Indian budget airline IndiGo has ordered 600 jet engines with a list price of $20bn from CFM International in a deal that reflects soaring regional demand for air travel and represents a snub to existing supplier Pratt & Whitney. The engines will power 280 Airbus A320neo and A321neo jetliners ordered by IndiGo, India’s clear market leader. CFM International, a joint venture between General Electric of the US and Safran of France, won the order even though IndiGo has an existing relationship with Pratt & Whitney, owned by United Technologies Corporation. India is home to one of the world’s fastest-growing aviation markets, with its airlines emerging as key customers for Boeing and Airbus as more of the country’s 1.3b people begin to fly. The carrier had placed an order for 430 Airbus planes, of which the first 150 aircraft are to be powered by engines supplied by Pratt & Whitney. The decision to switch to CFM for the next batch follows months of highly publicised troubles with the Pratt & Whitney engine in India. IndiGo and GoAir, another budget carrier, have had to ground flights in the past because of troubles with the engines. The glitches prompted India’s aviation watchdog Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to issue an additional safety protocol directive to the airlines regarding the engines in January. Yet experts did not link the engine troubles with the lost bid. “In the engines business, such big opportunities don’t exist all that often,” said Thomas Jaeger, chief executive at ch-aviation. “It could be that CFM just made a better offer.”<br/>
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Europe’s Airbus has agreed to sell 14 A330neo wide-body passenger jets to Virgin Atlantic in a deal valued at $4.1b, the companies announced at the Paris Airshow on Monday, with an option for the airline to order six more. The British airline placed firm orders for the upgraded A330 model, which it had been evaluating against the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. But Virgin Atlantic CE Shai Weiss denied that the order was a snub of Boeing, and said the deal would help update its fleet to take advantage of a forthcoming expansion at Europe’s biggest airport, London Heathrow. “It happened to be that this one was a fantastic opportunity for Virgin Atlantic to transform its fleet,” Weiss said. The jets, which will be powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 7000 engines, will replace the airline’s A330ceos from September 2021 until 2024, Virgin Atlantic said.<br/>
Virgin Atlantic Airways plans to use the purchase of UK regional carrier Flybe Group for further takeovers of British operators so it can feed more passengers onto its long-haul flights. The carrier, founded by billionaire Richard Branson, would like to use Flybe to roll up more airlines into an expanded short-haul business as part of a plan to double the number of intercontinental services from its London Heathrow hub, CEO Shai Weiss said Monday. “I’m talking about the consolidation of smaller operators in the short-haul market under the banner of ‘Virgin something’ to provide more feed,” Weiss said at the Paris Air Show, where his company placed an order for as many as 14 Airbus SE A330neo wide-body planes worth $4.15b at list prices. Several smaller UK carriers have gone bust in recent years, with Scottish operator Loganair and Flybe affiliate Eastern Airways among those that remain. Weiss said he’s still working on plans to bring Flybe under the Virgin brand once the takeover wins regulatory approval. Virgin Atlantic is continuing to look at the UK airline operation of Thomas Cook Group, which the ailing UK tour operator has put up for sale. The airline is preparing for the opening of a planned third runway at Heathrow in 2026. That would require about 30 more wide-body planes and three or four times that number of feeder routes, Weiss said.<br/>
Airbus is set to win a deal to sell jets worth around $4.5 billion at list price to Philippines airline Cebu Air after a face-off with rival Boeing, industry sources said. The deal involves 16 A330neo wide-body jets and around 10 of the newly launched A321XLR extended-range narrow-body aircraft, the sources said, asking not to be identified. Together with other aircraft and options the deal could involve as many as 40 aircraft, one of the sources added. The deal follows a fight for business at the Philippines budget airline as Airbus seeks a new foothold for its A330neo in the face of heavy competition from Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner. The carrier had at one point been seen as likely to proceed with a Boeing 787 order, prompting Airbus to rescue the deal.<br/>
A Southwest employee is being treated at a hospital after the truck he was driving struck the rear of a plane parked at a Pittsburgh International Airport gate. An airline spokesman said the Boeing 737-800 was taken out of service after the crash Monday morning. Southwest says the ramp agent had been operating a provisioning truck, which is used to supply material for flights, including food and drink. The plane was carrying 174 passengers and six crew members on a trip to Denver and then on to Seattle. The airline says it hasn't received reports of any injuries among those on the plane. An airport spokesman says its operations have not been affected.<br/>