Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE
Royal Brunei Airlines (RBA) has reached a tentative agreement with Airbus Industrie to place an initial order for two A319s, in a move which will affect its wider-ranging selection of a new fleet of widebodies.
The airline has accepted an Airbus offer on two A319s available for early delivery in June 1999. RBA's decision is still subject to board approval, but the airline has paid Airbus a deposit to secure the two production positions. The aircraft had originally been set aside for Israeli flag carrier El Al, which instead opted to order from Boeing.
RBA had decided earlier to postpone choosing between the Airbus aircraft and the Boeing 737-600/700 in the absence of any delivery positions before 2001, and its reluctance to undertake interim leases. The carrier will need another two Airbus A319/A320s to complete the replacement of its entire narrowbody fleet.
The new aircraft will replace RBA's two remaining Boeing 757s, for which it had previously found a buyer before postponing a decision on new aircraft in late 1997. The airline also wants to dispose of its two Fokker 100s. No engines have yet been chosen for the A319s.
Airline attention now turns to the selection of a new long-haul aircraft to supplement and eventually replace its six Pratt & Whitney PW4000-powered Boeing 767-300ERs. Its two General Electric CF6-80C2-powered 767s are already for sale. RBA has been looking at options, including the Boeing 777-200, stretched 767-400ER, or the A330/A340.
Following RBA's decision to take the A319, Airbus appears to have the advantage. With a limited number of local and expatriate foreign pilots at its disposal, the airline stresses the importance of cross-crew qualification, or a common type rating, between its narrowbody and widebody fleets.
Source: Flight International
