São Paulo – Airbus announced on Wednesday (9) that it has signed a sales contract for ten aircraft in the A320neo family to Middle East Airlines – Air Liban (MEA), from Lebanon. According to Airbus, both companies had already signed a memorandum of understanding for the sale of the aircraft in July 2012, but the deal was only closed now. MEA is yet to choose what engines will equip the aircraft.
Five will be the A320neo model, for between 150 and 180 passengers, and another five will be the A321neo, for up to 220 passengers. The aircraft will be used on regional flights. The value of the deal was not disclosed, but the list price of the A320neo in 2012 was US$ 96.7 million. The A321neo was listed at US$ 113.3 million.
The two models are updated versions of the Airbus A320 and A321, but they should only start flying in 2015. The main improvement as against the current models is the greater performance. According to the producer, more efficient engines and modifications in the design of the wings resulted in up to 15% fuel economy.
In the press statement disclosed by Airbus, the director general at MEA, Mahamad El Hout, stated that these aircraft are a good deal as they economize fuel, are trustworthy and have a modern and comfortable cabin.
MEA flies four A330-200s, for long distance flights, four A321s and ten A320s. Among the destinations served are Abidjan, in Ivory Coast, Kano, in Nigeria; Riyadh, Jeddah and Medina, in Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates; Doha, in Qatar; Dusseldorf and Frankfurt, in Germany, Milan, in Italy, London, in the United Kingdom and Paris and Nice, in France. The company flew to Brazil in the 1990s.
*Translated by Mark Ament
