and regions, including 53 international cities, 3 regional cities and 103 domestic cities. Every week, Air China offers over 1.3 million seats on over 7000 flights per week.

Utilizing its extensive route network and its hub in Beijing, especially after its admission to the Star Alliance, Air China can fly passengers to 1,328 airports in 195 countries.

Copyright Photo: Stefan Sjogren/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A330-243 B-06073 (msn 780) prepares to land in Stockholm (Arlanda).

Air China 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:

Transat A.T. Inc. (Air Transat) reports a fiscal first quarter adjusted net profit of $32.4 million

Transat A.T. Inc. (the parent of Air Transat) (Montreal) posted revenues of $788.6 million for the quarter ended January 31, 2015, compared with $847.2 million in 2014, a decrease of $58.6 million, or 6.9%. The Corporation recorded an adjusted operating loss1 of $35.8 million, compared with $23.9 million in 2014; and a net loss attributable to shareholders of $64.3 million ($1.66 per share on a diluted basis), compared with $25.6 million ($0.67 per share on a diluted basis) in 2014. Before non-operating items, Transat reported an adjusted net loss3 of $32.4 million in 2015 ($0.84 per share), compared with $23.3 million ($0.60 per share) in 2014.

All amounts are in Canadian dollars.

Read the full report: CLICK HERE

Notes:

The following are non-IFRS financial measures used by management as indicators to evaluate ongoing and recurring operational performance.

(1)
Adjusted operating income (loss): Operating income (operating loss) before depreciation and amortization expense, restructuring charge and other significant unusual items.
(2)
Adjusted pre-tax income (loss): Income (loss) before income tax expense, change in fair value of derivative financial instruments used for aircraft fuel purchases, gain on disposal of a subsidiary, restructuring charge, impairment of goodwill and other significant unusual items.
(3)
Adjusted net income (loss): Net income (loss) attributable to shareholders change in fair value of derivative financial instruments used for aircraft fuel purchases, gain on disposal of a subsidiary, restructuring charge, impairment of goodwill and other significant unusual items, net of related taxes.

Copyright Photo: Chris Sands/AirlinersGallery.com. Air Transat’s Airbus A330-243 C-GITS (msn 271) is pictured in action at Calgary International Airport (YYC).

Air Transat aircraft slide show:

Turkish Airlines orders four additional Airbus A330-200F freighters

Turkish Airlines (Istanbul) has signed a firm order for the purchase of four additional A330-200F freighter aircraft. Operated by Turkish Cargo, a brand of Turkish Airlines, the additional aircraft will help to further boost the company’s expansion in the cargo market.

Turkish Airlines already operates five A330-200F freighters (above), and the additional order will enable them to quickly meet the growing cargo market demand.

Turkish Airlines operates the largest Airbus fleet in Turkey with a total of 139 Airbus aircraft in service. These include 91 single aisle aircraft, two A310 freighters, 17 A330-200s, 18 A330-300s, five A330-200Fs and six A340s.

The A330-200F is capable of carrying a payload of 65 to 70 tons, with a range of up to 4,000 nautical miles.

Turkish Airlines aircraft slide show:

The first 242-ton Airbus A330-300 is rolled out in Delta colors

Delta Air Lines (Atlanta) will take delivery this year of the first 242-ton Airbus A330-300 as a launch customer. Airbus has issued this statement and photos:

Just four months after entering the Final Assembly Line, and less than two months after its maiden flight, the first 242 ton Maximum Take-Off Weight (MTOW) variant of the A330 rolled out of the paintshop in Toulouse, France in Delta Air Lines livery.

This first, new higher weight variant of the A330-300 is powered by two GE CF6-80E1 engines and will be delivered this year to the new variant’s launch customer Delta Air Lines.

Delta Air Lines is a major Airbus widebody customer, with 32 A330 Family aircraft (11 A330-200s and 21 A330-300s) in service today and 35 more on order (25 A330-900neo and 10 A330-300). In addition, Delta has equally 25 A350-900s on order. Delta also operates 126 A320 Family aircraft (57 A319ceo, 69 A320ceo) and has 45 A321ceo on order.

The A330 242 ton MTOW is the platform for the future A330neo and offers more capability at lower operating cost with a range extended by up to 500 nautical miles and up to two percent reduced fuel consumption while also benefiting from today’s A330 operational reliability of 99.4 percent. The 242 ton MTOW is capable of flying missions up to 15 hours.

Photos: Airbus. Right now this A330-300 airframe is carrying the test registration of F-WWYX (msn 1627) and is also carrying a future fleet number of 3322.

Delta Air Lines aircraft slide show (current livery):

Avianca to resume Bogota-Los Angeles flights

Avianca (Colombia) (Bogota) is planning to resume Bogota – Los Angeles service on July 1. The restored route will operate four days a week with Airbus A330-200 aircraft per Airline Route.

Copyright Photo: Airbus A330-243 N342AV (msn 1342) in the Star Alliance livery sits between flights at London (Heathrow).

Avianca (Colombia) aircraft slide show:

Video: Arik Air’s Airbus A330-200 Lagos-London Premier Class flagship service

New video from Arik Air: Discover Arik Air’s Lagos to London flagship service operated with an Airbus A330-200. The aircraft has two cabin classes accommodating 30 business class seats (Premier class), all designed to offer the maximum in comfort and style.

AirEuropa and Seaborne Airlines to codeshare

Air Europa (stylized as AirEuropa) (Palma de Mallorca and Madrid) continues its expansion throughout the Caribbean by connecting its daily flight between Spain and the Dominican Republic with its neighbor, Puerto Rico. The Globalia Group Airline and Seaborne Airlines (San Juan), a Puerto Rican airline, have reached a codeshare agreement to cover the route Santo Domingo – San Juan, Puerto Rico, which will allow for daily flights to and from the islands and, as a result, the connection of both capitals with the Adolfo Suarez Airport in Madrid (Barajas).

This will permit Air Europa passengers to fly to Puerto Rico every day, by making a short stop in Las Americas Airport in Santo Domingo. This route will be added to the two direct flights that Air Europa has been operating between Spain and Puerto Rico since June 2014.

Seaborne is a company with over 20 years of experience in the Caribbean and an excellent security and operational performance history. For the Santo Domingo – San Juan route, it has an available fleet of 8 SAAB 340Bs, Swedish-made aircraft that can carry 34 passengers.

The codeshare agreement between Air Europa and Seaborne will take effect March 29.

AirEuropa aircraft slide show:

Seaborne Airlines aircraft slide show:

Eurowings outlines its first intercontinental routes, will be operated SunExpress Germany

Lufthansa Group (Frankfurt) details the first long-range routes for the new Eurowings:

The new Eurowings will fly from October 25, 2015 on its new intercontinental flights from Cologne/Bonn Airport. The first flights will take off to the Caribbean, Dubai and Thailand.
The new Eurowings is building on the successful Germanwings concept, which is positioned as an innovative quality low-cost airline and “low-cost” brand in Germany and Europe.

The new routes will include Dubai, the Thai cities of Bangkok and Phuket, as well as the Caribbean destinations of Varadero, Cuba and Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.

The new Eurowings routes will be flown by Airbus A330-200s. From the coming winter season onwards, the fleet will initially consist of two aircraft and will be expanded to a total of seven Airbus A330s.

SunExpress Deutschland (SunExpress Germany), a joint venture of Lufthansa (Frankfurt) and Turkish Airlines (Istanbul), will operate the long-haul route aircraft on behalf of the new Eurowings with its own cockpit and cabin personnel.

Vienna has now been chosen as the first location outside of Germany as a new Eurowings base.

Initially two Airbus A320s will be put into operation on European routes in the first step of the expansion.

The fares will correspond to Germanwings’ popular “fly à la carte” principle, which was successfully introduced in 2013. The fares BEST, SMART and BASIC, which have been extremely popular with passengers, will also be used by the new Eurowings. The fare classes include various levels of services and service packages.

The BEST fare is offered to the most demanding private customers who value comfort and exclusiveness. This offer includes comfortable seating in an extra-wide seat with lots of leg-room in the exclusive forward cabin area. The BEST fare also includes two free items of luggage each of up to 23 kg, à la carte menus on board, priority check-in, lounge access and the chance to collect miles (including HON Circle miles).

The cheaper SMART fare includes extra services such as one piece of luggage of up to 23 kg, two meals and soft drinks on board, as well as the chance to collect miles.

The BASIC fare offers a straightforward travel experience at a reasonable price, to which further services can be added on an individual basis.

On long-haul routes, the new Eurowings offers three attractive options. The exclusive BEST area comprises the first three seating rows and offers the latest ZIM seats. These seats correspond to the new Lufthansa premium economy class model, which offers seat pitch of 115 cm, has a backrest that can be adjusted by up to 20 cm, allows a 130° angle, and offers every guest their own armrest as well as comfortable leg and foot rests. Economy tickets can be booked with both SMART and BASIC fares. The “More Comfort” option, which can be booked as an add-on, offers seats with greater seat pitch along with a blanket and a pillow. State-of-the-art in-flight entertainment is offered on all intercontinental flights across all fares, which can be enjoyed both on screens in the backrest of the seat in front as well as on passengers’ own electronic devices such as notebook computers, tablets and smartphones. All long-haul aircrafts will also have Wi-Fi on board.

On routes within Germany and on routes throughout Europe, the existing Eurowings fleet will gradually be replaced from the beginning of 2015 by aircraft in the new Eurowings livery (above). The 23 Bombardier CRJ900s operated until now will also be replaced by Airbus A320s.

Copyright Photo: Gerd Beilfuss/AirlinersGallery.com. The first Airbus A320, the pictured A320-214 D-AIZQ (msn 5497) in new livery flew on February 1, 2015 from Hamburg to Prague.

Eurowings aircraft slide show:

Iberia to take early delivery of 8 Airbus A330-200s to speed up the retirement of the A340-300s

Iberia (Madrid) and Airbus (Toulouse) have reached an agreement over the early delivery of the A330-200s the airline ordered last year, which will now join the long-haul fleet 14 months earlier than initially planned, between December 2015, and November 2016.

The new aircraft will replace the older Airbus A340-300s.

The new twin-engine, wide-bodied aircraft, with a range of up to 13,400 km, consumes less fuel than the four-engine A340-300s they replace, and also generate less noise and air pollution.

The earlier delivery dates also speed the upgrading of Iberia’s entire long-haul fleet with the new cabins, fittings, and entertainment and communications systems, for an improved customer experience.

Iberia is currently renewing its long-haul fleet and also its long-haul cabins. In recent years the IAG parent has ordered 24 new long-haul aircraft for Iberia, the eight A330-300s delivered in 2013 and 2014; the eight A330-200s; and eight A350-900s to be delivered later.

Meanwhile, the company is retrofitting its 17 Airbus A340-600s with new long-haul cabins.

Image: Iberia. The first new Airbus A330-200 for Iberia will now arrive in December 2015.

Iberia aircraft slide show: