Hong Kong Aviation Capital (HKAC) (Hong Kong), a fast growing aircraft leasing company, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Airbus for the purchase of 40ย A320neo and 20 A321neo aircraft. The agreement was signed at the Paris Air Show by Donal Boylan, CEO of HKAC and John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer, Customers.
HKAC is a Hong Kong based lessor which currently has a portfolio of over 50 Airbus aircraft. It has provided financing leasing services to several airlines in Asia and worldwide. Itโs the first time for HKAC to directly place orders with any aircraft manufacturer.
United Airlines (Chicago) and Airbus (Toulouse) have announced that the airline will add 35 Airbus A350-1000 aircraft to its future fleet.ย The agreement between the companies represents a conversion of the U.S. carrierโs previous order for 25 A350-900s to the -1000 model, as well as the addition of 10 more orders for A350-1000 aircraft. The announcement was made today during the Paris Air Show.
The A350-1000 is the largest version of the A350 XWB (Xtra Wide-Body) family and typically seats 350 passengers in a three-class layout. The aircraft is capable of flying 8,400 nautical miles non-stop and will be operated by United on higher density routes, including non-stop flights between the United States and the Asia/Pacific region. The aircraft will be powered by two Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines delivering 97,000lbs of thrust โ the most powerful engines ever developed for an Airbus aircraft.
The A350 XWB is an all-new mid-size long range product line featuring three versions and seating between 270 and 350 passengers in typical three-class layouts. The aircraft will bring new levels of efficiency to the mid-size market, using 25 per cent less fuel than existing aircraft in this size category and providing an equivalent reduction in CO2 emissions.
The first A350 XWB began an extensive flight test program last Friday, June 14th. Entry into commercial service of the first customer aircraft is scheduled for the second half of 2014.
To date, Airbus has recorded 678 firm orders for the A350 XWB from 34 customers worldwide.
The increased seating capacity of the A350-1000 will enable United to replace older, less efficient aircraft currently serving long-range, high-demand markets. United expects delivery starting in 2018.
The Airbus order supports United’s commitment to improve the overall efficiency of its fleet. On Tuesday, the airline announced an order for 10 Boeing 787-10 aircraft and conversion of 10 existing 787 orders to the -10 variant, making United’s total Dreamliner order book 65. In July of last year, United announced a narrowbody order for 100 Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft and 50 Boeing 737-900 ER aircraft. The airline is also modernizing itsย United Expressย fleet by adding seventy 76-seat Embraer aircraft that will be operated by regional partners.
Top Image: Airbus.
Video: Here is the second flight of the Airbus A350 at Toulouse:
Air France (Paris) and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (Amsterdam) have finalized a firm contract for 25 A350-900 aircraft and for a further 25 options.
The Air France-KLM Group currently operates a fleet of just over 190 Airbus aircraft, comprising eight A380s, 31 A330s, 13 A340s, 25 A321s, 54 A320s, 41 A319s and 18 A318s. With this new order Air France-KLM joins an exclusive group of airlines who are customers for every member of the Airbus product family.
The A350 XWB is the all-new mid-size long range product line comprising three versions and seating between 270 and 350 passengers in spacious three-class layouts. The new family will bring a step change in efficiency using 25 per cent less fuel and providing an equivalent reduction in CO2 emissions. By the end of May, the A350 XWB has already won 613 firm orders from 33 customers worldwide.
China Eastern Airlines (Shanghai) has taken delivery of its first Airbus A320 aircraft equipped with Sharklet fuel saving wing-tip devices, becoming Chinaโs first carrier to do so.ย The aircraft isย alsoย the first Sharklets equipped A320 assembledย and deliveredย in Tianjin, China.
The A320, powered by IAE V2500 engines,ย features a comfortable two class cabin, seating 158 passengers with eight in business class and 150 in economy.ย The A320 will make its first commercial flight fromย Shanghai to Dalian on May 18.
Sharklets are made from light-weight composites and are 2.4 meters tall. They are an option on new-build A320 Family aircraft and standard on all members of the new A320neo family.ย They offer operators up to four per cent fuel burn reduction on longer range sectors and provide the flexibility of either adding an additional 100 nautical miles range or increased payload capability of up to 450 kilograms.
China Eastern is one of the largest airlines in Chinaย and is the first Chinese airline operating Airbus aircraft in 1985. Now it operates an Airbus fleet of over 230 aircraft including A300s, A319s, A320s, A321s, A330s and A340s.
Airbus Tianjin Delivery Centre has delivered 126 aircraft since June 2009 and it plans to deliver 46 aircraft in total in 2013.
Copyright Photo: Airbus. Wearing temporary marks of B-513L, this Airbus A320-232 was handed over as B-9921 (msn 5516).
Air Astana (Almaty), Kazakhstanโs flag carrier, has taken delivery of its first A320 aircraft equipped with Airbusโ Sharklet fuel saving wing tip devices. The airline becomes the first in the region to benefit from the new wing-tip devices. Air Astanaโs A320-232 P4-KBB (msn 5613), powered by IAE V2500 engines, features a comfortable two class cabin, seating 148 passengers with 16 in business class and 132 in economy.
Sharklets are newly designed wing-tip devices that improve the aircraftโs aerodynamics and significantly cut the airlineโs fuel burn and emissions by four per cent on longer sectors. They are made from light-weight composites and are 2.4 meters tall. Sharklets are an option on A320 Family aircraft. They offer the flexibility to A320 Family operators of either adding around 100 nautical miles more range or allowing an increased payload capability of up to 450 kilograms.
Air Astana started commercial service with its first Airbus aircraft, an A320, in 2006, and is currently operating one A319, seven A320s and four A321s.
Copyright Photo: Eurospot. The pictured A320-232 F-WWIC became P4-KBB when it was handed over on May 4, 2013 at Toulouse.
Spirit Airlines (Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood) is celebrating Earth Day today as it begins flying its new Airbus A320 Sharklet-equipped aircraft. The pictured Airbus A320-232 N619NK (msn 5517) was handed over to the carrier on March 25.
As part of its green efforts, several years ago Spirit made the conscious decision to transition to a fleet of new, fuel-efficient Airbus aircraft and enhanced them with an eco-friendly seating configuration.ย In fact, Spirit burns far less fuel per passenger than its competitors.ย Its A320 aircraft provide an incredible 89.4 passenger miles per gallon.*ย Spirit has also signed an agreement with Airbus for an order which includes their latest A320neo (new engine option) aircraft, which will be even more fuel efficient than Spirit’s current A320s.ย In addition, Spirit’s “Bring Less, Pay Less” baggage program has led to a reduction in bags carried per passenger and resulted in Spirit using the equivalent of nearly six million gallons less fuel in the past year.
Spirit currently operates an all-Airbus fleet of 49 aircraft, including 29 A319s, 18 A320s and two A321s.ย The company has five more new Airbus A320s scheduled for delivery in 2013, as well as seven A320s scheduled for delivery in 2014 and 10 in 2015.ย Spirit has 75 new aircraft (30 classic A320s and 45 A320neos) on firm order for delivery between 2016 and 2021. In addition, Spirit has signed a letter of intent with ILFC to lease five A320neo aircraft, subject to final documentation.
Lufthansaโs (Frankfurt) Supervisory Board has approved the acquisition of 100 A320 Family aircraft (35 A320neo, 35 A321neo and 30 A320ceo with Sharklets) and two A380s worth approximately $11.2 billion at list prices. The engine choices will be announced by the airline at a later date.
This latest acquisition reconfirms the Lufthansa Group as Airbusโ largest airline customer, with a total of 532 aircraft ordered. Today the Lufthansa Group is also Airbusโ biggest operator worldwide with 385 Airbus aircraft currently in service. These include: 271 A320 Family, 41 A330s, 63 A340s, and 10 A380s.
Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing.ย Airbus A380-841 D-AIMG (msn 069) completes its final approach into Beijing.
Turkish Airlines (Istanbul) has signed a firm order for two additional A330-300 passenger aircraft and three options as part of the carrierโs continued growth plans. The additional order for the A330 Family is taking their total firm order for the type to 38. Turkish Airlines placed their first order with Airbus in 1984, and today operate 104 Airbus aircraft in total.
Copyright Photo: Keith Burton. The carrier currently has 10 A330-300s in service. A330-343X TC-JNR (msn 1311) completes its final approach into London (Heathrow).
IndiGo Airlines (Delhi) has taken delivery of its first A320 aircraft equipped with Sharklet fuel saving wing tip devices, becoming the first Indian carrier to do so. Sharklets are newly designed wing-tip devices that improve the aircraftโs aerodynamics and significantly cut the airlineโs fuel burn and emissions by four per cent on longer sectors.
Sharklets are an option on new-build A320 Family aircraft, and standard on all members of the A320neo Family. They offer the flexibility to A320 Family operators of either adding around 100 nautical miles more range or allowing increased payload capability of up to 450 kilograms. All future A320 aircraft to be delivered to IndiGo shall be fitted with the Sharklet wing tip devices.
IndiGo placed an order for 100 A320 aircraft in 2005. In addition IndiGo was the first Indian airline to order the NEO with a contract for 150 A320neo and 30 A320s placed in 2011.
IndiGo, is an all Airbus operator and the largest low cost airline in India today. It began operations in 2006 and has a fleet of 62 A320s today. So far IndiGoโs cumulative order for Airbus aircraft is for 280 A320 Family aircraft including 130 A320neo aircraft.
CIT Group, Inc. today announced thatย CIT Aerospaceย (New York) has placed an order with Airbus for 10 A350 XWB aircraft.ย Deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2019.
This order adds to CITโs total order book as of September 30, 2012 of 157 aircraft of which 88 were Airbus aircraft. Including this latest announcement, CIT has ordered a total of 253 Airbus aircraft comprising 187 A320 Family, 51 A330 Family and 15 A350 XWB Family.
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