Indian low-cost carrier IndiGo became the
second operator of the Airbus A320neo when it
took delivery of its rst example on March 10.
The airline, India’s largest by passenger
numbers, ordered 180 A320neos in 2011 and a
further 250 last year.
Aditya Ghosh, IndiGo President, said: “The
A320neo aircraft will enable us to continue tooffer affordable air transportation and a new
ying experience for our customers. The fuel-
efficient aircraft will be part of a new phase of our
growth and will enable us to offer more regional
and international destinations at the best price.”
The rst A320-271N, VT-ITC (c/n 6799), was
joined by a second example, VT-ITD (c/n 6819)
ve days later.Asian Debut for neo
IndiGo has taken delivery of its rst Airbus A320-271N, VT-ITC (c/n 6799). AirbusUnited Outlines Jumbo Retirement Plans
United Airlines is accelerating the
retirement of its Boeing 747-400s with the
entire eet to be phased out by the end
of 2018. To ll the void left by the jumbo’s
retirement, the carrier has converted
existing 787 orders (scheduled for delivery
from 2020) into four 777-300ERs and ve
787-9s with deliveries beginning in 2017.
“Retiring the 747 eet and replacing
those aircraft with more customer-pleasing, current-generation aircraft
creates a more reliable and efficient eet
that provides a better overall experience
for our customers travelling on long-haul
ights,” said Gerry Laderman, United’s
Senior Vice President of Finance and
Acting Chief Financial Officer.
United’s short-haul eet continues to get
a makeover too with the announcement
of a purchase of a further 25 737-700s inaddition to the previously declared order for- Delivery of these will start at the end of
2017 and enable United to reduce the size
of its 50-seat regional eet.
The airline currently has rm orders for
35 Airbus A350-1000s, 153 aircraft from the
Boeing 737 family, ten Boeing 777-300ERs
and 27 Boeing 787s. It also has rm orders
for ten Embraer E175s that United Express
partners will operate.
Russian carrier Rossiya has unveiled a new livery on Boeing 747-446 EI-XLE (c/n 26362). The jet is one of several being taken on by Rossiya
following the demise of Transaero. The aircraft was rolled out at Dublin on March 30. AirTeamImages.com/Paul QuinnCIVIL NEWS
6 Aviation News incorporating Classic Aircraft May 2016New Look for Rossiya
Brussels Airport Reopens
Flights resumed from Brussels Airport on
April 3, 12 days after the terrorist attacks
that killed 16 people there.
Brussels Airlines ew three ‘symbolic’
ights, to Faro, Turin and Athens, following
the reopening. Operations will gradually
increase day-by-day and the airport hopesto reach maximum capacity before the start
of the summer holiday season at the end of
June/beginning of July.
Additional security measures have
been implemented at the entrance to the
airport area and at the temporary check-in
zone that has been built. Only people withboarding passes are currently allowed into
the terminal area.
Demolition work to remove the damaged
parts of the departure hall has begun
and reconstruction will start shortly. No
timeframe has been given for this work to
be completed.Mozambique
Debris Linked
to MH
Two pieces of debris that were washed
up on Mozambique are “almost certainly”
from the missing Malaysia Airlines (MAS)
ight MH370, according to the Ministry of
Transport Malaysia.
The debris was examined at the
Geoscience Australia and Australian Transport
Safety Bureau facilities in Canberra. In a
statement, Malaysia’s Minister of Transport,
Dato’ Sri Liow Tiong Lai, said: “Both parts are
consistent with panels from an MAS Boeing
777 aircraft, and almost certainly are from
MH370. The location where both pieces were
discovered in Mozambique are consistent with
the drift modelling performed by the Australian
Commonwealth Scienti c and Industrial
Research Organisation (CSIRO).”06-09_civil.JRDC.indd 6 08/04/2016 11: