Cathay Pacifc to purchase 32 Airbus A321neo aircraft

TOULOUSE: Cathay Pacific Group has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Airbus for 32 A321neo single-aisle aircraft, worth over US$4bil.

The aircraft will be operated by Cathay Dragon, the regional carrier of the group, on services linking its Hong Kong home base with destinations across Asia, the group said in a press released issued on Tuesday.

The new A321neo aircraft will replace and modernise Cathay Dragon’s current in-service fleet of 15 A320s and eight A321s, with the additional aircraft allowing the airline to capture growth opportunities in the region. The Cathay Dragon network currently covers 56 Asian destinations, including 28 in mainland China.

“The Airbus fleet has been serving Cathay Dragon well over the decades. With the A321neo we expect to benefit from a very significant increase in operating efficiency, while increasing capacity in the Cathay Dragon network in order to expand our reach to more customers,” said Cathay Pacific chief executive officer and Cathay Dragon chairman Rupert Hogg.

“The intention to purchase these 32 environmentally-friendly aircraft will allow us to add new destinations to Cathay Dragon’s network, increase frequency on some of our most popular routes and expand our network in the region in order to provide more travel choices and convenience to our customers,” he added.