19OCT edition

Thai Airways has announced significant capacity changes to its route network for the IATA W14 season of which the main highlights are as follows:

KHI – frequencies increased from 5 to 6 weekly effective 01NOV14 using A333s

JNB – all flights suspended effective 15JAN; currently operated 3 times per week nonstop using a B772ER

CCU – frequencies increased from daily to 10 weekly nonstop using A333s exclusively

HYD – frequencies increased from 5 to 6 weekly using an A320

Oman Air has announced a major expansion of long haul network during the upcoming IATA W14 season with 2 new destinations, frequency increases across Europe as well as a standardization of its Bangkok flight schedule which was most required.  The main highlights are as follows:

New A332 high density configuration announced for labor market routes i.e. 289 seats (24J + 265Y)

MNL – new 3 weekly nonstop flights to be launched effective 02DEC14 using an A332

CGK – new 4 weekly nonstop flights to be launched effective 12DEC14 using an A332

BKK – schedule standardized with departures out of BKK daily at 0855 and 2030 local time each respectively

ZRH – frequencies increased from 4 weekly to daily nonstop using an A332

MLE – frequencies increased from 5 to 10 weekly using a B738 exclusively

FRA – frequencies increased to daily using an A333

MUC – frequencies increased from 5 weekly to daily nonstop using an A332

KHI – frequencies increased from daily to 10 weekly using a B738

MXP – frequencies increased from 4 to 6 weekly nonstop using an A333

Kenya Airways has been cited that it over estimated the usefulness of the Boeing 777-300ER in its fleet as the aircraft has proven to be way too big (from a capacity stand point) to be deployed on any of its long haul routes such as Amsterdam, Guangzhou, London and Mumbai. The carrier is keen to dispose of these assets as soon as possible as it’s a big financial drain on its balance sheet.

Comments:

KQ's current 3 B77W frames seat 400 pax i.e. 28J + 372Y where as their B772ERs seat 322 pax i.e. 28J + 294Y. On the other hand, their B788s seat 234 pax i.e. 30J + 234Y.

In order to standardize and reduce costs, they should seriously consider phasing out both their B772ER + B77W fleet and standardizing the wide body around the B788 and B789 only. The latter would seat 291 pax in KQ's two class configuration with 30J + 261Y which is fine for any of its currently served high demand routes.

According to this article http://atwonline.com/airports-routes/kenya-airways-adds-787-routes and KQ's current fleet order backlog, it has options on 4 B787s which I feel should be converted to the larger -900 version so that the various fleet types in their fleet get reduced by 2016-17 to three types only i.e.  B787 + B737NG and E90 !

KLM has officially announced that it will be launching new flights to YEG-Edmonton, Canada as the carrier looks to operate to under served niche long haul markets where minimal competition currently exists. It will fly 4 times per week nonstop from its AMS hub using an A332 effective 03MAY15 with below mentioned schedule:

Days – 2/4/5/7

KL 675 Dep AMS 1435 Arr YEG 1535

KL 676 Dep YEG 1810 Arr AMS 1045+1

Other capacity changes revealed by the Dutch carrier for IATA S15 season are as follows:

YVR – capacity increased from daily A332 to daily A333

ACC – capacity increased from daily A332 to daily B772ER

GIG – frequencies increased from 5 to 6 weekly nonstop using a B772ER

YYC – capacity increased from daily A332 to 4 weekly B772ER + 3 weekly A332

EZE/SCL – frequencies increased from 3 to 4 weekly using a B772ER

JFK – frequencies reduced from 19 weekly to double daily

IAH – frequencies reduced from 10 to 9 weekly

Emirates has disclosed many frequency + capacity upgrades to its long haul network for the upcoming W14 season of which the main highlights are as follows:

MXP – new A380 destination with one of 3 daily flights i.e. EK 91/92 upgraded from a B773ER

DAR – frequencies increased from daily to double daily effective 01JAN15 i.e. daily B773ER + daily A345

FCO – frequencies increased from double daily to triple daily i.e. daily B773 + double daily A380.

Qatar Airways has revealed expansion plans for its route network for the upcoming IATA W14 season of which the main highlights are as follows:

MIA – frequencies increased from 4 to 5 weekly nonstop flights using a B772LR

ADD – capacity increased from 3 weekly A320s to 2 weekly A333s + weekly A320

ASM – new destination launched with twice weekly frequencies using an A320 effective 04DEC

CPT – capacity increased as flights are to be operated as nonstop terminator services using a B788 5 times per week with a 0125am departure out of DOH and returning back by 1130pm local time. As a result of which CPT will lose two way connectivity with India, China, Tokyo, Pakistan and Seoul.

SAW – frequencies increased from 4 weekly to daily using an A320

LHR – capacity being increased with 2 out of 5 daily flights being upgraded to an A380 which depart

MED – frequencies increased from daily to double daily using an A320

OTP/SOF – frequencies increased from 5 weekly to daily

DXB – frequencies increased to 14 daily + nearby DWC airport flights also increased to 4 daily thus making the carrier serve the Dubai city market a total of 18 times daily

HKT – capacity increased as flights are to be operated as nonstop terminator services using an A332 on a daily basis

Ethiopia and Philippines have concluded signing a new bilateral accord paving the way for ET to launch expected new flights to Manila. The agreement allows 7 weekly flights between the two countries that can be operated either nonstop or via Bangkok or Singapore with 5^th freedom traffic rights. ET is expected to launch MNL via SIN from April 2015 using a B787-800. In other ET related news, the carrier has announced many capacity changes for its long haul route network of which the main highlights are as follows:

DUB/LAX – new 3 weekly flights to be launched effective 03JUN15 using a B788

SIN – new 3 weekly nonstop flights to be launched effective 31MAR15 using a B788. This flight is on the ground in SIN for 12 hours and is expected to continue onwards to Manila (another new route).

JED – capacity increased from daily B738 to daily B763ER effective 27OCT14

TLV – frequencies increased from daily to double daily nonstop using a B738 effective 27OCT14

VIE/ARN – capacity increased to 4 weekly flights using a B763ER

As far as fleet news is concerned, ET has officially finalized a deal to replace their current B737-700 + B737-800 fleet with 20 B738MAXs + an option of 10 more units.

Virgin Atlantic has unveiled a massive restructuring of its long haul route network as the carrier looks to focus on its core trans-atlantic services and alliance with share holder Delta Airlines to boost revenues. The main highlights are as follows:

BOM – all flights suspended effective 01FEB15

CPT – all flights suspended effective 27APR15

YVR – all flights suspended effective immediately

NRT – all flights suspended effective 01FEB15. Service to Tokyo will be to HND airport only!

DTW – new daily nonstop flights to be operated using an A333 effective 29MAR15

SFO – frequencies increased from daily to 12 weekly i.e. daily B744 + 5 weekly A346 effective 29MAR15

DEL – capacity adjusted from daily A333 to daily B789 effective 29MAR15

ATL – frequencies increased from daily to double daily effective 29MAR15

LAX - frequencies increased from daily to double daily i.e. daily B744 + daily A346 effective 29MAR15

JFK – frequencies increased from 4 to 5 daily flights effective 29MAR15

In addition, the carrier is in the finalization process of converting 5 B789s into firm orders which will bring the total VS fleet of B789s to number 21 units.

Etihad Airways has revealed few capacity changes across its route network for the IATA W14 and S15 seasons of which the main highlights are as follows:

LHR – all three daily flights to be operated by the A380 effective 01MAY15

SYD – capacity increased to daily A380 + 3 weekly B773ER effective 01JUN15

DEL – capacity increased to daily B773ER + daily B772LR effective 18NOV14

KHI – frequencies increased from daily to double daily A320s effective W14 season

KWI – frequencies increased from 4 to 5 daily flights effective W14 season

British Airways has outlined significant capacity changes across its long haul route network for the IATA S15 season of which the main highlights are as follows:

KUL – new daily nonstop flights to be launched using a B772ER effective 27MAY15

ACC – frequencies reduced from 10 weekly to daily using a B744 only

SFO – capacity increased from double daily B744 to daily A380 + daily B744

CPT – frequencies reduced from 10 to 9 weekly nonstop flights

TLV – frequencies increased from double daily to 17 weekly i.e. daily B772ER + 10 weekly A321s

DEN – capacity increased from daily B772ER to daily B744

YUL – capacity reduced from daily B772ER to daily B788

EZE – frequencies reduced from daily to 5 weekly nonstop using a B772ER

ICN - capacity reduced from daily B772ER to daily B788

Air Canada has outlined significant expansion for its long haul route network for the IATA S15 season of which the main highlights are as follows:

YYZ/CDG – frequencies increased from daily to double daily

YYZ/AMS – new 6 weekly nonstop flights to be operated using a B763ER

YYZ/NRT – capacity reduced from daily B773ER to daily B788

YYZ/ZRH – capacity adjusted from daily A333 to daily B788

YYZ/VCE – frequencies increased from 3 to 4 weekly

YYZ/ATH – frequencies increased from 5 weekly to daily

YYZ/BCN – frequencies increased from 5 weekly to daily

YUL/CDG - frequencies increased from daily to double daily

YUL/ATH – frequencies increased from 2 to 4 weekly

YUL/BCN – frequencies increased from 2 to 3 weekly

YUL/VCE – new 2 weekly nonstop service announced

YVR/KIX – new 5 weekly nonstop flights to be operated

14AUG edition

Finnair has officially revealed details of its Airbus A350-900 configuration and initial routes that it plans to deploy the aircraft on upon delivery in summer 2015. AY has ordered 11 units of the A350-900 along with 9 options. The main highlights are as follows:

i.                     Will seat 297 passengers with 46 in business class + 43 in premium economy + 208 economy class

ii.                   First three routes for the aircraft are BKK, PVG and PEK followed by HKG and SIN in 2016

Alitalia has officially announced that it has secured an investment of US$ 751 million from Etihad Airways for a 49% stake in the airline. The main highlights of the massive investment are as follows:

·         Focus to be on developing long haul routes and trimming the short haul EU network

·         Seven new wide body jets will be added to the AZ fleet along with 10 new long haul destinations by 2017

·         Short haul fleet to be scaled down by 13 units

·         AZ will operate additional new flights to AUH from Venice and Bologna

·         AZ will increase its current FCO-AUH flight from W14 season to a daily A332 operated service

·         Both MXP and FCO will be core focus long haul hubs

·         1600 jobs to be cut from AZ’s payroll

·         Revival of AZ’s dedicated cargo freighter business with airframe units added and the base to be MXP airport for this division

·         $150 million investment to be made by EY to purchase 75% of AZ’s frequent flier program

·         $70 million paid for 5 pair of London Heathrow slots by EY which would then be leased back to AZ

·         Long haul focus is primarily revolving around Italy-SE Asia + Italy-North America

Comments:

One new route that EY and AZ can coordinate their current schedules around is for AZ to extend its daily FCO-AUH service to CAN-Guangzhou, China which can be scheduled as follows:

AZ 852 Dep FCO 2245 Arr AUH 0635+1

AZ 852 Dep AUH 0830 Arr CAN 2030

AZ 853 Dep CAN 0200 Arr AUH 0615

AZ  853 Dep AUH 0815 Arr FCO 1245

The above mentioned schedule of AUH-CAN-AUH connects very well with EY’s entire GCC + EU + MENA + certain African markets which would in turn see an increase in S/F with the addition of CAN to the EY route network. CAN has also overtaken PVG as the #2 Chinese market for the GCC region. This schedule also allows AZ in turn to more or less maintain its current timings on FCO-AUH-FCO. CAN is also a fellow Sky Team hub of China Southern so the latter would also in turn be code sharing on the route thus offering additional feeder opportunities.  

With regards to its long haul fleet, I would suggest that in order to offer cost savings and to better streamline various efficiencies, AZ should try to gradually sell off its entire A332 (12 units) + B772ER (10 units) fleet of aircraft and revolve its future wide body aircraft around the Boeing 787-900 only. AZ still has 6 purchase options  for the B777s so these should in turn be converted to the B789 as this aircraft type can operate nonstop to any long haul destination from Italy without payload problems. It can seat 292 passengers in a 2 class configuration of 30J (flat beds 2-2-2) + 262Y (3-3-3 layout) thus offering the same capacity as their current B772ER aircraft but at an operating cost at least 15% lower ! For its freighter fleet though, with AZ already having captains trained on the B772s, it can either purchase new B772LRFs or convince Boeing (along with other airlines) to launch the B777 Pax to freighter conversion program so that it can save on capital acquisition costs by converting its current 10 B777s into freighters. For Asia, the cargo flights should be routed via AUH so that it can also be fed by EY in turn generating increasing revenue feeding opportunities.

Azerbaijan Airlines based out of Baku has disclosed that it will be launching a new nonstop flight to JFK-New York effective 24SEP14. J2 will be operating the service twice a week nonstop using a 237 seater A340-500 with the ex-Kingfisher Airlines configuration i.e. 36J + 201Y. The schedule is as follows:

Days – WED/SAT

J2 101 Dep GYD 0600 Arr JFK 0930

J2 102 Dep JFK 1130 Arr GYD 0800+1

Etihad Airways has unveiled a massive expansion plan of its medium and long haul route network in 2015 with many new destinations + capacity increases announced across the board. The main highlights are as follows:

MAD – new daily nonstop services effective 29MAR using an A332

HKG – new 4 weekly nonstop services effective 15JUN using an A332

ALG – new 3 weekly nonstop services effective 17JUN using an A333

CCU – new daily nonstop A320 services effective 15FEB using an A320 with a 11am departure out of AUH

EBB - new daily nonstop A320 services effective 01MAY using an A320

EDI - new daily nonstop services effective 08JUN using an A332

BNE – capacity increased with daily nonstop flights to be operated using a B789 effective 01JUN

DME – capacity increased to daily B789 + daily A320 effective 01JUN

CDG – capacity increased to daily B773ER + daily A346 effective 01MAR

SFO – new daily nonstop flights to be launched using a B773ER effective 18NOV14 with below mentioned schedule:

EY 183 Dep AUH 0215 Arr SFO 0630

EY 184 Dep SFO 0830 Arr AUH 1240+1

ALA – frequencies increased to 5 weekly using an A320 effective 05SEP14 using an A320

LHR – capacity increased with second daily A380 service effective 01MAR15 on EY 17/18.

Comments:

It shall be interesting to see how ALG survives without two way connections via AUH to China + how the local SFO market responds to an 0830am departure as that would be the earliest departure which means no connecting passengers flying into SFO from other U.S. West Coast cities can connect + the locals who live in the SFO area would have to reach the airport by 6am latest. It would be better if the SFO departure was at 1430 i.e. 6 hours later so that it would arrive into AUH at 1840 which is almost the same time as all the other USA-AUH EY flight arrivals.  

With regards to EY 17 being upgraded to the A380, the flight from AUH-LHR will be very light in the low season as it lacks immediate connections from Indian Subcontinent in particular as those pax prefer flying to LHR on EY 19 due to the shorter transit time in AUH. The return sector though i.e. EY 18 can support an A380 as it connects everywhere via AUH conveniently.

The 2014 Farnborough Air Show concluded a month ago with many companies placing significant orders for airplane units of which the main highlights were as follows:

i.                     Airbus launched the A330NEO which is the A338 (replacing the A332 as its NEO version) and A339 (replacing the A333 as its NEO version)

ii.                   Air Asia X ordered 50 A339s

iii.                  AerCap ordered 50 A320NEOs

iv.                 ALC ordered 25 A339s + 61 A321NEOs + 6 B773ERs + 20 B738MAXs

v.                   Air Mauritius ordered 6 A359s

vi.                 Avolon Leasing ordered 15 A339s + 5 B739MAXs + 6 B789s

vii.                 Qatar Airways ordered 50 B779s

viii.              Monarch UK ordered 30 B738MAXs

ix.                 Intrepid Aviation ordered 6 B773ERs

x.                   BOC Aviation ordered 43 A320s

xi.                 CIT Aerospace Leasing ordered 15 A338s + 5 A321s (current version) + 10 B789s

xii.                Transaero of Russia ordered 20 A338s

xiii.              Hainan Airlines ordered 50 B738MAXs

xiv.               An un-named African customer of Bombarider ordered 5 CS 300s

xv.               An “existing” Bombardier customer ordered 13 CS 300s

Emirates has announced that it will be launching a new nonstop flight to BUD-Budapest, Hungary effective 28OCT14. Services will be operated on a daily basis using an A332 with an 0820am departure from DXB with an arrival back at 2330 local time. Other capacity increases revealed by EK are as follows:

CMN – frequencies increased from daily to double daily i.e. daily B773ER + daily A345 effective 01SEP

FCO – capacity increased to double daily A380s effective 29AUG

Qatar Airways has announced many capacity increases to its medium haul network from SEP onwards of which the main highlights are as follows:

ISB – frequencies increased from daily to 9 weekly

MAD – frequencies increased from daily to 10 weekly nonstop flights; all operated with a B773ER

VIE – capacity increased from daily A320 to daily B787

MCT – frequencies increased from 4 to 5 times daily

IKA – frequencies increased from double daily to 18 weekly with the new 4 weekly flights offering direct connections from IAD/DFW/IAH/ORD to the Iranian capital.

NBO – frequencies increased to 19 times weekly effective 20NOV. This is expected to be further increased to triple daily from IATA S15 season onwards.

DPS – capacity reduced from daily A333 to daily B787

Turkish Airlines has officially announced that it shall be launching new daily nonstop flights to SFO-San Francisco, USA effective 13APR15. TK will be deploying a 349 seater Boeing 777-300ER on this new service offering good connections via IST in both directions to GCC, Central Asia, Africa, Indian Subcontinent and the MENA region. Other major capacity changes revealed by TK for the IATA S15 season are as follows:

ORD – capacity increased from a daily A332 to a daily B773ER

ICN – capacity increased from double daily A332 to daily B773ER + daily A333

SIN - capacity adjusted with daily nonstop terminator flights using an A332

CGK – capacity adjusted with daily nonstop terminator flights using an A343

Air France has announced many capacity changes for the upcoming IATA W14 season of which the main highlights are as follows:

SGN – frequencies reduced from 4 to 3 weekly nonstop flights using a B773ER

BLR – capacity increased from 6 weekly A332s to daily B772ERs

MIA – frequencies and capacity increased from 6 weekly B773ER to daily A380 effective 01DEC

PNR – frequencies increased from 5 to 6 weekly nonstop flights using an A332

BKK – frequencies increased from 5 weekly to daily nonstop using a B772ER

PTY – frequencies increased from 3 to 5 weekly nonstop flights using a B772ER

CAN – frequencies reduced from 5 to 4 weekly nonstop using a B772ER

ANA (All Nippon Airways) of Japan has placed a major order with Boeing for $13 billion worth of wide bodied aircraft consisting of 20 B779s + 14 B789s + 6 B773ERs. In addition, the carrier revealed the configuration of its B789s in both a domestic and long haul configuration which is as follows:

B789D – 395 seats i.e. 18J + 377Y

B789L – 215 seats i.e. 48J + 21Y+ + 146Y

The B789Ds will be replacing NH’s B772As on the domestic Japan routes.

Gulf Air has officially announced that it will be launching new flights to DME-Moscow, Russia effective 28OCT14 on a nonstop basis. Services will be flown 4 times per week using an A320ER with flat beds in business class. The schedule is as follows:

Days: MON/TUE/FRI/SAT

GF 14 Dep BAH 0905 Arr DME 1405

GF 15 Dep DME 1450 Arr BAH 1930

The above mentioned schedule offers good connections to GCC and India in both directions via BAH but not to BKK which is the biggest Asian market out of Moscow followed by Dubai. GF’s main competition from DME hails from EY triple daily + EK double daily A380s/B773s + QR double daily + TK six times daily.

  

04JUL edition

Virgin Atlantic has officially disclosed details of its Boeing 787-900 of which the main highlights are as follows:

·         Configured to seat 264 passengers in a 3 class layout i.e. 31 business class + 35 premium economy + 198 economy

·         VS states that its B789s will burn 27% less fuel per trip versus its A343s

·         First 3 routes are BOS, IAD and JFK respectively

Gulf Air has revealed that after successfully renegotiating the bilateral with Egypt, it has been authorized to increase its Cairo bound services from the current 10 to 12 per week. As a result, the frequency increase shall take place effective 23JUL using an A321 daily + an A320 five times per week with the new flights departing BAH in the evening on WED + SUN.

Air India has announced that it will be launching new services to DME-Moscow, Russia effective 18JUL. Flights will be operated nonstop 4 times per week using a B787-800 using the below mentioned schedule:

Days: 1/3/5/6

AI155 Dep DEL 0155 Arr DME 0615
AI154 Dep DME0820 – 1530DEL

Cebu Pacific has officially revealed that it will be launching 2 new long haul destinations from its Manila hub. The main highlights are as follows:

MNL/KWI – new 3 weekly nonstop flights to be operated effective 02SEP using a 430 seater A333

MNL/SYD – new 4 weekly nonstop flights to be operated effective 09SEP using the same aircraft type mentioned above.  SYD will be further increased to 5 weekly nonstop effective 10DEC.

Comments:

Kuwait is a route that has longed for many years a nonstop link to MNL and finally 5J is providing it for the local Filipino community based there. Market demand is also extremely high at over 170,000 pax in 2013 hence an ideal market for the airline to go after. To cater for peak season traffic in the winter, 5J should seriously contemplate making this a 4 weekly service permanently.

British Airways has revealed few capacity changes for its long haul route network for the upcoming IATA Winter 2014 season of which the main highlights are as follows:

ACC – frequencies increased to 11 weekly nonstop i.e. daily B744 + 4 weekly B763ER

BLR – capacity reduced from daily B744 to daily B772ER

FNA/ROB – frequencies reduced from 4 to 3 weekly

YUL – capacity reduced from daily B772ER to daily B763ER

Delta Airlines has unveiled many capacity changes to its long haul network for the IATA Winter 2014 season of which the main highlights are as follows:

DTW/PEK - capacity reduced from daily B772ER to daily A332 thus making this route the longest scheduled A332 operated service nonstop

DTW/CDG - capacity increased from daily B763ER to daily A333

DTW/PVG - capacity increased from daily B772ER to daily B744

DTW/NRT - capacity increased from daily B772ER to daily B744

ATL/FCO - capacity increased from daily B763ER to daily A333

ATL/SCL - capacity increased from daily B763ER to daily B764ER

HNL/KIX - capacity increased from daily A333 to daily B744

MSP/CDG - capacity increased from daily A332 to daily A333

JFK/AMS - capacity increased from daily B763ER to daily A333

JFK/NRT - capacity reduced from daily B744 to daily B772ER

JFK/CDG - capacity increased from daily A332 to daily A333

JFK/TLV - capacity reduced from daily B744 to daily B772ER

Cathay Pacific announced that due to on-going security plus commercial concerns for its Karachi bound flights, it has suspended operating to the city effective 29JUN14. CX flew 4 times per week via Bangkok to Karachi using an A333. The carrier gave no indication of a possible return date and would re-examine its possibility once the law and order situation stabilizes in Pakistan.

Comments:

This is a good opportunity for One World to maintain its market share eastbound by making Malaysia Airlines consider the possibility of re-launching Karachi flights operated with a B737-800 via Bangkok. Currently, MH 780 operating KUL-BKK arrives into BKK at 1855 and overnights there for 11 hours flying the return leg as MH 797 departing BKK at 0600 local time. A BKK-KHI-BKK flight takes approximately 9 hours to operate hence if this plane is scheduled to be as follows, then both parties (CX/MH) benefit greatly.

MH XXX Dep BKK 1955 Arr KHI 2240 (same schedule as current CX)
MH XXX Dep KHI 2340 Arr KUL 0630 (same schedule as current CX)  

CX can code share on the MH operated service by having a flight flying at virtually the same original schedule that it used to do. MH benefits by increasing the utilization of its airplane rather than sitting on the ground for nearly 12 hours at BKK airport doing nothing plus there is no requirement of crew layover in KHI too as one set of MH based crew already in BKK can operate BKK-KHI-BKK easily! MH too gains by virtually having guaranteed revenue via the CX code share who would easily on their own fill up half of the B738 through its own sales channels.

Lastly, the PAK-KUL market has also witnessed increased demand in 2013 overtaking BKK too. In the past 12 months, 84,000 passengers flew from LHE to KUL + 69,000 from KHI, 29,000 from PEW and 26,000 from ISB.

Emirates has officially announced major capacity increases for its route network for the IATA W14 schedule of which the main highlights are as follows:

IAH – capacity increased from daily B77L to daily A380

SFO – capacity increased from daily B77W to daily A380

JNB – frequencies increased from 3 to 4 daily nonstop flights (new flight departs DXB at 2320) all operated with a B773ER

BAH – frequencies increased from 3 to 4 daily flights

KWI – frequencies increased from 5 to 6 daily flights

DOH - frequencies increased from 6 to 7 daily flights

MCT – frequencies increased from 2 to 3 daily flights

Air Astana of Kazakhstan has disclosed its fleet renewal plans until 2024 focusing on low risk organic growth across Europe and Southeast Asia in order to boost both foreign investment plus inbound tourism into the Central Asian region. The main highlights are as follows:

·         5 B757-200s + 4 A321-200s to be replaced by 11 A321-200NEOs

·         New A321-200NEOs will have a premium layout with 22 flat bed business class seats + 137 economy class seats

·         New routes identified are Paris, Shanghai and Chengdu

·         Airline is very interested in the upcoming Boeing 797 program which is expected to be the official replacement aircraft type for the B757 family. The CEO has stated that if launched, he would definitely be a launch customer.

Sri Lankan Airlines has officially revealed details of its soon to be delivered new Airbus A 330-300IGWs of which the airline has 6 units on order. UL’s A333s will accommodate 297 pax in a 2 class layout seating 28 business class + 269 economy class and its launch route shall be to Frankfurt.