It’s not air show season, not at least for some more months to come, however some new orders are still trickling in for manufacturers. In this case it’s Airbus seal the deal to supply one of the largest airlines in Asia with its new generation jets. Here are the details about Cathay Pacific‘s latest Airbus order.
The Latest Cathay Pacific Airbus Order
Cathay Pacific has placed an order with Airbus for the supply of 6 Airbus A350s. However these are not going to be used for passenger transport as they are are the A350F, or freighter versions.
The Cathay Pacific Group already owns and operates A350 planes, however until now they all are in the passenger variant. CX owns and operates both the A350-900 and A350-1000. The freighter variant will be the third to join the SAR airline.
The planes will be joining the airline’s quite large cargo division (Cathay Cargo). A division that is still holding up very well although the landscape for many cargo carriers isn’t looking too rosy at the moment.
The First Airbus Freighter in an All Boeing Fleet
At the moment Cathay Cargo operates an all Boeing fleet, actually and all 747 fleet. The arrival of the A350F planes will create a duality in the fleet. At the moment the carrier operates a 20 plane fleet featuring:
- 6 Boeing 747-400F
- 14 Boeing 747-8F
A key aspect that convinced Cathay Pacific in ordering the plane is the fact that it should be capable of serving the Hong Kong to Anchorage route in a more fuel efficient manner compared with the current CX planes.
Which Other Airlines Ordered the A350F?
It is quite a small group of airlines that have placed orders for this particular aircraft type. Cathay in only the fourth airline to order the A350F. The complete airline list features:
- Air France (4 orders)
- Etihad (7 orders)
- Martinair (4 orders)
- Cathay Pacific (6 orders)
Along with these airlines Airbus received orders from 2 leasing firms:
- CMA CGM (4 orders)
- ALC (7 orders)
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