jetBlue confirms order of A321neo LR plans

jetBlue Airways says it has amended its purchase agreement with Airbus Industrie (AIB, Toulouse Blagnac) to bring thirty additional A321 aircraft into its fleet over a seven-year period beginning next year.

Under the terms of the amendment, the LCC will take delivery of fifteen A321ceo beginning with five in 2017, four in 2018, and six in 2019. Then, beginning in 2020, it will take delivery of the first three of fifteen A321neo followed by four more in each of 2021, 2022, and 2023.

Effective 2019, jetBlue will also have the option of converting all of its A321neo orders to the type's LR (Long Range) variant.

"The additional aircraft will allow JetBlue to capture an opportunity to position itself as the carrier of choice in transcontinental markets with a targeted approach that leverages its east coast strength," it said.

The LCC has an additional twenty-five A320neo on order from the Europeans alongside eleven A321ceo and forty-five A321neo.

At present, jetBlue's fleet entails 130 A320-200s, twenty-nine A321-200s, and sixty EMB-190s.

ch-aviation.com

Gulf Air has selected Thales AVANT IFE system for their new 787-9, A320neo & A321neo

The first B787-900 and A320 NEO deliveries are scheduled for 2018 and the A321 NEO delivery will start in 2020.

Maher Salman Al Musallam, Gulf Air chief executive officer, said: “We are delighted to introduce an enhanced product and service offering onboard Gulf Air's newest aircraft - further appealing to passengers across the globe. We are committed to ongoing investment in the Gulf Air offering, to elevate our passenger experience. With Thales AVANT IFE system passengers now have greater entertainment options onboard, ensuring their comfort."

Dominique Giannoni, CEO, Thales InFlyt Experience said: "Thales is very proud to have been selected by Gulf Air, a longstanding Middle East airline. We are honoured to support Bahrain's national carrier in their goal of excellence in passenger experience. This selection represents a major win for Thales in the region, reinforcing our presence within the Kingdom of Bahrain.”

Gulf Air recently announced restructured aircraft orders in January this year at the Bahrain International Airshow 2016, geared towards facilitating long-term expansion capabilities for the airline's future network requirement.

The orders comprise 45 aircraft in total, 39 of which will be equipped with the latest AVANT full high definition monitors, the most lightweight ever deployed. The business cabin will be equipped with the award winning Thales Touch Passenger Media Unit providing the opportunity to multi-task on a second screen.

Arabian Aerospace

AirAsia places major order for 100 A321neo

AirAsia has signed a firm order with Airbus for the purchase of 100 A321neo aircraft. The contract was announced at the Farnborough Airshow today by AirAsia Group Chief Executive Officer Tony Fernandes and Airbus President and CEO Fabrice Brégier. 

The contract marks the first order placed by AirAsia for the largest model in the best-selling A320 Family. Seating up to 240 passengers in a single class layout, the A321neo will enable the airline to increase capacity while benefitting from the lowest operating costs in the single aisle category. 

Today’s announcement sees the total number of A320 Family ordered by AirAsia rise to 575, reaffirming the carrier’s position as the largest airline customer for the Airbus single aisle product line. To date, over 170 A320s have already been delivered to the airline and are flying with its units in Malaysia, India, Indonesia, Japan and the Philippines. 

Tony Fernandes, AirAsia Group Chief Executive Officer said. “AirAsia Group currently operates close to 1,000 flights per day to more than 120 destinations in 24 countries. We recorded a robust load factor of 85% in the first quarter of 2016, up 8 percentage points from the same period last year, and we are confident of maintaining this momentum going forward. The A321neo will help us to meet ongoing strong demand as well as further reduce our cost per Available Seat Kilometre across the group, which will translate to lower air fares for our guests. We would like to congratulate Airbus for producing the state-of-the-art A321neo aircraft that meets our requirements for efficient operations.” 

Fernandes added, “The A321neo will be operated on our most popular routes and especially at airports with infrastructure constraints. It will allow us to bring higher passenger volumes with the same slots, therefore providing immediate benefits to the airports. These include, among others, more efficient operations, higher revenues from passenger service charges, and more airport retail purchases. We will also continue to maintain our 25-minute turnaround with two- or three-step boarding where permitted to ensure on-time performance.” 

“We are extremely pleased to receive this additional order from AirAsia,” said Fabrice Brégier, President & CEO, Airbus. “This is another strong endorsement for largest member of our single aisle family, which is now the clear market leader in the 200 plus seat category. We look forward to see A321neo flying in AirAsia colours and contributing to the airline’s continued success as one of the world’s leading low cost carriers.” 

The A320 Family is the world’s best-selling single aisle product line with nearly 12,600 orders since launch and more than 7,100 aircraft delivered to some 320 operators worldwide. The A320neo Family incorporates latest technologies including new generation engines and Sharklet wing tip devices, which together deliver more than 15 percent in fuel savings from day one and 20 percent by 2020 with further cabin innovations.

Airbus Press release

Arabian Aerospace - Turkish Airlines signs for Pratt & Whitney PurePower engines

                               

Turkish Airlines has signed a Definitive Agreement for Pratt & Whitney's PurePower PW1100G-JM engines to power its A321neo aircraft.

The order for 72 firm A321neo aircraft, with option for 20 more, was announced during 2015 Paris Air Show as a Memorandum of Understanding.

“Turkish Airlines is proud to have Pratt & Whitney’s PurePower engines power our A321neo aircraft order. This historic deal for our company is a statement on our commitment to develop the most technologically advanced fleet of aircraft in the industry,” said Dr. Temel Kotil, deputy chairman and CEO, Turkish Airlines.

The deal with Turkish Airlines marks the largest engine order in 2015 for Pratt & Whitney. The PurePower Geared Turbofan engine has had about 7,000 orders.

Arabian Aerospace - Turkish Airlines signs for Pratt & Whitney PurePower engines

Virgin America to Acquire 10 Airbus A321neos

By Roberto Leiro


Virgin America has announced today the lease from GECAS of 10 Airbus A321neo, slated for delivery in the first quarter of 2017 and up to the third quarter of 2018.

“As Virgin America continues to grow its network, there’s no question the Airbus A321neo is the right aircraft for us, and we were pleased to work with GECAS to make today possible,” said Virgin America President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) David Cush. With this planned delivery schedule, Virgin America is expected to become the first American carrier to operate this new generation of single-aisle aircraft, to be powered by CFM International LEAP-1A engines.

The arrival of the A321neo will allow Virgin America to increase its seats offered and lower its unit costs in Hawaii high-demand routes, as well as in slot-constrained airports such as New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport.

“Not only will these aircraft allow us to further reduce our unit costs and improve our revenue position, they demonstrate our continued commitment to reducing carbon emissions and creating an even more sustainable airline” Cush said.

The aircraft will be configured for Virgin America to include 185 total seats, roughly 24 percent more seating capacity than the airline’s existing fleet of 47 A320 aircraft in service, and 36 percent more in the case of its A319s. In 2016, the carrier expects to grow its fleet by 10 percent, by adding six additional A320ceos, taking the fleet size to 63 aircraft, just before the arrival of the A321neos. According to the airline, operating a single fleet type allows the carrier to avoid operational costs and complexity inherent to maintaining different fleet types.

As of last November, Airbus has logged 4,443 A320neo orders. Deliveries are expected to start before Christmas to launch customer Lufthansa, which has swapped places with Qatar Airways to be the first airline in the world operate an A320neo. Indian LCC IndiGo is slated to be next. Spirit Airlines will be the first U.S. carrier to receive the A320neo in the first quarter of 2016.

Virgin America to Acquire 10 Airbus A321neos