America’s Hawaiian Airlines has taken
delivery of its rst US-produced Airbus
A321neo. The aircraft, delivered from the
Airbus US manufacturing facility in Mobile,
Alabama, is also the rst new engine option
aircraft (neo) delivered from Airbus’ US
facility. It is powered by Pratt & Whitney
PW1000G high-bypass geared turbofan
engines. Executives and employees fromAirbus and Hawaiian, and executives
from Pratt & Whitney and UTC Aerospace
Systems witnessed the milestone delivery.
Bob Lekites, executive vice president-
customers, Airbus Americas said: “Hawaiian
has recognised the Airbus commitment to
innovation and we could not be more proud
to deliver on this promise to them with our
rst US-manufactured A321neo aircraft.”Jon Snook, executive vice president and
chief operating officer at Hawaiian Airlines
commented: “We are honoured to accept the
delivery of the rst A321neo from the Airbus
manufacturing facility. The A321neo is the
ideal aircraft for us to share our Hawaiian
hospitality with more guests as we grow our
western US network and provide greater
access to our entire island chain. We look
forward to more deliveries from Mobile.”
Hawaiian currently offers daily non-
stop A321neo ights from Portland and
Long Beach to Honolulu. The carrier
will announce additional A321neo routes
between the US West Coast and the
Hawaiian Islands as it welcomes a total
of 18 aircraft in 2020. Airbus aircraft are
now produced around the clock at facilities
in Mobile, Alabama; Hamburg, Germany;
Toulouse, France; and Tianjin, China.CIVIL NEWS
10 Aviation News incorporating Jets August 2018Prestigious Etihad Agreement for Cobalt
Cyprus-based Cobalt Air has signed an
interline agreement with the UAE’s Etihad
Airways. The tie-up, which was announced
on June 7, strengthens Cobalt’s presence
in the Middle East and extends its reach
east beyond Abu Dhabi to more than 100
Etihad-operated routes.
Philokypros Roussounides, Cobalt
Air’s director of corporate affairs,
commented: “Cobalt is less than two
years old and to be adopted as an
interline partner by Etihad Airways, oneof the biggest and most prestigious
carriers in the world, is major recognition
for us. We are delighted to start this
exciting new relationship and offer Cyprus
people more convenient connections
beyond Abu Dhabi.
“We anticipate great demand year-round
from the UAE for our beautiful island and
this new connection with Etihad opens the
market up even more. UAE-originating
passengers can also y onwards from
Larnaca on our growing network.”The partnership with Etihad is the
latest development for Cobalt, which
continues to invest in its product and
services. The carrier, which joined
IATA at the end of 2017, has recently
introduced the wireless Bluebox Wow
IFE, which streams content to personal
devices, on all its aircraft. It has also
rolled out a new business-class product
which features spacious four-abreast
seating set at a 40in (101.6cm) pitch
across its eet of aircraft.The closing of the previously announced
C Series transaction between Airbus SAS,
a wholly-owned subsidiary of Airbus SE,
Bombardier and Investissement Québec
came into effect on July 1. Airbus now
owns a 50.01% majority stake in C Series
Aircraft Limited Partnership (CSALP), while
Bombardier and Investissement Québec own
approximately 34% and 16% respectively.
CSALP’s head office, primary assembly line
and related functions are based in Mirabel,
Québec.
The move, which has come earlier than
anticipated, follows the two companies’ receipt
of all necessary regulatory approvals and the
successful completion of negotiations. Tom
Enders, Airbus’ CEO, said the partnership“extends our commitment to Québec and to all
of Canadian aerospace, and we’re very glad
to welcome so many C Series teammates into
the extended Team Airbus.”
He added: “The strength of the entire
Airbus organisation will be behind theC Series. Not only will that enable this
outstanding aircraft to ful l its market
potential, but we’re convinced [its] addition
to our overall aircraft product offering brings
signi cant value to Airbus, our customers
and shareholders.”The C Series partnership, in which Airbus has acquired a majority stake, brings together two
complementary product lines in the 100-150 seat market. AirbusAirbus A321neo N212HA, the rst example of the variant to be built in the USA. AirbusAirbus’ Majority Stake in C Series Comes Into Effect
Hawaiian Receives Initial US-Produced A321neo
New Freighter Order Placed by FedEx
FedEx Express has signed a contract with
Boeing for 24 new freighter aircraft as part
of its modernisation programme. The deal
comprises 12 767Fs that will be delivered
between June 2019 and May 2022, and a
dozen 777Fs, the rst example of which will
be ready in June 2020.David L Cunningham, president and CEO
of FedEx Express, remarked: “We are taking
another positive step in our modernisation
programme as we add more efficient, lower
emission aircraft. The Boeing 767 and 777
freighters have brought greater efficiency and
reliability to our air operations.”Boeing said the order comes as the air
cargo industry continues to gather strength –
market demand increased by almost 10% last
year with the manufacturer predicting a further
rise of 4-5% in 2018. Including this order,
the US manufacturer has attracted orders for
more than 50 widebody freighters this year.06-08_10_civil_newsDC.mfDC.indd 10 06/07/2018 13: