A new chapter has opened in Airbus’ 43 year history as the first A350 XWB, the world’s most efficient large twin-engined commercial aircraft, powered aloft on Friday June 14th, for its maiden flight at Blagnac in Toulouse, France. Equipped with Rolls-Royce Trent XWB turbofans, the A350 XWB first flight took place over south western France.
Cebu Pacific has taken delivery of its first A330-300 during a special ceremony in Toulouse. The aircraft is the first of four A330s being leased by Cebu Pacific from US lessor CIT and will be used to launch the carrier’s new long haul low fare operations.
GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS), has delivered seven new leased Boeing 737-800s to Scandinavian Airline Systems (SAS) to expand and modernize the carrier’s fleet. The aircraft were delivered during the period April 2012 to May 2013 and came from GECAS’ existing order book with Boeing. Additionally, GECAS is scheduled to deliver two new leased 737-800s
Regional airline LIAT Limited has started its fleet upgrade with the first new ATR 72-600 aircraft delivered on June 13th. This first ATR in LIAT’s fleet is being leased from the lessor GECAS (GE Capital Aviation Services). This is the first of a total of eight ATRs (four 68-seat ATR 72-600 and four 48-seat ATR
Airbus confirms that the A350 XWB first flight is planned for this Friday, 14th June, based on current visibility of the programme and the flight test status. Weather conditions permitting, the A350 XWB “MSN1” will take off from Toulouse-Blagnac airport at around 10:00 am local time. The A350 XWB flight test teams are now carrying
AWAS has delivered an Airbus A330-300 from its current portfolio to Air Europa, a well-established Spanish charter and scheduled service airline. The airline will use this modern widebody aircraft to enhance trans-Atlantic service to its passengers. Air Europa’s network covers a large part of the Spanish territory, as well as destinations in Europe, Western Africa
Boeing projects a demand for more than 35,000 new airplanes over the next 20 years, valued at $4.8 trillion. The company released its annual Current Market Outlook (CMO) on June 11th, in Paris, forecasting the world fleet to double over the next two decades. Both passenger traffic and cargo traffic are expected to grow 5%
British Airways will take delivery into the UK of its first two 787s on consecutive days, June 26th and 27th, followed by its first A380 on July 4th. Keith Williams, chief executive, said: “The delivery of these exciting aircraft opens a new chapter in British Airways’ history. We are proud to be leading the way
Rolls-Royce has been selected by Singapore Airlines Group to power 50 Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft with Trent 1000 engines. The announcement, which includes long-term TotalCare service support, is worth $4bn at current list prices. Thirty Boeing 787-10X aircraft will be operated by Singapore Airlines. The airline’s subsidiary, Scoot will operate 10 Boeing 787-8 and 10
Bombardier Aerospace and WestJet reported the delivery of the first of 20 Q400 NextGen turboprop airliners ordered by WestJet. The aircraft will be operated by the new regional carrier, WestJet Encore and will serve multiple destinations, beginning in Western Canada in its first year of service. WestJet also holds options for 25 additional Q400 NextGen
