Page 14 - AAA MAY - JUNE 2018 Online Magazine

A380 fleet and the current order more Dreamliner aircraft. Delta Air Changes Galore
backlog for 41 aircraft. Lines is going ahead with its plans Among the airlines undergoing a
In February this year, Qatar to replace its older 757s, McDonnell major fleet renewal is the Lufthansa
Airways, which was the first to fly Douglas MD-90 and older A320 air- Group, which is going in for as many
the A350-900 in 2014, took delivery craft with 100 Airbus A321neo jets. as 251 new aircraft at a list price
of the A350-1000, thus becoming The carrier also expects to take value of about US$46.6 billion. The
the aircraft’s global launch cus- delivery of some of its Bombardier group, which is the biggest A320
tomer. The carrier intends to add C Series jets this year; the aircraft, operator, has ordered a total of 122
another 36 A350-1000 to its fleet, which was at the center of a bitter Airbus A320neo aircraft, including
with delivery expected over the trade spat between Boeing and 45 A321neos, to be used on routes
next few years. Twenty three of its Bombardier, is expected to enter by Lufthansa and Swiss. The air-
42 A350-900 aircraft on order have service early in 2019. The carrier line also recently signed an order
already been delivered, with the is committed to buy at least 75 of for three additional A320ceo air-
rest expected before 2026. Qatar the Bombardier planes. In May this craft, bringing the Group’s A320ceo
Airways, which has about 100 year, Alaska Airlines revised its orders to 273.
British Airways’ parent company
IAG, which is in talks with both
Boeing and Airbus for new wide-
body aircraft, is reputedly leaning
the way of the American plane
maker. The company also wants to
update its fleet with narrowbody
A320neo planes.
Air France-KLM is in the market
for new medium-haul aircraft and
will decide, by the end of 2018, on
the jet for all four of the group’s
subsidiaries. Airbus, Boeing,
Bombardier and Embraer are all in
with a chance to win the contract.
The company is also expected to
Boeing widebody aircraft in its fleet original order for 15 Boeing 737 start talks with manufacturers next
and another 100 on order, will take MAX 8s by opting for the 737 MAX year on renewing its short-haul fleet
delivery of nearly 30 aircraft from 9. The airline, which has firm order that is now comprised of A320s
both Airbus and Boeing this year, commitments for 32 MAX 9 air- and B737s.
Chief Executive Officer Akbar al craft, is scheduled to take delivery
Baker said in January this year. of its first MAX 9 in 2019, with the Rough Weather Anticipated
Air Arabia, the Sharjah-based rest being added to its fleet before The decision to go for new,
low-cost carrier, is planning to 2023. Another airline that is going next-generation aircraft comes at
update its fleet by adding six in for a major fleet expansion is a time when carriers are expected
Airbus A321 neo long-range air- Frontier Airlines; the low-cost car- to experience a dip in profit in 2018,
craft. The airline, which intends to rier intends to order as many as 134 due to a host of reasons that include
launch routes in Africa as well as A320 neo aircraft. rising fuel prices and interest rates.
Southeast Asia, will take delivery of The International Air Transport
the aircraft starting in 2019. Air Canada intends to phase out Association (IATA), which had in
all its remaining 25 Embraer EMB- December last year forecast that
North American Activity 190IGWs by mid-2019 and will carriers would enjoy profit worth
n April this year, American replace them, initially by Airbus US$38.4 billion, has now revised it
Airlines announced that it had A319-100 and then by Bombardier to US$33.8 billion. IATA’s initial pro-
canceled a deal with Airbus to CS300 aircraft in late 2019. The jections for 2018 was based on the
Ipurchase 22 A350s and was airline has on order 45 Bombardier assumption that the average Brent
adding 47 new Boeing Dreamliner jets, besides a total of 61 737 MAX Crude price would be US$60; inter-
jets to its fleet. The Boeing deal also aircraft, including 49 B737 MAX 8s national crude price have already
includes the option to purchase 28 and 12 B737 MAX 9s. climbed above US $75 a barrel.

14 | May/June 2018 www.GBP.com.sg/AAA