flyadeal Announces Order For Up To 30 A320 Family Airplanes

Saudi Arabian airline flyadeal has cancelled an order for up to 50 Boeing 737 MAX airliners in favor of a similar order for Airbus A320 family airplanes.

flyadeal said in a news release Saturday that it was ordering 30 A320 neo aircraft, and options for a further 20 A320 neo family aircraft. The order is in response to continuing growth in passenger demand across domestic, regional and international routes.

Deliveries of the flyadeal aircraft will commence in 2021, the release stated.

The allocation of the new aircraft to flyadeal follows from the agreement which Saudi Arabian Airlines Corporation (SAUDIA) signed during the Paris Air Show in June this year. The agreement was for a total of 100 aircraft, and was signed by His Excellency Eng. Saleh bin Nasser Al-Jasser, Director General of Saudi Arabian Airlines Corporation and Christian Scherer, Airbus Chief Commercial Officer, in the presence of His Excellency Dr. Ghassan Abdulrahman Al-Shibil, Chairman Saudi Arabian Airlines Corporation.

The additional aircraft are part of the dual brand strategy of the Saudi Arabian Airlines Corporation where flyadeal serves the price conscious customer that is seeking Everyday Low Fares.

This order will result in flyadeal operating an all- Airbus A320 fleet in the future, the carrier said.

There is no mention of Boeing in the announcement, but CNN Business reports that flyadeal had announced an order for up to 50 737 MAX airplanes in December.

In a statement, Boeing said it wishes the flyadeal team "well as it builds out its operations. Our team continues to focus on safely returning the 737 MAX to service and resuming deliveries of MAX airplanes."

(Source: flyadeal news release and as cited)

FMI: Source report
www.flyadeal.com