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Article - Airline

Japan Airlines finalizes order for additional Airbus A350s, and the A321neo

by Jeffrey Teruel - Founder/Editor-Flights in Asia
Published on July 23, 2024

Summary

Following the announcement of its order for up to 20 Boeing 787-9s, Japan Airlines (JAL) has announced it has signed another purchase agreement with Airbus for an additional 31 aircraft from the European aircraft manufacturer.



Following the announcement of its order for up to 20 Boeing 787-9s, Japan Airlines (JAL) has announced it has signed another purchase agreement with Airbus for an additional 31 aircraft from the European aircraft manufacturer.


Previously announced in March, the Tokyo-based airline finalized the order with Airbus during the Farnborough Airshow 2024. JAL will take on an additional 20 A350-900 aircraft and 11 narrowbody A321neo aircraft.


According to JAL, the additional A350-900s – currently used on domestic routes – will be introduced on international routes starting in FY2027. The A321neo aircraft will be introduced for the first time by the airline, and replace its Boeing 767 aircraft on domestic routes from 2028. Both aircraft will be primarily deployed on routes to/from Tokyo Haneda Airport.


Yukio Nakagawa, Executive Officer of Procurement, JAL said "We are delighted to announce the additional introduction of the A350-900 for international routes and the new introduction of the A321neo. By accelerating the introduction of the latest fuel-efficient aircraft, we aim to provide the highest level of service to our customers while advancing our efforts to reduce CO2 emissions. We believe that this additional introduction will further deepen our partnership with Airbus."

Christian Scherer, CEO of the Commercial Aircraft business of Airbus,  said: “We thank Japan Airlines for placing its confidence once again in A350. In addition, we celebrate a new milestone in our partnership with the airline following its order for A321neo. We are committed to providing our full support to Japan Airlines as its growing fleet is deployed on more routes across its network, both domestically and internationally.”

JAL has ordered a total of 52 A350s – with 18 in service including both the -900 and -1000 variants.  The A321neo order is the first Airbus narrowbody aircraft JAL has ordered. 

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