– First A380 customer in Russia, the CIS and Eastern Europe

June 21, 2012– Transaero Airlines, Russia’s second largest airline, has completed a purchase agreement with Airbus for four A380 aircraft. The agreement was signed today by Olga Pleshakova, Transaero Airlines CEO and Christopher Buckley, Airbus’ Executive Vice President Europe, Asia and the Pacific on the first day of the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum. This order follows a Memorandum of Understanding signed in October 2011. The deal will be financed with the support of VEB Leasing.

Transaero becomes the first customer for the A380 in Russia, the CIS and Eastern Europe. The Russian carrier plans to start operations with the A380 on its long-range network of high density routes from Moscow. The aircraft will feature a three class cabin layout, seating about 700 passengers. Transaero will announce the engine selection soon.

”Our airline, with its strong innovation culture, will be the first in Russia to fly the A380, the world’s largest passenger aircraft. I am sure that the operation of the A380 will stimulate the development of Russia’s aviation sector, in particular, its ground infrastructure. In addition, our passengers will benefit from the completely new air travel experience that the A380 offers with its spacious, comfortable cabin, for their long-haul flights.” said Olga Pleshakova, Transaero Airlines CEO.
“We are delighted to welcome Transaero as our new A380 customer,” said John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer, Customers. “We are confident that this most efficient aircraft will enable the airline to cope with the traffic growth in Russia and offer its passengers unrivalled levels of comfort on board,” he added.

Transaero Airlines launched its services in November 1991, and currently serves more than 130 routes all over the world.
Since entering service in 2007 the eco-efficient A380 has exceeded all expectations, flying more people further at lower cost (over 23 million passengers up to date). The spacious, quiet cabin and the smooth ride have made the aircraft a favourite with passengers. This has resulted in higher than average load factors and increased profitability on A380 flights, providing airlines with a key competitive advantage wherever they operate the type. With 100 flights per day, the A380 is becoming a familiar sight at airports across the globe. The A380 fleet transports one million passengers each month and performs a takeoff or landing every eight minutes.

Including today’s orders for four A380 from Transaero, the total A380 order book stands at 257 aircraft from 20 customers worldwide. To date, Airbus has delivered 77 aircraft to eight customers.

– Aircraft are key element in fleet modernisation programme

April 11, 2012 — Garuda Indonesia, the national carrier of Indonesia, has placed a firm order with Airbus for 11 more A330-300 widebody aircraft. The contract was signed today in Jakarta by Emirsyah Satar, President & CEO, Garuda Indonesia and Tom Williams, Executive Vice President, Programmes, Airbus, in the presence of Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and visiting British Prime Minister David Cameron.

The order is the third to be placed by Garuda Indonesia for the A330 since July 2010, with the carrier now having a total of 21 aircraft on firm order for future delivery. All the aircraft will be powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 700 engines.

Garuda Indonesia has chosen the latest extended range 235 tonne maximum take-off weight variant of the A330-300. The carrier will operate the aircraft with a premium two class layout on services from its hubs in Jakarta and Denpasar (Bali) to destinations in Asia, the Middle East and the Pacific.

“The A330 has proven to be a key element in the success of the revitalised Garuda Indonesia,” said Emirsyah Satar, President & CEO, Garuda Indonesia. “The low seat mile cost and high passenger appeal make the aircraft a perfect fit for our fleet and a firm favourite with our passengers.”

“We are pleased to extend our long-standing partnership with Garuda Indonesia,” said Tom Williams, Executive Vice President, Programmes, Airbus. “The A330 is undisputed leader in its class. It offers proven reliability, low operating costs and one of the most comfortable cabins in the sky. This winning combination makes it the preferred choice of airlines worldwide and will enable Garuda Indonesia to realise its full potential as a premier international carrier.”

The twin engine A330 is one of the most widely used widebody aircraft in service today. Airbus has recorded nearly 1,200 orders for the various versions of the aircraft and more than 800 aircraft are flying with some 90 operators worldwide. In addition to passenger and freighter aircraft, the A330 is also available in VIP and military transport / tanker variants.

Garuda Indonesia currently operates 14 A330 aircraft, comprising eight A330-200s and six A330-300s.

– Airbus Eco-Efficient Aircraft To Replace 737-500s

February 6, 2012 — Air Namibia, the Windhoek based national airline of the Republic of Namibia, has ordered two new Airbus A319 aircraft. Seating 112 passengers in a two class layout, the aircraft will bring new levels of comfort to regional routes from Windhoek to other major African cities.

Air Namibia already operates two leased A319s on regional routes, and two A340-300 aircraft on its international route between Windhoek to Frankfurt, Germany. Airbus aircraft share a unique cockpit and operational commonality, allowing airlines to use the same pool of pilots, cabin crew and maintenance engineers, bringing operational flexibility and resulting in significant cost savings.

“Our in-service experience with Airbus aircraft has confirmed that the A319 is the ideal aircraft for Air Namibia’s regional routes,” said Theo M. Namases, Acting CEO of Air Namibia. “The efficiency of our new aircraft, together with their commonality with our existing fleet will provide a strong basis for our continued growth and contribution to the Namibian tourist industry.”

“We are delighted to welcome Air Namibia as a new customer for the A320 family,” said John Leahy Airbus Chief Operating Officer, Customers. “Air Namibia’s decision to invest in new A319s is a great endorsement for the efficiency of the aircraft and Airbus’ family concept.”

The A320 Family, which includes the A318, A319, A320 and A321, is recognized as the benchmark single-aisle aircraft family. Each aircraft features fly by wire controls and all share a unique cockpit and operational commonality across the range. More than 8,300 A320 Family aircraft have already been ordered and almost 5000 delivered to more than 340 customers and operators worldwide reaffirming its position as the world’s best-selling single-aisle aircraft family. With proven reliability and extended servicing periods, the A320 Family has the lowest operating costs of any single aisle aircraft.

– Huge Response For Airbus Eco-Efficient Single-Aisle Aircraft Expands In The US

February 1, 2012 — Spirit Airlines has finalised its firm order for 75 Airbus single-aisles including 45 A320neo aircraft (new engine option). The original Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was announced at the 2011 Dubai air show. The airline has not yet announced its engine selection. Spirit’s order for 45 A320 neo aircraft was booked in December 2011. The firming up of the additional 30 A320s in January brings the total new firm order to 75.

“For seven years we have been very successfully flying the A320 Family,” said Ben Baldanza, President and CEO of Spirit Airlines. “The aircraft have been successful from every perspective – economy, environmental impact, comfort and efficiency. With more A320s and now the A320neo on their way to Spirit, we look forward to building on all the positives we’ve experienced so far.”

“When these newly ordered aircraft are delivered, the size of Spirit’s Airbus fleet will be close to triple what it is today,” said John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer, Customers. “It’s a high compliment and testament to the growing efficiencies of our single-aisle family when an airline chooses it exclusively to propel their success into the future.”

The new aircraft will be used on Spirit’s growing network of flights in the domestic United States, Caribbean and Latin America.

The A320neo is a new engine option for the A320 Family entering service from 2015 and incorporates latest generation engines and large “Sharklet” wing tip devices, which together will deliver 15 percent in fuel savings. This reduction in fuel burn is equivalent to 1.4m liters of fuel – the consumption of 1,000 mid-size cars. This saves 3,600 metric tons of C02 per aircraft per year, the amount absorbed by 240,000 mature trees.

Over 8,300 A320 Family aircraft have been ordered and some 5,000 delivered to more than 340 customers and operators worldwide reaffirming its position as the world’s best-selling single-aisle aircraft family. The A320neo has over 95 percent airframe commonality making it an easy fit into existing fleets while offering up to 500 nautical miles (950 kilometres) more range or two tonnes more payload at a given range.