As we come to the end of the commercial side of the Farnborough Air Show, let’s see what news has been making the headlines.
Most of the exciting stuff starts with Airbus, so lets see what they’re won.
First up is Norwegian who are to convert 30 A320neos to 30 A321LRs. They’ll become the first low-cost carrier to operate the A321LR, and will be aiming to operate it on transatlantic routes .
Norwegian Air Shuttle Airbus A321LR – Image, Airbus
Next up, IAG subsidiary Aer Lingus is to purchase another two Airbus A330-300 aircraft for its long haul operations.
Finally from Airbus, ALAFCO (Aviation Lease and Finance Company) based in Kuwait has upsized an order of ten A320neos to A321neos.
In the Boeing corner… there’s not a lot, with an order for two Boeing Business Jets (BBJ MAX 8’s) on their final day of the show.
In other news:
- Qatar Airways doesn’t seem to get air shows. Instead of buying aircraft, they’re buying bits of airlines. To add to the 10% share of LATAM, Qatar Airways has signed for 49% of Meridiana Fly of Italy. Subject to terms, this deal will close in October
- Sukhoi is planning a new variant of its SuperJet -the SportsJet. No, it won’t have go-faster stripes on the side, but rather as a team transport that’s configurable for transporting teams, with smart seats to monitor athletes, a recovery zone, and seating for coaches and support staff. It’s different to the usual “hire a jet from an airline”.
- And finally something from Turkey, with progression of the TRJet beginning. The TRJet you’re asking yourself? It’s the beginnings of Turkey’s aviation industry. It’s looks should be familiar to some…
TRJet 328 – Image TRJet.
It will be a modernisation and re-visioning of the Dornier 328 – with a TRJ328 (which will be a jet), and the TRP328… which will be a turbprop aircraft. Two letters of intent have flown in, on from the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (ITO) – committed to the purchase of 10 TRJ328 aircraft and Sentinel Aerospace Group of Singapore has confirmed five TRP328 turboprop aircraft for special mission use.
And that brings us to the near enough the end of the Farnborough Air Show in terms of the commercial side of it – as it now changes to education and air displays for the final three days.
There’s plenty to see – including Boeing’s 100 years of innovation exhibit.
For the airframers present, the hard work goes on in turning letters of intent and memorandums of understanding into actual hard orders.
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