Middle Eastern carrier Emirates appears to have revised its Airbus long-haul order, committing to 50 Airbus A350s – up from the previous 30 – but not mentioning the earlier A330neo agreement.
Middle Eastern carrier Emirates appears to have revised its Airbus long-haul order, committing to 50 Airbus A350s – up from the previous 30 – but not mentioning the earlier A330neo agreement.
The Gulf carrier revealed the deal during the Dubai air show.
Airbus
Emirates had tentatively opted for 30 A350-900s and 40 A330-900s earlier this year in a rejig of its long-haul strategy as Airbus cancelled its A380 programme, for which Emirates had been the primary customer.
But the revision unveiled at the Dubai air show makes no mention of the 40 A330neos. Emirates says the new purchase deal “replaces” its previous declaration of intent.
The Dubai-based carrier says the firm order for 50 A350-900s – all exclusively powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines – is worth $16 billion at catalogue prices.
Deliveries will commence in May 2023, it adds.
“We made this decision after a thorough review of our various aircraft options and fleet plans,” says chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum.
Emirates has yet to detail the configurations for the twinjets, but says they will have layouts including premium-economy class cabins.
