Qantas Orders up to 36 New Long-Range A321XLRs From Airbus

By Mike Cherney

SYDNEY--Qantas Airways Ltd. (QAN.AU) said Wednesday it has ordered up to 36 new long-range A321XLRs from Airbus SE, shortly after the European manufacturer unveiled plans for the new model at the ongoing Paris Air Show.

Qantas said it would update 26 of its existing A321neos on order to the new A321XLR, and add 10 more of the new model. This would bring Qantas's total number of A320-family aircraft on order to 109, it said in a statement.

The new plane, an upgrade to the popular A321neo narrow-body plane, will have a range that is 15% longer than the A321LR. Qantas expects the new A321XLR to be available from the 2024 financial year onwards.

Qantas Chief Executive Alan Joyce said the airline has not yet decided where to deploy the aircraft, but there are options across the main Qantas-brand airline and its budget unit Jetstar.

"We'll also take a view on whether they are used to replace older aircraft or whether they are used for growth, which will depend on what's happening in the market," Mr. Joyce said in the statement.

Other airlines, including Air Lease Corp., Middle East Airlines and Cebu Pacific have also put in orders for the new aircraft. Airbus expects the new plane to enter service in 2023, several years before any new midsize plane from chief rival Boeing Co. would be ready.

Write to Mike Cherney at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 19, 2019 00:28 ET (04:28 GMT)

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