DTN News - AIRLINES NEWS: Qantas Overhauls With $9 Billion Fleet Order

DTN News - AIRLINES NEWS: Qantas Overhauls With $9 Billion Fleet Order

Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Reuters

(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada / SYDNEY, Australia - August 16, 2011: Australia's Qantas Airways (ASX:QAN.AX - News) is setting up two new airlines in Asia and ordering $9 billion of new Airbus (Paris:EAD.PA - News) aircraft as part of a do-or-die makeover to salvage its loss-making international business.

Qantas will also cut 1,000 jobs in Australia as it shifts its focus to the world's fastest-growing aviation market, triggering threats by unions to block the move and a government pledge to scrutinize the plans.

Qantas, which has been reviewing its offshore operations to cut costs and unprofitable routes, said it will launch a new, premium Asian airline and a Japanese budget carrier, the latter jointly with Japan Airlines and Mitsubishi Corp (Tokyo:8058.T - News).

The new airlines will fly Airbus A320 jets, cementing their reputation as the plane of choice on regional networks over archrival Boeing Co. (NYSE:BA - News) Qantas, which also flies Boeing's best-selling 737 narrowbodies, plans to acquire up to 110 of the Airbus planes, worth more than $9.4 billion.

As Qantas rebases its loss-making international operations in Asia, it also plans to give up some of its long-haul routes and retire older planes as well as cut jobs.

"Right now 82 out of every 100 people flying out of Australia are choosing to fly with an airline other than Qantas, not including Jetstar," the airline's Irish-born chief executive, Alan Joyce, told a news conference.

Joyce has cut costs and jobs since taking the helm at Qantas in 2008, with growth increasingly focused on the budget offshoot Jetstar, which he ran before becoming chief executive.

"To do nothing, or tinker around the edges, would only guarantee the end of Qantas International in our home Australian market. That would be a tragedy," he said, adding that the international operation's cost base was around 20 percent higher than its major rivals.

Joyce said the new premium airline was expected to be launched next year with an initial fleet size of 11 A320s. It may based in Kuala Lumpur or Singapore and would not be majority owned by Qantas, he said. China was also being considered, one source familiar with the airline earlier told Reuters.

Qantas has an existing relationship with Malaysia's AirAsia (Kuala Lumpur:AIRA.KL - News), which this week agreed to swap shares with Malaysian Airline system (Kuala Lumpur:MASM.KL - News) as part of a partnership deal.

Qantas shares closed down 0.33 percent at A$1.52.

"It's a prudent move," said Jason Teh, a portfolio manager at Investors Mutual, which does not own Qantas shares.

"That's a way to get your costs down. If you know your return on capital's going to be thin, share your capital base. The international business is more cyclical and poses more competitor threats than their domestic business."

POLITICAL AND UNION RESISTANCE

The plan announced by Qantas drew immediate fire from several quarters. Australian Transport Minister Anthony Albanese said the government will examine the plan to ensure it does not breach the airline's privatization rules.

"The Australian government very firmly believes in an Australian-based and majority Australian-owned Qantas," he said.

The Qantas Sale Act of 1992 requires the airline's operational base and headquarters to be in Australia, foreign ownership is capped at 49 percent and the name Qantas is preserved. At least two-thirds of the board and its chairman must be Australians.

Trade unions and a key independent senator have said they could also seek legislative or regulatory steps to ensure Qantas remains an Australian-owned company.

Qantas faces a likely escalation of industrial action at home over the plan's estimated 1,000 job cuts, with trade unions opposed to any move by Qantas to shift its international operations offshore. About 200 pilot jobs were expected to be included in the cuts.

"Until we get an assurance from Alan Joyce that future Qantas flights will be operated by Qantas pilots, instead of outsourced and offshored alternatives, we will be doing everything we can to stop this destructive strategy for Qantas's future," Barry Jackson, president of the Australian and International Pilots Association, said in a statement.

FOCUS ON ASIA

Qantas' plan refocuses its offshore business squarely on Asia, a region that should account for more than half of global airline profits this year, according to the International Air Transport Association.

Qantas plans to acquire between 106 and 110 Airbus A320 aircraft, including planes for Jetstar Japan and the new premium Asia-based airline. Between 28 and 32 planes of these would be current-generation A320s and the rest the fuel-efficient, next-generation A320neo aircraft.

Airbus has scored resounding victories over Boeing with its narrow-body A320neo aircraft, taking a commanding lead in the single-aisle market once dominated by Boeing's 737 family.

Just last month AirAsia announced a deal worth $18.2 billion at list prices for 200 A320neo planes while AMR Corp's (NYSE:AMR - News) American Airlines, previously an all-Boeing customer, ordered 260 narrow-body A320 planes.

Qantas and its regional brand QantasLink have mixed fleets with notable Boeing narrowbody and widebody presences. Jetstar has only Airbus narrowbodies, but it has orders for Boeing 787 Dreamliners.

"I would count this as a loss for Boeing," said Richard Aboulafia, an aerospace analyst at The Teal Group, noting Airbus has "core strength" in narrowbody markets with Asian low-cost carriers.

Qantas also delayed the delivery of its final six A380s for up to six years in a move aimed at conserving capital and bolstering its balance sheet.

It said it would retire four Boeing 747s and would make no change to its existing order of Boeing 787s.

Qantas reaffirmed its earnings guidance, though it said the restructuring would cost more than A$350 million ($367 million).

($1 = 0.955 Australian dollar)

(Additional reporting by Rob Taylor in Canberra, Sonali Paul and Victoria Thierberger in Melbourne and Kyle Peterson in Chicago; Writing by Mark Bendeich; Editing by Ed Davies, Matt Driskill and Matthew Lewis)

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Reuters

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DTN News: Airlines News TODAY December 24, 2009 ~ Chile's LAN Airlines Orders 30 Airbus Jets

DTN News: Airlines News TODAY December 24, 2009 ~ Chile's LAN Airlines Orders 30 Airbus Jets *Source: DTN News / Int'l Media (NSI News Source Info) PARIS, France - December 24, 2009: Commercial jet builder Airbus said Wednesday it has received a firm order from Chile's LAN Airlines for 30 Airbus A320 family of narrow-bodied airlines. A spokesman for Airbus at the company's Toulouse, France-based headquarters said LAN is ordering 12 A319s and 18 A320s, single-aisle workhorses that are used by airlines on short-to-medium haul routes. The A319 carries a catalog price of $70 million and the A320 is priced at $77 million, giving an overall value for the 30 jets of around $2.3 billion. However, customer airlines typically negotiate deep discounts for bulk orders, and non-cash side deals, for example, training. The LAN order brings to 255 the number of firm orders booked by Airbus so far this year. The wholly owned unit of European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co NV (EAD.FR) has set itself a target of a gross firm order intake of 300 aircraft in 2009. On Tuesday, Malaysia Airlines said it wants to buy 15 wide-bodied Airbus A330 planes, with options for another 10 aircraft. And earlier this month, Airbus clinched a major order with UAL Corp.'s (UAUA) United Airlines worth some $6 billion for 25 of its future A350 XWB wide-bodied jets. However, both those contracts have still to be firmed up, and the UAL order is unlikely to be so by year-end, Airbus sources said. Airbus only includes firm contracts in the order figures that it publishes every month. LAN Airlines is already a major Airbus customer, and the latest order will increase its fleet of Airbus jets to 100. The Chilean airline will use its planes from Latin American hubs and the latest contract gives it flexibility to settle the exact type of aircraft it will receive closer to the planned delivery time. Separately, an Airbus official said the company has just delivered its tenth A380 superjumbo so far this year. The jet was handed over to Dubai-based Emirates, the biggest customer for world's largest passenger aircraft with 58 on order. Airbus had set an objective of delivering 13 A380s this year, but company officials have said that "one or two" might spill over into 2010. Airbus plans to deliver about 20 A380s in 2010.

DTN News: IAI, EADS Discuss Adapting A320 For Airborne Early Warning

DTN News: IAI, EADS Discuss Adapting A320 For Airborne Early Warning *Source: DTN News / Int'l Media (NSI News Source Info) TEL AVIV, Israel - December 9, 2009: Israel Aerospace Industries and EADS are in advanced discussions on teaming up to offer an airborne early warning system installed on a member of the Airbus A320 family, an IAI official says. The discussions come after a series of overtures by IAI to adapt Elta Systems' conformal AEW technology to the A320 family. EADS's Military Aircraft division previously rejected the concept, says Baruch Reshef, deputy director of Elta's group marketing and sales division. But its attitude has recently changed. "They are in favour of co-operation if we can find solutions that fit their platforms," he says. IAI and EADS officials see a huge market opportunity for AEW technology, Reshef says, amounting to more than $10 billion over the next five years. IAI expects that an A320-based system could capture 30-40% of the market share, he says. The first such A320 AEW platform could be available for service entry within three to four years of a contract award, Reshef says. The installation process "would be quite short in comparison to other programmes", he adds. If both sides agree, IAI would help expand Airbus's portfolio of military offerings, which include the A330-based multirole tanker transport, A400M airlifter and a previous offer to provide adapted A320s for NATO's alliance ground surveillance programme - a capability which has subsequently been narrowed to include only unmanned aircraft. IAI would also gain a new platform for its conformal AEW technology, already installed on the Gulfstream G550 business jet for Israel and Singapore. EADS declined to comment on the report, following a request from Flight International. An A320-based system would join other Western market offerings in the airborne early warning and control segment, which include the Boeing 737, Northrop Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeye and Saab Microwave Systems' Erieye radar, which has so far been integrated with the Embraer ERJ-145 regional jet and Saab 340 and Saab 2000 turboprops. IAI's Phalcon series of AEW radars began with the EL/M-2075 L-band electronically scanned array, first installed on the Boeing 707 for Israel and Chile. India has also acquired the radar for installation on the Ilyushin Il-76 transport.

DTN News: Airbus Delivers Its 4000th A320 Family Aircraft To TAM

DTN News: Airbus Delivers Its 4000th A320 Family Aircraft To TAM

*Source: DTN News / Airbus

(NSI News Source Info) PARIS, France - August 30, 2009: Airbus has delivered its 4000th A320 Family aircraft to Brazilian flag carrier TAM from its Final Assembly Line in Hamburg. The aircraft, an A319, was handed over to TAM in the presence of the President of the Board of TAM, Maria Claudia Oliveira Amaro as well as Airbus President and CEO, Tom Enders.

The aircraft is powered with IAE engines and configured in a comfortable single-class lay-out seating 144 passengers. On the A319's ferry flight from Hamburg to Brazil, TAM will transport goods for schools for handicapped children in the region. The equipment was donated by Aviation without Borders Germany (LOG) and facilitated by the Airbus Foundation.

Maria Claudia Oliveira Amaro, Chairman of the Board of Directors of TAM said: "TAM's acquisition of the 4000th A320 Family aircraft is another milestone in our partnership with Airbus. It will be an even bigger excitement when TAM's aircraft heads for Brazil, as it will also be contributing to an important initiative in the social responsibility arena."

"The delivery of our 4000th A320 Family aircraft to TAM not only speaks for the tremendous success of the A320 programme, but also for our strong relationship with TAM , the largest Airbus operator in the Southern Hemisphere" said Tom Enders, Airbus President and CEO. Daniel Baubil, Executive Vice President A320 Family Programme added: "The A320 Family is without doubt the world's most eco-efficient, modern and reliable aircraft family in its market segment. And the programme's success will continue as constant improvements in aerodynamics, weight reduction, operational improvements and increased cabin comfort will further strengthen the A320 Family's market leadership."

In July more than 10,000 Airbus employees involved in the programme at all Airbus' sites celebrated the production of the 4000th A320 Family aircraft.

TAM became an Airbus A319 operator in 1998 with a historic combined order of 90 aircraft together with the airlines TACA and LAN.

Today the airline operates a fleet of 125 Airbus aircraft. More than 350 Airbus aircraft are in operation in Latin America with 22 carriers. This represents more than 40 per cent of aircraft over 100 seats in service in Latin America.

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 6,400 Airbus A320 Family aircraft have been sold to 221 customers worldwide, making it the world's best-selling commercial jetliner ever. With proven reliability and extended servicing periods, the A320 Family has the lowest operating costs of any single-aisle aircraft. Uniquely, the A320 Family offers a containerized cargo system, which is compatible with the world wide standard wide-body system.

DTN News: Airbus Escapes Cancellations In July

DTN News: Airbus Escapes Cancellations In July

*Source: DTN News / Int'l Media

(NSI News Source Info) PARIS, France - August 8, 2009: booking 50 A320s, but perhaps more significantly the aircraft maker didn't suffer any additional order cancellations in July. The airframer has recorded 22 cancellations this year, but their pace has now slowed, leaving the company with 140 gross orders and 118 net orders. Company officials are hoping to secure about 300 gross orders for the year, but concede that goal could be difficult to reach. Although cancellations appear to have eased, airlines continue to ask for deliveries to be deferred across the product line, as reflected by recent decisions at Aer Lingus and Thai Airways to take aircraft planned for delivery next year at some later time. The 50 A320s booked July 1 commit to the order book aircraft that Wizz Air said in June it planned to buy. Also in July, the A320 order book grew by four units, with leasing company AerVenture offsetting the reduction of four A319s at Spirit Airlines. For the year, the A320 has secured 87 new orders, although Airbus had five cancellations in the product line. Deliveries for the first seven months reached 288 units, led again by the A320 with 126 units. So far, only four A380s have been put in customer hands, but the plan remains to deliver 14 by yearend.

DTN News: Malaysia's AirAsia Defers Airbus A320 Delivery

DTN News: Malaysia's AirAsia Defers Airbus A320 Delivery

*Source: DTN News / Reuters

(NSI News Source Info) KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - August 7, 2009: Southeast Asia's largest budget carrier AirAsia has deferred the delivery of 8 Airbus A320 aircraft to 2014 from 2010 as the existing low-cost terminal is unable to support its fleet expansion. "AirAsia foresees infrastructural constraints with the current airport facilities and until the new LCCT (low-cost carrier terninal) is constructed," the airline said in a statement. AirAsia has firm orders of 175 Airbus A320 aircraft scheduled for delivery between 2005 and October 2014, it said in a statement. Airbus has agreed to the revised schedule and no penalty will be imposed on AirAsia, which will now take delivery of 16 aircraft in 2010. The budget carrier said it has the right to postpone delivery of another 8 aircraft in 2011 to 2014 if it informs Airbus before the end of October. The Malaysian government in January turned down AirAsia's proposal to build, own and operate a new airport outside of the capital Kuala Lumpur. The authorities subsequently announced that the country's airport operator Malaysia Airports Holdings will build the new low-cost terminal with inputs from AirAsia. The budget carrier this week announced plans to place out a 20 percent stake in the airline, which has attracted strong interest from foreign and local institutional funds, its chief executive Tony Fernandes told Reuters. (Reporting by Julie Goh; Editing by David Chance)

DTN News: Aeroflot Postpone Airbus Delivery

DTN News: Aeroflot Postpone Airbus Delivery

*Source: DTN News / Int'l Media (NSI News Source Info) PARIS, France - July 28, 2009: Airbus has said in a statement that they still plan to achieve its target for aircraft sales despite a decision by Russian carrier, Aeroflot, to delay the delivery of some new aircraft. The Airbus A320 is a short-to-medium range commercial passenger aircraft manufactured by EADS (Airbus S.A.S.). First delivered in 1988, the A320 pioneered the use of digital fly-by-wire flight control systems in a commercial aircraft. When buying Aeroflot tickets be sure to check the Aeroflot - Airbus A320-200 seating chart to identify the best Airbus seat locations for your A320-200 flight tickets on Aeroflot. When buying airline tickets use the Aeroflot - Airbus A320-200 economy class to find your best aircraft seats. Passenger airline economy class help fliers identify the best Aeroflot - Airbus A320-200 seats. Check cabin configurations and seating layouts when booking your next airline tickets. Discount airfares and cheap flights offer the best value if fliers locate the best legroom. Aeroflot claims that they cannot take the delivery of five new Airbus jets because it cannot make up the passenger numbers due to the global economic downturn. Airbus Spokeswoman Stephanie Henrion said “We maintain our delivery forecast of 483 aircraft, matching the record set in 2008.” The decision now means that Airbus will have to wait for most of the $450 million that the airline was supposed to pay for the aircraft.Aeroflot have deferred the delivery of the aircraft to over the next 4 years, with two A320-200 jets expected to be delivered one and two years later than planned. The Russian flagship carrier reported last week of a 12 percent drop in passenger numbers for the first quarter of this year as Russia struggles with its worst economic crisis in over a decade. Airbus still expects to reach their target aircraft sales as aircraft makers generally find another airline that would like to advance its order.