Airlines in Southeast Asia may defer plane deliveries, IATA says

Airlines in Southeast Asia may need to push back delivery of aircraft after a decade of economic growth and optimism about a surge in air travel prompted them to order hundreds of jets from Airbus and Boeing. Carriers in the region that includes Indonesia and Malaysia are now confronted with challenges such as overcapacity and intense competition, Tony Tyler, CE of IATA, said Sunday. "It’s easy to place these orders when times are looking good. I wouldn’t be surprised if some of them are pushed back," Tyler said. "I’m sure all the planning departments of all the airlines are now studying their orders in the context of what the market is telling them." A decade of economic growth enabled a new class of first-time flyers from Vietnam to the Philippines, prompting a flurry of orders from start-up budget carriers and legacy airlines. <br/>