SIA receives new aircraft to renew existing fleet
Singapore Airlines is cruising ahead with its fleet renewal plans despite the economic downturn.
It received its first A330-300 today at the Airbus headquarters.
The airline plans to lease 19 of such aircraft to replace some of the current Boeing 777 plying the medium-haul routes.
Transport reporter Lin Jiamei witnessed the handover in Toulouse, France.
It was barely a week ago when Singapore Airlines announced that it
would cut back on some 200 flights due to falling passenger numbers.
But the airline says this does not mean it intends to scale back on its fleet renewal plans.
The A330-300 which comes with the airline’s updated cabin products, is one example.
SIA will receive another 7 such aircraft this year that will ply the
medium haul routes to Australia, Malaysia and Japan, starting March.
SIA’s Executive Vice President of Operations and Services Mak Swee Wah
said, “certainly there will be costs but we see this as an investment.
Product upgrade is a long term thing it is not something that we say,
well this year is a bad time so let us cut back. We will be managing
costs in other ways, just like any other airlines. All these aircraft
have been committed so we will continue to take them as scheduled. We
will be continuing to take delivery, all 19 of them, over the next two
years.”
Speaking to reporters after the handover ceremony, Mr Mak also gave an update on the A380 aircraft.
SIA currently has six A380s plying selected long haul routes.
But will falling passenger numbers result in the superjumbos being
underutilised? Mr Mak again, "we believe that these key routes will be
able to sustain an aircraft as large as the A380. Even during this
time. I think we got to look at this in perspective. There is a
slowdown but I think people are still travelling. Maybe the growth is
not as robust as people but there is still movement of people, but I
believe there is still a market for our services so we are putting the
aircraft to where the demand is”.
--938Live
He's damm right.This month alone there's an increase numer of Paxs travelling in 380s despite the economy.Discount price is another attraction.