Air Austral, France’s Réunion Island-based airline, has signed a firm order for three A220 aircraft, Airbus’ newest family member. With this order Air Austral becomes the first A220 customer based in the Indian Ocean region. Benefitting from a 20% reduction in fuel burn and CO2 emissions, the A220s will enable Air Austral to reduce its costs and carbon footprint on international routes in the region.
“Air Austral has chosen the A220-300 as part of the renewal of its Medium and Short Haul fleet. These new-generation aircraft will join the airline from the end of 2020 with the aim of harmonising part of its fleet and strengthening its operations,” said Marie-Joseph Malé, Chief Executive Officer of Air Austral. The economic and operational performance of the A220 opens new possibilities for the development of our regional network from our main base – Réunion Island – in an efficient and rational way. The 132-seat capacity module, which is more flexible, will allow us to increase our frequencies while offering more comfort to our customers and crews,” he added.
“With its unrivalled performance and operational flexibility, the A220 is the perfect aircraft for Air Austral to reinforce routes between Réunion Island and its neighbours in the Indian Ocean, as well as connecting the island further afield,” said Christopher Buckley, Executive Vice-President Commercial – Airbus. “Airlines from all around the world are acknowledging the A220’s economics and it is a great honour that Air Austral will be the first A220 operator in the region.”
The design of the new clean sheet single-aisle aircraft allows for more seats, offering extra revenue potential to airlines, especially to those located in remote areas, and extra usable cargo volume capacity.
The A220 is the only aircraft purpose-built for the 100-150 seat market; it delivers unbeatable fuel efficiency and widebody passenger comfort in a single-aisle aircraft. The A220 brings together state-of-the-art aerodynamics, advanced materials and Pratt & Whitney’s latest-generation PW1500G geared turbofan engines to offer at least a 20% lower fuel burn per seat compared to previous generation aircraft, along with significantly lower emissions and a reduced noise footprint. The A220 offers the performance of larger single-aisle aircraft.
FILE PHOTO: Supercar Hongqi S9 is unveiled next to FAW Group Chairman Xu Liuping at the 2019 Frankfurt Motor Show (IAA) in Frankfurt, Germany. September 10, 2019. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay/File Photo
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Chinese suppliers and manufacturers have stepped up their presence at the Frankfurt auto show, capitalizing on a strong position in electric technologies forced on European carmakers by regulators seeking to curb pollution.
Though the number of exhibitors has fallen to 800 in 2019 from 994 in 2017, Chinese automakers and suppliers now make up the biggest foreign contingent, with 79 companies, up from 73.
Several European and Japanese carmakers including Fiat , Alfa Romeo, Nissan and Toyota have skipped the show as the industry cuts costs.
Europe’s automakers face multibillion-euro investments to develop electric and autonomous cars, forcing them to rely on Chinese companies for key technologies such as lithium ion battery cell production, an area where Asian suppliers dominate.
German firms are striking major deals with Chinese suppliers to help them meet stringent EU anti-pollution rules, which were introduced in the wake of Volkswagen’s 2015 emissions cheating scandal.
“All carmakers face the challenge that they will have to fulfill fleet consumption targets,” Matthias Zentgraf, regional president for Europe at China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology, told Reuters.
Zentgraf said he expected further supply deals to be struck in Europe this year following agreements with BMW and Volkswagen.
Daimler on Wednesday said it had chosen China-backed Farasis Energy to supply battery cells for its Mercedes-Benz electrification push.
Farasis is building a 600 million euro ($663 million) factory in east Germany, close to where Chinese rival CATL is erecting a 1.8 billion euro battery plant.
SVOLT Energy Technology, which was carved out of China’s Great Wall Motor Co, told Reuters it would start building battery cells in Europe at a new 2 billion euro plant in 2023.
TIPPING POINT
Chinese companies are also giving Europe more attention since the United States and China embarked on a global trade war, which has resulted in tariffs.
“We put Europe up in priority,” said Daniel Kirchert, chief executive of Chinese electric car maker Byton.
“We are at a tipping point” for acceptance of electric vehicles in Europe, Kirchert, a former BMW executive, added.
Byton has taken its prototype vehicles on road shows in Europe, and received expressions of interest from 20,000 customers, he said. In electric vehicle hot spots, such as Norway and the Netherlands, “we see a very positive response.”
Byton plans to export vehicles from its factory in Nanjing, to Europe in 2021, Kirchert said, adding that exporting to the United States would be a challenge if Washington and Beijing did not resolve their trade war.
He said Byton still hoped to launch in the United States in 2021, but tariffs would threaten the company’s goal of selling vehicles at a starting price of about $45,000.
“We decided no matter what” Byton will launch in the United States, even at a higher price, he said.
China’s Great Wall Motor may consider building car manufacturing facilities in the European Union once its sales there hit 50,000 units a year, its chairman told Reuters at the show.
German carmakers have been forced to accelerate electrification plans after the EU imposed a 37.5% cut in carbon dioxide emissions between 2021 and 2030 in addition to a 40% cut in emissions between 2007 and 2021.
PSA Group Chief Executive Carlos Tavares used the show to step up criticism of Europe’s aggressive approach toward emissions limits.
“The word dialogue has become meaningless in Europe,” he said, referring to the requirements placed on the auto industry.
“Politicians can decide rules without any discussion with industry,” he told journalists on the sidelines of the show.
Electric cars made up only 1.5% of global sales last year, or 1.26 million of the 86 million passenger vehicles sold, JATO Dynamics said.
If carmakers fail to meet the 2021 targets they could face a combined 33 billion euros in fines, analysts at Evercore ISI have estimated.
They also estimate it will cost the auto industry an aggregate 15.3 billion euros to comply, assuming a 60 euro cost per gram to reduce CO2 emissions for premium carmakers and 40 euros per gram of CO2 reduction for volume manufacturers.
(Writing by Edward Taylor; Editing by Mark Potter)
A woman cleans the prototype of a Chinese car at the IAA Auto Show in Frankfurt, Germany, Monday, Sept. 9, 2019. The IAA officially starts with media days on Tuesday and Wednesday. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
Japan Airlines (JAL) has taken delivery of its first A350 XWB at Airbus Headquarters in Toulouse, France. The A350-900 is the first aircraft produced by Airbus for JAL. The milestone event was attended by JAL Representative Director and Chairman Yoshiharu Ueki and Airbus Chief Commercial Officer Christian Scherer.
Altogether, JAL has ordered 31 A350 XWB aircraft, comprising 18 A350-900’s and 13 A350-1000’s. JAL will initially operate the A350-900 on high frequency domestic routes, while the larger A350-1000 will fly on the carrier’s long haul international network. The first aircraft will enter service on the airline’s Haneda – Fukuoka route at the start of September.
JAL’s A350-900 is configured in a premium three class layout, with 12 seats in First Class, 94 in Class J and 263 in Comfort Economy.
The ferry flight of the first JAL A350-900 is being performed with a blend of conventional and synthetic fuel, contributing to reduced CO2 emissions.
The A350 XWB offers by design unrivalled operational flexibility and efficiency for all market segments up to ultra-long haul (15,000km). It features the latest aerodynamic design, a carbon fibre fuselage and wings, plus new fuel-efficient Rolls-Royce engines. Together, these latest technologies translate into unrivalled levels of operational efficiency, with a 25 per cent reduction in fuel burn and emissions. The A350 XWB’s Airspace by Airbus cabin is the quietest of any twin-aisle and offers passengers and crews the most modern in-flight products for the most comfortable flying experience.
At the end of May 2019, the A350 XWB Family had received 893 firm orders from 51 customers worldwide, making it one of the most successful wide-body aircraft ever.
For more information about the A350 family, please click here.
BERLIN
(Reuters) – Lufthansa has ordered 20 Boeing 787-9 and 20 additional
Airbus A350-900 long-haul planes to replace its older four-engine
aircraft as it seeks to boost the fuel efficiency of its fleet, the
airlines group said on Wednesday.
The
German company said it has also agreed to sell six of its 14 Airbus
A380 planes back to Airbus in 2022/2023 for economic reasons.
Airbus
said last month it would scrap production of the A380 superjumbo from
2021 following lacklustre sales. The decision reflected a dearth of
orders as airline bosses shied away from bulky, larger planes that are
harder to fill.
Qatar airways said last week it would phase out its A380 planes from 2024.
Lufthansa
said the new aircraft will be delivered between late 2022 and 2027. It
did not disclose how much it had paid for the planes which have a
list-price investment volume of $12 billion (9.1 billion pounds), but
said it had negotiated a significant price cut.
“In
addition to the cost-effectiveness of the A350 and B787, the
significantly lower CO2 emissions of this new generation of long-haul
aircraft was also a decisive factor in our investment decision,” Chief
Executive Carsten Spohr said in a statement.
Lufthansa
currently operates a long-haul fleet of 199 aircraft. It said the new,
more economical aircraft will lower its operating cost compared to
earlier models by around 20 percent.
The
airline will also seek to reduce the complexity of its fleet over the
next few years by taking seven aircraft types out of service to help
reduce maintenance costs and the supply of replacement parts.
(Reporting by Caroline Copley; editing by Thomas Seythal and Michelle Martin)
