Qantas Airways’ low-cost subsidiary Jetstar anticipates it will now receive its first Boeing 787 in November 2009.
The first 787 will come in November 2009 and over a 12-month period the airline will receive a total of 15 of the type, a Jetstar spokesman said on the sidelines of an event in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam today.
Jetstar’s new timeframe for 787 deliveries comes after Boeing last week announced a further delay in the 787 programme.
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Jetstar was originally due to receive its first aircraft this year but earlier delays at Boeing pushed it to 2009. Jetstar was then hoping to get its first in May that year but now it is November, representing a further six-month delay.
Oneworld alliance member Qantas has a large number of 787s on order and has said Jetstar’s Australian outfit will be the first in the Qantas group to operate the aircraft.
The Jetstar spokesman ATI spoke to today says the carrier plans to start by operating the 787 domestically for a couple of months until the operation is bedded down.
He declines to say which will be the first international route Jetstar will put the 787 on.
But he says: “Japan is a core market for it” and the Australian airline is conscious of the fact its competitor All Nippon Airways will be the first to fly the 787.
He also says the 787 is important to Jetstar’s plans to launch services to Europe.
Jetstar today announced in Ho Chi Minh City that Vietnam’s Pacific Airlines is to be renamed Jetstar Pacific and it will be marketed as Jetstar.
Qantas owns 18% of Pacific and also announced that it will increase its stake to 30% in 2010.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Source: FlightGlobal.com
