Gulf Air 777 Lease Signals Start Of A340 Roll-over

摘要

Gulf Air will begin to roll over its ageing Airbus A340-300s in March when the first of four new Boeing 777-300ERs arrive as part of fleet renewal effort that will also see the retirement of its oldest A320s. The Bahrain carrier's chief executive Bjorn Naf says that the leased 777s are among 13 aircraft to be introduced in 2009. The others will be five A320s and four A330s. "The ultimate goal is to replace our five oldest A340s, which we will look to sell," he says. Naf expects the improved reliability and more modern cabins offered by the 312-seat 777s will help boost the airline's business in 2009 as it targets an 8% increase in passenger numbers over the "almost six million" carried in 2008. The source for the twinjets has not been revealed, although India's Jet Airways is seen as a possible candidate.