Nomad Africa Magazine

Air Mauritius adds two Airbus A330-900NEO Aircraft

ADDS TWO AIRBUS A330-900NEO AIRCRAFT

- Words: KRISTIE OMAR

Air Mauritius adds two Airbus A330-900neo aircraft to its current order of six Airbus A350-900 aircraft, with their existing fleet being upgraded with new seats, new inflight entertainm­ent system and onboard WiFi.

air Mauritius is pleased to announce the introducti­on of two new Airbus A330900 (New Engine Option – neo) aircraft, on long-term operating lease from Air Lease Corporatio­n (ALC), in September and October 2018 in replacemen­t of two A340-300E aircraft, whose leases will expire in November and December 2018.

This decision follows a thorough evaluation process and accelerate­s the fleet renewal programme of the airline with another state-of-the-art aircraft. The A330-900 aircraft, which has been officially launched in July 2014, is powered by two new generation Rolls Royce Trent 7000 engines. The aircraft is also equipped with a new cabin interior design, high-span wings and sharklets as well as new systems.

The aircraft consumes at least 20% less fuel as compared to the current A340300 enhanced aircraft. The A330-900 aircraft will have a similar cabin layout as the A350-900 aircraft and will be configured in a two-class layout with 291 seats (28 business and 263 economy class seats) with full-flat seats in business class, new seats in economy, new inflight entertainm­ent systems as well as onboard WiFi.

The replacemen­t of the two A340-300E aircrafts by the A330-900 aircraft is key to modernisin­g the fleet of Air Mauritius and will offer enhanced passenger experience and comfort, operating efficienci­es and technologi­cal innovation. The new aircraft will also allow Air Mauritius to improve its products and competitiv­eness in the current dynamic and challengin­g market environmen­t. The two aircraft will initially serve the medium-haul routes of Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Delhi and Perth.

Moreover, based on its future fleet re-

quirements, Air Mauritius is maintainin­g its order of two A350-900 aircraft for 2019 and has decided to reschedule the delivery of the last two A350-900 aircraft, initially planned for 2020 to 2023. At the same time, Air Mauritius is upgrading the cabin interiors of its existing fleet with a view to meet customer expectatio­ns and consolidat­e its status as the leading airline of the region. The airline’s existing aircraft will thus be equipped with new seats, new inflight entertainm­ent systems and onboard WiFi. The revamp of the cabin interiors is planned to be completed by June 2018.

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 ??  ?? Air Mauritius’ Memorandum of Understand­ing for four A350-900 aircraft is marked at the Farnboroug­h Airshow by (from left to right): Air Mauritius Chief Executive Officer Andries Viljoen, Air Mauritius Chairman Dass Thomas, Airbus President and CEO Fabrice Brégier and Airbus Chief Operating Officer - Customers, John Leahy
Air Mauritius’ Memorandum of Understand­ing for four A350-900 aircraft is marked at the Farnboroug­h Airshow by (from left to right): Air Mauritius Chief Executive Officer Andries Viljoen, Air Mauritius Chairman Dass Thomas, Airbus President and CEO Fabrice Brégier and Airbus Chief Operating Officer - Customers, John Leahy

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