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DAE And CALC Reach Agreement For 64 Boeing 737 Max Jets

Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE) confirms that an affiliate has inked an agreement to acquire the rights, interests, and obligations to 64 Boeing 737 Max aircraft from a subsidiary of China Aircraft Leasing Group Holdings Limited (CALC). The count includes units of 737-8, 737-9 and 737-10 derivatives. The delivery of the aeroplanes will be completed by 2026.

With this acquisition of aeroplanes, the percentage of new-gen aircraft in DAE’s fleet will increase from 50 to 66 per cent. Also, DAE’s owned, managed, committed, and mandated-to-manage aircraft fleet will bump to 550, valued at nearly USD 20 billion. The UAE-based firm says the transaction with CALC will likely be completed in the third quarter of this year.

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A Milestone For GEnx Jet Engines

GE Aerospace confirms that its GEnx engines have surpassed the 50 million flight hours mark in less than 12 years – the fastest-ever rate for a commercial widebody engine. The engine family is also the fastest-selling in GE history, with nearly 3,000 units in service and on backlog, including spares.

The GEnx-1B, which propels the Boeing 787 Dreamliner family, has accumulated close to 32 million flight hours since entering service in 2012. On the other hand, the GEnx-2B has amassed 18 million hours since it began service in 2011 on the Boeing 747-8. Combined, the engine family serves over 70 operators worldwide with a monthly average of 450,000 flight hours. Over the years, the GEnx engines have played their part in some of the longest flights, including a record-breaking trip in 2020 between Papeete in French Polynesia and Paris. That flight covered 9,765 miles, which converts into 15,715km or 8,485 nautical miles.

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Cathay Group Intends To Purchase Up To 32 Airbus Jets

To further grow flight connectivity operations at the Hong Kong international aviation hub and to modernise its fleet, the Cathay Group has announced its intention to purchase up to 32 Airbus A321neo and A320neo jets. Once placed, the order will shoot the Group’s new aircraft deliveries above 70. The newly purchased aeroplanes will likely be delivered by 2029 and will expand the fleets of Cathay Pacific and HK Express carriers. That will help the Group serve multiple destinations in mainland China and other parts of Asia.

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Genesis introduces improved G70 and G70 Shooting Brake in the Middle East

Genesis Middle East & Africa introduces an enhanced version of the G70 sedan and the G70 Shooting Brake featuring luxury and performance-centric interior and exterior upgrades. Production commenced in the Middle East in August, with the pair set to arrive in showrooms by early October 2023. The new exterior bits include a new Genesis emblem decorated with a Guilloché pattern, newly designed wheels and new exterior colours such as Vatna Gray and Kawah Blue. The interior welcomes enhancements comprising touch-type climate control display, a leather steering wheel with a new emblem, multi-function switches, door and console garnish patterns and tweaked air vents. Customers can now select between three sets of dual-tone colours for the interior upholstery. The G70 will be available in two lineups: a 2.0 turbo and a 3.3 turbo, and the G70 Shooting Brake as a 2.0 turbo. Brembo brakes now come standard, as do ventilated front seats for the 3.3T model, along with an upgraded USB charging port to Type C for market compatibility.

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Mclaren MSO introduces multi-tone paint customisation for the 750S

The MSO in-house division under Mclaren caters specifically to the bespoke personalisation requirements of customers. Recently, Mclaren’s MSO division announced the launch of the new Spectrum Theme – a stunning multi-tone paint finish offered for customers to apply specifically on the new 750S supercar. Mclaren claims this multi-tone paint scheme is more technical than anything MSO has developed before, where separate shades of colours bunched together create an illusion of light to dark, which “gives a sense of speed and acceleration, even when the 750S is stationary.” This offering is currently presented in three variants – Spectrum Blue, Spectrum Grey and Spectrum Orange. Further, it can be specified in unique colourways that shall be designed and delivered by MSO.

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Volkswagen Appoints New MD For Middle East

German auto giant Volkswagen has appointed a new managing director for its Middle East operations. His name is Matthias Ziegler, and he will overlook the business for the brand in eight countries across the region.

Matthias brings a wealth of experience into the equation, with several senior-level sales positions in his portfolio at Volkswagen, where he has been since 2006. His recent post involved overseeing Volkswagen’s business across several Asia-Pacific markets, including Japan, Australia, New Zealand and Korea.

For the new role, Matthias is stationed at Volkswagen’s regional headquarters in Dubai, UAE. However, this isn’t his first work-related visit to the said city. After the opening of Audi Volkswagen Middle East in 2005, he was stationed in Dubai for a three-month project the following year. 

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An MoU Signed Between Turkish Airlines And Thai Airways

Flag carriers of Turkey and Thailand, namely Turkish Airlines and Thai Airways, have inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to move towards a joint venture operations agreement. The core plan relies on increasing the connectivity between Istanbul and Bangkok, primary hubs for Turkish Airlines and Thai Airways, respectively. This way, travellers from Thailand get better flight links to other regions in Asia, along with Africa and Europe. Similarly, those travelling from Turkey get better access to the Asia-Pacific region and Australia. And, of course, tourism between the two countries will also receive a boost.

For this, Thai Airways will introduce a daily flight to Istanbul from Bangkok in December 2023. Presently, Thailand’s flag carrier and one of the founding members of Star Alliance operates a fleet of 67 aircraft. On the other hand, Turkish Airlines has a much broader reach worldwide as it has 425 aircraft in its fleet.

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Jaguar preserves the F-Type’s V8 growl with British Library

2025 marks the year when Jaguar will move its entire product portfolio to run on futuristic, near-silent-running electric-propelled motors. But before that, the British luxury firm wants to conserve distinctive notes of the Jaguar F-TYPE V8 for future generations to appreciate. Hence, the luxury carmaker has recorded the F-TYPE’s unmistakable, supercharged V8 soundtrack inside a soundproof room at Gaydon Engineering Centre, where the sports car’s exhaust note was originally tuned. These recordings will be catalogued in the British Library archives as well as its official website from Autumn 2023. Charles Richardson, Senior Sound Engineer at Jaguar, commented that more than 85 iterations of the sound were tried out before they first launched the car. He further said, “The culmination of that work – the sounds you experience driving the F-TYPE R 75 – is something we want to be available for generations to come. Archiving it with the British Library allows us to do that, and that’s something we’re very proud of.”

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New Balance’s new campaign features Sainté and Storm Reid sporting retro-styled sneakers

American footwear brand New Balance has launched an exclusive new collection with a campaign featuring UK’s most promising rap sensation Sainté and Emmy-nominated actor Storm Reid. This campaign features celebrities lounging in stylised representations of their childhood bedrooms while wearing a model from the new collection comprising the 530, 550 and the 2002 R. The original 550 debuted in 1989 as a basketball shoe and was reintroduced in 2021, featuring blue, red, and black pops to celebrate summer. The 530 sneaker is a throwback to one of New Balance’s classic running shoes. The New Balance 2002R casual shoes get inspired by the popular MR2002 that mimic the running style of the 2000s in a modified mule silhouette. Prices for these shoes start at AED429 and extend to AED1000, with this footwear collection currently available to buy in the MENA region across stores or online exclusively at the Foot Locker website.

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Audi India Opens 24th Pre-Owned Cars Outlet

To further expand its retail network and strengthen the pre-owned cars business, Audi India has opened its 24th Approved: plus facility. It is located at Plot No. H-10/A, Tower – E, Skymark One, Sector-98, NOIDA, Gautam Buddha Nagar, Uttar Pradesh. And like other Approved: plus outlets in the country, the latest one will offer cars only after thoroughly inspecting them from the inside out. Audi India claims that every vehicle sold through its pre-owned car showroom undergoes 300+ multi-point checks and is road-tested. And for that extra peace of mind, the brand offers 24×7 roadside assistance and the vehicle’s complete service history. Moreover, all Audi Approved: plus facilities have financing and insurance offers.