Latest news with #Airbus'
Daily Tribune
2 days ago
- Business
- Daily Tribune
EGYPTAIR Expands Fleet with Order for Six Additional Airbus A350-900 Aircraft
TDT | Manama EGYPTAIR has announced a firm order for six more Airbus A350-900 aircraft during the Paris Air Show 2025, reinforcing its strategy to modernize its long-haul fleet and meet rising global travel demand. This new order brings the airline's total A350-900 commitment to 16 aircraft. Captain Ahmed Adel, Chairman and CEO of EGYPTAIR, said the move aligns with the carrier's growth plans and sustainability objectives: 'We are continuously working to modernise our fleet and deliver a more comfortable and optimised travel experience. This collaboration with Airbus builds on a long-standing relationship that spans decades. The A350 will support our network expansion over the next five years and contribute to Egypt's broader efforts to promote more sustainable air transport.' The A350-900, part of Airbus' newest widebody family, is renowned for its fuel efficiency and range. It can fly up to 9,700 nautical miles (18,000 km) non-stop while consuming 25% less fuel compared to previous-generation aircraft, translating to significantly lower CO₂ emissions. Each aircraft will feature Airbus' next-generation Airspace cabin with wide seats, high ceilings, and soothing ambient lighting designed for passenger comfort on long-haul journeys. Benoît de Saint-Exupéry, Executive Vice President Sales at Airbus, welcomed the deepening relationship: 'This is the second time EGYPTAIR has placed an order for the A350, and it reflects the value and confidence the airline places in the aircraft. We look forward to supporting EGYPTAIR's success, growth, and decarbonisation ambitions.' The A350 is currently the most advanced widebody aircraft in production. It is certified to fly with up to 50% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) today, and Airbus aims to make its entire fleet 100% SAF-compatible by 2030. As of May 2025, Airbus has received over 1,390 orders for the A350 family from 60 customers worldwide. This strategic move places EGYPTAIR among leading global carriers investing in next-generation aircraft to offer passengers a superior travel experience while advancing environmental sustainability.
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Business Standard
2 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
AirAsia seeks jets for growth but restructuring first priority: CEO
Airline entrepreneur Tony Fernandes, CEO of AirAsia owner Capital A Group, said on Wednesday he is in talks to buy 50 to 70 Airbus A321XLR jetliners, but signalled the first priority was to complete the group's restructuring. Asia's largest low-cost carrier also remains in talks to buy 100 smaller Airbus A220 or Embraer E2 regional jets but Fernandes, a veteran of eye-catching order announcements, all but ruled out an expected deal at this week's Paris Airshow. "I don't think there'll be an order at this air show. Were still doing a lot of work with Airbus and other (manufacturers).... I think we'll look to do something imminently, in the next 1-3 months," Fernandes told Reuters in an interview. "We want to make sure we clear out of our restructuring. The great thing is, we're back in the growth stage." The Malaysia-based low-cost carrier operates an all-Airbus fleet and is one of Airbus' biggest customers, having staged a series of dramatic air show finales after last-minute talks. The comments came after industry sources said AirAsia was in advanced discussions to place an order for at least 100 Airbus A220 regional jets at the Paris Airshow, with rival Embraer also vying for a chance to win a major breakthrough for its E2 jet. Two industry sources said Airbus had made an "aggressive" offer to boost orders for its A220 and win a launch customer for a new 160-seat version, or kickstart a larger version still on the drawing board, but that barring any further twist in negotiations on Wednesday the talks had stalled partly over financing. "There is no deal," one of the sources said. One of Airbus' biggest customers with over 350 planes on order, AirAsia has not placed an order since the pandemic, but ended a gap in deliveries by taking four Airbus jets last August, marking what it described as a new growth milestone. It has been steadily restructuring its order book as it faced financial difficulties after a slump during COVID-19. The company, hard hit by pandemic travel restrictions, was classified by Malaysia's stock exchange as financially distressed in 2022. It says it hopes to exit this so-called PN17 status by the middle of this year as it pursues a recovery. NETWORK EFFECT Capital A plans to sell its AirAsia aviation business to long-haul unit AirAsia X to consolidate long and short-haul operations under a single AirAsia brand. The group also needs consent letters from creditors, of which it has "virtually all of them," Thai Stock Exchange approval, and to raise new capital. "I am hoping we can wrap up this process in June and complete everything by the end of July .... We are getting closer to my liberation day, not Donald Trump's liberation day," Fernandes said in a play on the nickname for US tariffs. He said new investors had been "locked in," but declined to provide specific details ahead of any formal announcement. Bloomberg reported in March that the Saudi Public Investment Fund was set to invest in AirAsia. "We never confirmed (PIF) or not, but we have all our capital locked in and as soon as we get the consent letters and the Thai Stock Exchange we will announce who the new capital is," Fernandes said. AirAsia has led a boom in low-cost carriers in the region in the past two decades as incomes rose. Such carriers offer bargain fares by driving costs as low as possible, with large fleets of one aircraft type driving efficiencies of scale. Fernandes said the airline was ready to tweak that approach by picking smaller planes in a different category. What does the network need? It needs lots of frequency and it needs the ability to go to more destinations. Fernandes said he is still in discussions with China's COMAC about a potential order for its C919 narrowbody aircraft, though trade tensions between China and the US - which sources say has suspended engine deliveries - remain a possible obstacle. We received an offer from COMAC. The geopolitics don't help ... we need to be confident that that's going to be OK, but it's a good aircraft and well certainly look at it.
Euronews
2 days ago
- Business
- Euronews
Airbus pledges higher dividends as it confirms financial guidance
Airbus SE introduced a new dividend policy on Wednesday, increasing the amount it intends to pay to shareholders in the future. The firm increased its new dividend payout ratio limit from 40% to 50% of the share of profits, bringing the new payout range to 30%-50%. Airbus also hinted at the possibility of paying out a special dividend and introducing share buyback programmes. The planemaker and defence company also said that it would maintain its long-term cash conversion target, a measurement of the firm's efficiency in converting its profits into cash. 'Airbus will reaffirm its commitment to profitable growth and its cash conversion target of around 1 over a 5-year horizon,' the company said. Airbus' share price increased by 3% by around 11.00 CEST, following the announcement. The company's statement comes at a time of global trade uncertainty and supply chain disruptions. Airbus set a goal of handing over 820 aircraft this year. Ongoing supply chain issues slowed the deliveries in the first months of 2025, but Christian Scherer, CEO of the company's core planemaking business, said that Airbus remains "cautiously hopeful" about meeting its 2025 target. Meanwhile, Airbus' defence business is thriving. With the EU preparing a significant defence budget increase, the firm is expecting its military helicopter orders to grow by 50% between 2023 and 2025. Airbus is also developing a drone portfolio, aiming to become a market leader in this segment. Airbus started this week at the Paris Air Show, announcing new orders from Saudi Arabia and Poland. Airbus also recently signed a framework agreement with the French military for purchases of navy drones, and secured another deal with Singapore to deliver military helicopters. European shares showed a slight rise in early trading and oil prices remained high on Wednesday as investors tracked the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East. US benchmark crude oil was down around 0.43% at $74.52 per barrel, while Brent, the international standard, slipped around 0.52% to $76.05, although both WTI and Brent remain high on the month. Crude prices rose more than 4% on Tuesday after US President Donald Trump left a Group of Seven summit in Canada early and warned that people in Iran's capital should evacuate immediately. Within about eight hours, Trump went from suggesting that a nuclear deal with Iran remained 'achievable' to urging Tehran's 9.5 million residents to flee for their lives. Iran and Israel continued to exchange airstrikes on Wednesday. The fighting has driven prices for crude oil and gasoline higher because Iran is a major oil exporter and it sits on the narrow Strait of Hormuz, through which much of the world's crude passes. Past conflicts in the area have caused spikes in oil prices, though they've historically proven brief after showing that they did not disrupt the flow of oil. European stocks, meanwhile, showed faintly positive trends in early trading. The DAX 40 was up around 0.11% at 23,461.41, the CAC 40 rose 0.29% to 7,706.08, the STOXX 600 was broadly flat, while the FTSE 100 rose 0.23% to 8,854.79. Earlier in the day, Asian stock markets showed a varied picture. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 jumped 0.78% to 38,837.48. Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 1.17% to 23,698.65 while the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.3% to 3,388.77. The Kospi in Seoul gained 0.54% to 2,966.20 while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.1% to 8,533.10. On Tuesday, US stocks slumped under the weight of higher oil prices and weaker than expected retail sales in May. Trump raised the temperature on Israel's fight with Iran by calling for 'Unconditional surrender!' on his social media platform and saying, 'We are not going to' kill Iran's leader, 'at least for now'. The S&P 500 fell 0.84% to 5,982.72 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.7% to 42,215.80. The Nasdaq composite fell 0.91% to 19,521.09. On early Wednesday morning in the US, S&P futures rose 0.11% to 5,991.50, Dow Jones futures increased less than 1% to 42,245.00, while Nasdaq futures advanced by 0.13% to 21,759.00. The markets will be looking to the Federal Reserve as it makes a decision on its interest rates today. The nearly unanimous expectation among traders and economists is that the Fed will make no move. In currency trading early on Wednesday, the US dollar fell 0.2% to 144.94 Japanese yen. The euro edged 0.18% higher, to $1.1502.
Deccan Herald
2 days ago
- Business
- Deccan Herald
AirAsia owner seeks jets for growth but restructuring first priority, CEO says
The Malaysia-based low-cost carrier operates an all-Airbus fleet and is one of Airbus' biggest customers.
Daily Tribune
2 days ago
- Business
- Daily Tribune
Vietnam's Vietjet orders 100 Airbus A321neo planes
Vietnamese carrier Vietjet has ordered 100 single-aisle A321neo jets from Airbus, the European plane maker said Tuesday in the latest deal announced at the Paris Air Show. The deal would be worth almost $13 billion under 2018 catalogue prices. It includes an option for Vietjet, Vietnam's largest private airline, to buy a further 50 of the jets at a later date. 'This new agreement marks a significant milestone in our strategic partnership with Airbus,' said Vietjet chairwoman Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao. 'These modern and efficient aircraft have been instrumental in Vietjet's growth, helping us make air travel more accessible and affordable for millions, while strengthening our role as a connector for economic development, cultural exchange and global connectivity,' she added. Airbus executive vice president Benoit de Saint-Exupery noted the deal followed hot on the heels of a new order by Vietjet for 20 A330neo widebody aircraft. 'Together the A321neo and A330neo will be perfect partners for Vietjet to continue to spread its wings, efficiently matching capacity more closely to demand across its network,' he said in a statement. Vietjet operates a fleet of more than 100 Airbus aircraft. As of the end of May, more than 7,000 A321neo aircraft -- the largest of Airbus' best-selling A320neo family -- have been ordered by over 90 customers worldwide, Airbus said. The Vietjet deal came a day after Airbus announced orders for a total of more than 100 planes from Saudi companies Riyadh Air and AviLease and Polish airline LOT. Those deals were worth nearly $20 billion at 2018 catalogue prices -- which Airbus has since phased out, as final sale prices vary according to contract terms and the version of an aircraft. Airbus rival Boeing has meanwhile said its focus at the Paris Air Show is on 'supporting customers' after the Air India crash last week.
