Air New Zealand to Expand Fleet with Airbus Jet Addition

Air New Zealand has placed an order for 14 planes from Airbus, a European aircraft manufacturer. At an industry gathering in Doha, the carrier’s chief executive Christopher Luxon announced that the order included 3 A321 aircraft type, 10 of the A320neo model and one A320.

The combined total cost of the planes’ purchase could reach $1.5 billion, although airlines that buy many planes at once can secure substantial discounts.

Most of the ordered planes are expected to begin arriving between 2017 and 2019, according to BBC.

Already, Air New Zealand has 105 planes in operation, with 49 of them being jets and 56 turbo-props.

According to reports, Airbus is about to determine whether or not to revive its A330, a 20-year old plane. We’re studying it very carefully, watch this space,” chief of Airbus sales John Leahy is reported by the Reuters news company as saying.

The carrier will be seeking to improve its fleet, which predominantly features Airbus medium-haul planes. The order, which was announced on the sidelines of an airlines conference in Doha attended by global players, is Air New Zealand’s latest move to revamp its fleet. Under the fleet renewal programme, the airline will add the latest version of the 787 Dreamliner that’s manufactured by Boeing.

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For short-and medium-haul flying needs, Air New Zealand relies on a fleet of Airbus planes. On the other hand, the airline utilizes Boeing models for long-haul air transportation.

Air New Zealand has been reviewing an offer of the A320neo from Airbus in comparison with the rival Boeing 737 Max for deployment on trans-Tasman routes. The same route is covered by Jetstar, a Qantas arm, in conjunction with Virgin Australia.

The carrier placed an order for 14 A320 aircraft from Airbus in 2009 to phase out Boeing 737-300 models, Reuters reported.   The then order included the option for buying the larger Airbus A321.

To contact the writer of this article: Yashu Gola at yashu@forexminute.com

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