Virgin Atlantic confirms Airbus order
Virgin Atlantic has confirmed an Airbus aircraft order to complete its fleet transformation.
It ordered seven Airbus A330-900s which will be delivered from 2027 and are being bought directly from Airbus by Virgin Atlantic.
This new order builds upon the initial A330neo order made in 2019, as the first UK airline to order the aircraft type.
It takes the airline’s total A330neo fleet to 19.
Virgin currently operates five A330-900’s flying to destinations including New York, Boston and Miami.
A further three will be delivered later this year and four more by the end of 2026.
As part of the fleet transformation, Virgin plans to gradually retire its A330-300s starting from September 2024.
These aircraft joined Virgin Atlantic’s fleet in 2011 and will be replaced by the new A330-900s.
The new planes are designed to be 13% more fuel and carbon efficient.
By 2028, Virgin Atlantic plans to operate a total of 45 next gen aircraft comprised of 19 A330-900s, 12 A350-1000s, and 14 787-9s.
This will bring down the average age of the fleet to 6.4 years.
Also, long-term lease extensions have been agreed with AerCap for seven Boeing 787-9’s.
These planes will continue to fly on routes to the Caribbean, North America and India, as well as new routes to the Maldives and Bengaluru, India.
Shai Weiss, CEO, Virgin Atlantic said: “Today, we complete our multi-billion-dollar fleet transformation. This is a significant lever towards decarbonising long-haul aviation.”
CEO, Commercial Aircraft business, Airbus, Christian Scherer said: “The A330neo not only delivers unbeatable operational seat mile cost, it also greatly enhances Virgin Atlantic’s fleet efficiency.”
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Learn more about : Virgin Atlantic ( United Kingdom )
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