Chicago-headquartered United Airlines has announced new orders with Airbus and Boeing for purchasing aircraft. With Airbus, the carrier has ordered an additional 60 A321neo jets to further bolster its network closer to home. The airline had previously placed an order for 50 A321XLR and 70 A321neo aeroplanes. To sum up, the direct purchase agreement with the European aircraft manufacturer now stands at 180 units of the A321 jets.

Similarly, United has extended its business with Boeing. The airline has decided to expand its fleet of 787 Dreamliners by placing a new firm order for 50 787-9s with the option to buy an additional 50. Boeing confirms that United has the largest Dreamliner order book on record and is set to become the biggest 787 operator worldwide. In conjunction with last year’s purchase order for 100 787 aircraft, United has a firm order for 150 Dreamliners.

American aircraft manufacturer Boeing has delivered a 737 Max to Air Tanzania. Specifically, it’s a 737-9 jet. This makes Tanzania’s flag carrier the first airline in Africa to own one of these single-aisle aeroplanes. The new inheritance will help the East African carrier aid the growing travel demand in West Africa, Southern Africa and India.

Presently, Air Tanzania operates flights across Africa and to countries in Asia with a fleet that includes two Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners and one 767-300 Freighter. The airline also awaits an additional 787-8 from Boeing.

Chile-based carrier LATAM Airlines has taken delivery of its first Airbus A321neo leased from AerCap. Furthermore, the airline has ordered an additional 13 A321neos to further bolster its regional network and growth. With the new order, there’s a black of 76 A321neo aircraft for LATAM Airlines. In total, the carrier has 111 A320 Family jets to be delivered.

The aircraft delivered to LATAM Airlines has a seating capacity of up to 224 passengers and features Airbus’ XL bins indoors. The latter offers a 40 per cent increase in storage space and can gulp 60 per cent more cabin bags. Also, the jet flew to its destination with jet fuel blended with 49 per cent Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).

Presently, LATAM Airlines operates 240 Airbus jets. That makes it the largest Airbus operator in Latin America. In July this year, the carrier took delivery of its first Airbus A320neo aircraft, powered by 30 per cent SAF.

Dubai-based carrier Emirates, recently recognised as a 2024 APEX World Class Airline winner, has inked an agreement with Shell Aviation. It is for the supply of over 300,000 gallons of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) at the airline’s international hub in Dubai. The first SAF delivery should commence before 2023 comes to a close. And once that happens, it will be the first time that DXB will fuel an aircraft with SAF.

SAF is compatible with existing aircraft fleets and airport infrastructure and can be blended with conventional aviation fuel at a ratio of up to 50 per cent. According to the data available, usage of SAF can significantly lower lifecycle carbon emissions. If used neat, the reduction in CO2 emissions can be up to 80 per cent compared to conventional jet fuel.

The carrier in question completed its first 100 per cent SAF-powered demonstration flight earlier this year. Its first flight that used jet fuel blended with SAF was 2017 on a Boeing 777 from Chicago. It currently operates flights from Paris, Lyon and Oslo with jet fuel mixed with SAF.

In August this year, Cathay Pacific Group announced its intention to buy up to 32 Airbus single-aisle aircraft. That has now been confirmed by the Hong Kong-based firm. The new order, which bumps the order book with Airbus to 64, comprises the A320neo and A321neo variants. The European aircraft manufacturer has already delivered 13 of them.

As mentioned earlier, the new fleet of A320neo family aircraft will help Cathay Pacific Group bolster its operations (Cathay Pacific and HK Express) in the Chinese mainland and other parts of Asia.