Aircalin, the long-haul airline based in the South Pacific French territory of New Caledonia, has announced an order with Airbus for two A350-900 twin-aisle aircraft. The new additions to the Aircalin fleet will allow the carrier to expand its long-haul route network from its home base at the capital city Nouméa’s La Tontouta International Airport (NOU).
Currently the airline’s widebody fleet comprises two A330-900neo aircraft. The carrier operates scheduled services to destinations throughout Oceania and Asia including Bangkok, Singapore, Brisbane, Sydney as well as serving the French capital, Paris via Bangkok. Additionally, the carrier employs a pair of A320neo on regional services as well as providing inter-island flights to neighboring islands such as New Zealand, Fiji, and Tahiti. The airline is 99% owned by the Government of New Caledonia, with the remaining 1% held by minority owners, including the airline’s employees.
The airline plans to configure its incoming A350-900s in a three-class configuration which will be able to accommodate around 320 passengers. The airline is also taking the opportunity offered by the new widebodies to expand its business class cabin capacities by around 15% over the A330neos in the fleet. At the end of November 2024, the A350 has now won over 1,300 orders from 61 customers worldwide.
“As a continuation of our long-standing partnership with Airbus, we have selected the A350-900 to join our fleet in the coming years,” said Georges Selefen, CEO of Aircalin. “These aircraft are essential for operating our recently inaugurated Nouméa-Paris via Bangkok route. They will open the doors to very long-haul flights and enable Aircalin to pursue its development strategy.”
“We are pleased with Aircalin’s decision to add the A350 to its fleet,” added Benoit de Saint-Exupery, Executive Vice President of Sales of Airbus’ Commercial Aircraft division. “This will allow Aircalin to further develop its potential and open up more long haul routes. The order is yet another endorsement of the A350 as the undisputed long-range leader, bringing fuel efficient service on some of the world’s longest networks, while offering passengers the highest levels of comfort.”
The announcement comes towards the end of a busy few days for Airbus. On December 9, 2024, the European planemaker handed over a new A330-900neo to Kuwait Airways, the first in the Kuwaiti carrier’s fleet of the variant, to operate alongside the rare A330-800neo. Still in Kuwait, low-cost carrier Jazeera Airways confirmed an intention to purchase six A320ceo aircraft it had on lease as part of its ongoing transformation and strategic growth.
In Dubai, at the MEBAA Show 2024, Business aviation airline RoyalJet signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Airbus for up to nine ACJ320neo corporate jets. Under the MoU announced on December 11, 2024, the deal included the purchase of three ACJ320neo corporate jets and the option for six more,
In Europe, on December 5, 2024, Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) announced it is to increase its upcoming Airbus A350-900 fleet to 10 aircraft after announcing it has ordered an additional five. The Swiss flag carrier confirmed that it should see the new Airbus A350s arriving between summer 2025 and the end of 2031.
Tata Group-owned Air India officially announced that it was the carrier behind a previously undisclosed order placed with Airbus for 10 A350-900s and 90 single-aisle A320neo family aircraft. The formal announcement, made on December 9, 2024, came on top of an order for 40 A350s and 210 A320neo family aircraft placed by Air India in 2023.
Lastly, on December 10, 2024, the Airbus A321XLR was awarded its Type Certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) after the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) approved the aircraft earlier in 2024.
