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A330 Developments
According to Planespotters the Dragon is due to receive HLN/HLO/HLT/HLU/HLV. When this done CX will only have 3 (HLD/HLF/HLH) of the 33Ps left. Hopefully HLD will be returned to lessor shortly and HLF/HLH retired in the coming 18 months. Are CX responding to the general (passenger and crew) dislike of this model?
As far as the Dragon is concerned hopefully this will allow retirement of their oldest relics. |
Originally Posted by TomYoung
(Post 31360960)
...... Are CX responding to the general (passenger and crew) dislike of this model?....
Most passengers have no idea what aircraft they are flying in. We on the FT are in the few% (2%?) who notice or care. |
Crappy seats and old entertainment system on the beat up A330s but would gladly opt for the A330 over the 777A due to the improvement in personal space.
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Originally Posted by TomYoung
(Post 31360960)
According to Planespotters the Dragon is due to receive HLN/HLO/HLT/HLU/HLV. When this done CX will only have 3 (HLD/HLF/HLH) of the 33Ps left. Hopefully HLD will be returned to lessor shortly and HLF/HLH retired in the coming 18 months. Are CX responding to the general (passenger and crew) dislike of this model?
As far as the Dragon is concerned hopefully this will allow retirement of their oldest relics. |
Originally Posted by Arbeysix
(Post 31361395)
Interesting and thanks for the update. I don't know if anyone has run the numbers against A350 arrivals/planned 77W returns to lessors but I do wonder if this will leave CX short of regional frames in the not too distant future? If so, then CX's replacement plans seem to me one of the more interesting short haul fleet selection decisions around. If the decision were based primarily on the economics of short haul passenger ops alone then presumably the 787-10 would be a front runner. But throw in CX's relatively large freight ops and the benefits of fleet commonality and I wonder if "regional" versions of the A350 or retaining 77Ws would be in the mix.
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Originally Posted by TomYoung
(Post 31360960)
Are CX responding to the general (passenger and crew) dislike of this model?
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My guess is that they will reconfigure the ‘long haul’ A330 to regional seating, replacing with A350 on the Oz/ ME/ India routes. So as A350 come in, retire the oldest A330, and replace with reconfigured A330 already in the fleet. |
Originally Posted by TomYoung
(Post 31360960)
According to Planespotters the Dragon is due to receive HLN/HLO/HLT/HLU/HLV. When this done CX will only have 3 (HLD/HLF/HLH) of the 33Ps left. Hopefully HLD will be returned to lessor shortly and HLF/HLH retired in the coming 18 months. Are CX responding to the general (passenger and crew) dislike of this model?
As far as the Dragon is concerned hopefully this will allow retirement of their oldest relics. |
See https://www.planespotters.net/airline/Cathay-Dragon.
Of the 10 oldest A330s still active 7 are with the Dragon and 1 with CX. The 2 oldest with the Dragon have been flying for over 26 years so surely time to go. |
Should CX buy a batch of A330-900neo for both CX and KA? for replacing the 10+ years old A330s, as well as to supplement A350-900 due to its range for some routes cannot afford A350-900.
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Originally Posted by derek2010
(Post 31362741)
Should CX buy a batch of A330-900neo for both CX and KA? for replacing the 10+ years old A330s, as well as to supplement A350-900 due to its range for some routes cannot afford A350-900.
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Originally Posted by Arbeysix
(Post 31365002)
The A330-900neo is not a good fit for CX's short haul network because it is heavier than the A330ceo. The neo's sweet spot is longer medium-long haul routes where the A350 is even stronger again. The 787 may be a better fit for CX short haul but I'm not sure how the numbers would stack up taking into account capex vs the "intelligent misuse" approach of just deploying surplus long haul aircraft on short haul routes when not operating long haul. I'm also not sure if CX has enough long haul frames for this approach taking into account the A350s on order net of 330/77W retirements. There's also the possibility of future performance enhancements to the A350 (including weight reduction, RR ultrafan if and when it materialises etc) to make them better short-haul performers.
I agree the smaller 787 would be better for exclusively short haul flying but CX's advantage is the ability to utilize their long haul aircraft on short haul return trips so that will probably be unlikely. Given the number of stand by passengers/staff travel I've noticed, it's not too hard to fill up the aircraft. |
Originally Posted by TomYoung
(Post 31360960)
According to Planespotters the Dragon is due to receive HLN/HLO/HLT/HLU/HLV
What's the logic behind the registration number/identifier scheme? Is that set by Cathay or the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department? And on that note, does anyone know where Cathay registers and domiciles their aircraft? Are they owned by companies in Hong Kong? Registered in Hong Kong? Or some mysterious Caribbean island with questionable banking regulations? hehehehe.... |
Originally Posted by cmiller11101
(Post 31365863)
What's the logic behind the registration number/identifier scheme? Is that set by Cathay or the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department? And on that note, does anyone know where Cathay registers and domiciles their aircraft? Are they owned by companies in Hong Kong? Registered in Hong Kong? Or some mysterious Caribbean island with questionable banking regulations? hehehehe.... International registries are allocated a letter to identity where an aircraft is registered. So USA is N, France is F and so on. The state controlling the registry then has flexibility on what goes after the initial letter. The USA and Russia use numbers, most other places use either three or four letters. Cathay aircraft are registered in Hong Kong and the format for a Hong Kong registration is the letter B followed by a dash then three letters. For simplicity most airlines will ask for a cluster of sequential letters for different fleets. It doesn’t always work but it makes it easier to identify which sub fleet is being talked about in meetings etc. Where aircraft are owned can be very complicated indeed involving leasing , mortgages, holding companies etc etc. I have no idea how Cathay sets that up. [\thread drift] |
Originally Posted by Central90210
(Post 31361535)
I know a lot of (non-FTer, non-AvGeek) friends who go out of their way to score a window + aisle seat on the A330 when they travel as a couple in Y.
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