Asiana Airlines plans to decide on its future widebody fleet in the first quarter of next year.
"We have sent out our request for proposals and are waiting to get a response," says Asiana chief executive Chan Bup Park, speaking in Beijing at an event to promote Air China and Shanghai Airlines' formal entry into Star Alliance.
The South Korean carrier disclosed in May that it aimed to make a decision at the end of this year but Park says the decision will now be made "early part of next year, the first quarter".
Details on how many aircraft Asiana plans to order early next year remain under wraps, but Park says that adding the order placed in early 2008 to subsequent orders that will be placed by the end of 2011, the total "might be 100 to 150 aircraft, but it depends". The airline currently operates 65 aircraft.
Park says even though the carrier is looking to order some ultra-large aircraft, the order to be placed early next year is mostly for medium-sized widebodies. Aircraft under evaluation are the Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 twinjets and the A380 and 747-8, he says.
Asiana currently has only a small number of aircraft on order, according to Flight's ACAS database.
Source: Airline Business
