ALL THINGS BOEING

Boeing Deliveries to August Exceed Full-Year 2024

Boeing achieved its highest August deliveries in seven years, bringing the total for the first eight months to 385, a figure that exceeds the 348 recorded across the whole of last year.  It handed over 57 aircraft in August, its second-best monthly performance this year, just shy of the 60 achieved in June.

Boeing delivered 42 737 Max jets, including seven for Irish budget carrier Ryanair, according to its latest backlog figures.  Boeing’s deliveries in August included a 787-9, which took American’s mainline fleet to 1,000 aircraft.

Boeing’s 777F deliveries included its 300th example, which was handed over to Emirates.  Two other airframes—a 767 and an older variant 737 — are delivered for the military E-7 and KC-46 programs.  Along with the 14 777Xs ordered by Cathay Pacific, Boeing recorded agreements for 787s; two from Air New Zealand and five from an unidentified customer, as well as five 737Max jets. It also shifted 59 orders from its accounting bucket to the formal backlog, and cancelled 737 Max, bringing its overall net total to 83 for the month.

Source: Boeing, Picture Boeing

Singapore Has Confirmed Plans to Acquire Four P-8A Poseidon

Singapore has confirmed plans to acquire four Boeing P-8A Poseidon Maritime Patrol aircraft; it seeks to bolster its anti-submarine capabilities.  Singapore’s decision to obtain the 737-derivative was made in a brief statement about a meeting between Singapore’s defense minister Chan Chun Sing and US war secretary Pete Hegseth in Washington, DC.

The language in the release hints that Singapore may go beyond four aircraft.  “They will replace the existing Fokker 50s, which have been in service since 1993.  Cirium, an aviation analytics company, indicates that the Republic of Singapore’s Air Force operates five Fokker 50s in the maritime Patrol role, with an average age of 31.2 years.  Four Fokker 50s also serve in the utility transport role.

Source: FlightGlobal

EASA Approves Installation of Drag-reduction Fins On 737 Variants

Operators of European-registered Boeing 737s will be able to install aerodynamic fins on the aft fuselage following validation of a US supplemental type certificate. The ‘finlets’ developed by Vortex Control Technologies have been approved by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency.EASA’s clearance covers the modification of 737-700,-800, and -900 ER variants.

Aircraft can experience drag from airflow separation and vortices in the vicinity of the aft fuselage.  Modification with a patented array of fins fixed to the fuselage skin can alter the airflow and reduce this drag, offering improved fuel efficiency.  Vortex Control Technologies chief Gil Morgan says the EASA validation is a “culmination of years of research, development and collaboration”.  It allows the company to expand the availability of its fins to European airlines.

Source: Vortex Control Technologies, Picture Vortex Control Technologies.

                    

ALL THINGS AIRBUS

Airbus Reveals Order for Seven More A350-1000s

Airbus has secured an order for seven A350-1000s from an undisclosed customer, the airframer’s latest backlog data reveals. The agreement was formally listed on 22 August and brought Airbus’s gross orders for this year to a round figure of 600.

Airbus’s largest A350 variant has secured 69 orders this year-and the latest deal takes overall firm A350-1000 commitments to 361, one in four of all passenger A350 orders.  August is normally a quiet month for the manufacturer.

It recorded Lessor Avolon’s agreement for 90 aircraft, including 15 A330-900s, as well as two private customer orders, each for a single A320neo.  There were no cancellations, which means Airbus net orders for the first months of the year reached 504.  Airbus is still catching up on deliveries, listing total of 434 aircraft hands over in 2025 compared with 447 reached at the same point last year.

Source: Airbus, Picture Airbus        

REGIONAL/BUSINESS JETS

Avelo Airlines Shifts Fleet Strategy

US start-up discount carrier Avelo Airlines has ordered 50 Embraer E195-E2s in a move that will see the airline evolve beyond operating only Boeing 737s.  Avelo has taken options to order a further 50 of the jets, Embraer’s head of commercial aviation Arjan Meijer said on 10 September during an event in Washington, DC.  Meijer notes the order will see Avelo become the USA’s first E195-E2 operator.

The order “gives us a pipeline of aircraft we can rely on”, says Avelo chief executive Andrew Levy, noting the airline intends to acquire the jets through 2032.  Avelo now operates 22 Boeing 737NGS. “A smaller airplane would optimize the opportunity that we have,” says Levy.  News of the order comes days after Avelo said it had secured additional financing, which it says is its highest total since its Series A funding round in 2020.

Source: Avelo                                                                      

OTHER AVIATION NEWS

South Korea’s T’way Air to Rebrand as Trinity Airways

Low-cost operator T’way Air will be rebranded as Trinity Airways as part of a broader revamp of its corporate identity, under the new ownership of Sono Hospitality Group.  The “sequential rebranding” will take place from the first half of 2026,  according to a notice on the South Korean operator’s website.  T’way’s current red, green, and white color scheme will be changed to a neutral color palette aligned with the Sono corporate identity.  An artist’s impression of the new livery on an Airbus A330-900 was released.  T’way will be taking delivery of the first of five A330neos in 2026.

“Beginning with the implementation of a new mission and a Comprehensive brand identity, we will complete the transformation of the customer touchpoint and solidify the unified image and synergy of the entire group,” states Sono.  Sono in February emerged as the new owners of T’way, after successfully acquiring 46% shareholding in the airline from YeaRim Dang Publishing and related parties.

Sources: T’way Air, Picture T’way

WestJet Expands Fleet with A New Order

Canadian discount airline WestJet has ordered  67 new aircraft from Boeing, comprising 60 737 Max 10s and seven 787-9s.  The Calgary-based airline disclosed the order on September 3, stating it has also secured options for an additional 25 Max 10s and four 787s.  The agreement was recorded in June on Boeing’s website as an undisclosed customer.  Boeing has not disclosed a value for the deal or delivery timeline for the aircraft.

“With the addition of these aircraft, WestJet has the largest order book of any airline in Canada and will double our fleet of Dreamliners, underpinning our growth plans,” says chief executive Alexis von Hoensbroech.  “These highly efficient and comfortable aircraft are critical to the growth and renewal of our fleet and will also significantly improve our fuel consumption.”

WestJet is an all-Boeing airline that operates 147 737s and seven 787s, according to fleet data provider Cirium.

Before the deal disclosed on 3 September, WestJet held unfilled orders with Boeing for 62 737 Max aircraft: eight Max 8s, 7 Max 10s, and seven of an unspecified variant, Cirium shows.

Sources: WestJet, Cirium, picture WestJet

Air Lease(ALC) to be acquired by SMBC Investor Group

Steven Udvar-Hazy, founder and lessor of Air Lease(ALC), is to be acquired by a consortium of investors, including rival SMBC Aviation Capital, in a 1.4 billion cash deal that promises to shake up the aircraft leasing market.  Working alongside Sumitomo Corporation, one of its Japanese owners, and private equity firms Apollo and Brookfield Credit, SMBC says the definitive agreement has been approved by ALC’s board.

It will pay stockholders $65 per share, valuing All at $7.4 billion. However, this rises to $28.s billion if debt obligations to be assumed or refinanced are included, net of cash.  At the end of the second quarter, ALCDeliveries are scheduled through 2031.   They hold firm orders for 241 aircraft: 36 Airbus A220s,130 A320/A321neos, a single A330neo, 64 737 Max jets, and 10 787-9/10s, financial filings show.

Source: FlightGlobal.

IN BRIEF

• Air Canada has identified the first new route on which it will deploy its incoming Airbus A321XLR.
• Luxair is confident of commencing Embraer 195-E2 operations in January next year.
• Silk Way West Airlines has welcomed its third Boeing 777 Freighter to Baku on 2nd September.
• Alaska Airlines is set to launch seasonal flights from Seattle to Reykjavik on 28 May and continue through 8 September.
• Macquarie AirFinance has increased its commitment to the 737 Max with an order for an additional 30 jets.
• Sources: Air Canada, Luxair, Silk Way West Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Macquarie        

      

AIR CARGO

Initial A350F Aft Fuselage Transferred to Toulouse Final Assembly

Construction of Airbus’s initial A350 freighter is progressing with the arrival of its aft fuselage at the Toulouse final assembly line.  The first fully equipped aft section for MSN700 has been transferred from the airframer’s Hamburg facilities.  Airbus senior vice-president of marketing Joost van der Heijden says the forward, center, and aft sections of the fuselage have “moved in” with the wings; “they are now ready to be assembled in the coming weeks,” he adds in a social media post.

Airbus’s Ar50 has a slightly shorter fuselage than the A350-1000 passenger aircraft, from which it has been derived. It will be powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-97 engines, and the airframer intends entry into service in the second half of 2027. French logistics firm CMA CGM is set to be the launch operator of the type.

Source: Airbus, picture Airbus

Kalitta Air Takes Delivery of First Pair of 777-300ERSF Freighters

Kalitta Air has taken delivery of the first two Boeing 777-300ERSF converted freighters US and Israeli certification of the modified twin jets.  The Michigan-based carrier will become the launch operator of the aircraft is leasing the jets from AerCap Cargo. Israel Aerospace Industries developed the -300ERSF through a joint program, initially with Lessor GECAS and subsequently with AerCap after it merged with GECAS.

One of the two aircraft handed over to Kalitta Air is the certification prototype.  They are part of an agreement which will cover seven of the twinsets.  Kalitta Air will use them to replace older Boeing 747 freighters.  The -300ERSF, which has a 100t payload capacity, is one of several freighter conversion programs initiated by various companies for the -300ER and-200ER variants.

IAI’s modification is the first of the 300ERSF programs to obtain certification.  Kalitta Air plans to place both aircraft into revenue operation early this month, says AerCap, with further deliveries taking place “over the coming weeks”.

Source: FlightGlobal, picture Kalitta Air

Researched and Compiled by :

Ed Kaplanian    Commercial Aviation Advisor 

Contact – ekaplanian@yahoo.com

Editor:   Lee Kaplanian