Canada's Air Transat has purchased six ex-Emirates Airbus A310-300s from the manufacturer for delivery beginning in December. The aircraft will replace some of the airline's Lockheed L-1011 TriStar 100s, which are already being retired.
The first of the six General Electric CF6-80C2-powered A310s will be delivered this year, with two following in the second quarter and one in the fourth quarter of next year. The final two are due in the second quarter of 2002. At that time, Air Transat will have 23 aircraft: the six A310s plus three A330-200s, five Boeing 757s, six TriStar 500s and the remaining TriStar 100s.
"We will keep some L-1011-100s to the end of 2003," says president Denis Jacob. "The L-1011-500s we will keep for a few more years. Their range is great, reliability good. Passengers love them."
Montreal-based Air Transat is likely to acquire additionalA310s and A330s to replace all the TriStars eventually, says Jacob. "We are looking to get more A330s, probably in 2002, but we've not committed to any." The airline's A330s are all leased from International Lease Finance.
The A310 fleet, which is also expected to be increased, is likely to be used on new routes to Eastern Europe. Air Transat, along with Canada 3000, was recently designated by the Canadian Government to compete with the merged Air Canada/Canadian on international routes.
Source: Flight International
