Germania becomes new Airbus A321 operator

By BA Staff

S.A.T., the holding company of the Berlin-based German carrier Germania, has taken delivery of its first out of two A321s on order. Both aircraft are equipped with Airbus’ wing tip fuel saving devices, called Sharklets. The airline has already been operating eight A319 successfully since 2011.

The new Germania A321 will operate exclusively for Alltours, one of Germany’s biggest travel agencies. The airline has chosen a single class cabin layout for 208 passengers.

The cabin will be equipped with a state-of-the-art entertainment system, featuring video screens and in-seat audio channels. The aircraft will be powered by CFM engines.

Andreas Wobig, Germania Chief Executive Officer said:

“The delivery of our first brand-new A321 marks the beginning of a new era for Germania. With 208 seats, the aircraft capacity is one third higher than the jets we currently operate. This means that in the future, charter and scheduled flights on particularly popular routes can be operated even more economically. We are delighted with our A321s as they are especially fuel-efficient and make an important contribution to climate protection.”

John Leahy, Chief Operating Officer, Customers said:

“We are delighted that Germania has become the latest operator of the largest member of the hugely successful A320-Family. Thanks to Airbus’ unique commonality, the new A321s will fit seamlessly into Germania’s exiting fleet of Airbus A319s. The Sharklets will deliver Germania up to four percent in reduced fuel burn whilst passengers will benefit from the A320 family’s widest and most comfortable cabin.” 

Sharklets are made from light-weight composites and are 2.4 meters tall. They offer operators up to four percent fuel burn reduction on longer range sectors and provide the flexibility of either adding an additional 100 nautical miles range or increased payload capability of up to 450 kilograms.

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JetBlue deal marks 10,000th Airbus A320 family order

By BA Staff

Just days after taking delivery of its very first A321 aircraft, JetBlue Airways has placed a new order for 15 A321ceo (current engine option) and 20 A321neo (new engine option) aircraft.

In addition, the airline has opted to up size 8 A320ceo and 10 A320neo aircraft currently on backlog to 8 A321ceo and 10 A321neo, respectively.

This order marks the 10,000th order for an Airbus A320 Family aircraft.

JetBlue President and CEO Dave Barger said:

"We are pleased to convert some of our A320 positions to A321s, and order additional A321s to better match capacity with demand. The A321 is the ideal aircraft for our high density markets. In addition, a subfleet of the A321s will power our Mint premium service on the New York-Los Angeles and New York-San Francisco markets. It is the right aircraft for JetBlue's lucrative routes. We eagerly look forward to the Sharklet retrofits and -NEO aircraft to further reduce operating costs."

John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer – Customers said:

“JetBlue launched its business with an all-Airbus fleet, demonstrating they are a forward-thinking airline. The fact that they are turning to the NEO and larger Airbus aircraft overall makes it clear that they know how to please their passengers and maximize profits. In addition, JetBlue has always been a great partner in the Airbus Sharklet programme and have been instrumental in our ability to launch the in-service retrofit option.”

This order marks, with JetBlue as a partner, the launch of the Sharklet retrofit programme, which allows airlines currently flying A320ceo aircraft the option of improving their aircraft’s fuel performance with the addition of winglet devices called Sharklets.

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Photo: Finnair receives world's first Airbus A321 fitted with Sharklets

by BA Staff

Finnish national carrier, Finnair, became the launch customer for the new Sharklets equipped A321 by taking delivery of the first of five aircraft on order. The aircraft was officially handed over to Ville Iho, Finnair Chief Operating Officer, during a delivery ceremony at the Airbus facilities in Hamburg, Germany.

Image copyright and courtesy Airbus S.A.S. Used under fair use for editorial purpose only.

The A321 aircraft will eventually replace Finnair’s existing fleet of 757s, making it an all Airbus operator. The airline currently operates an Airbus fleet of 40 aircraft (25 A320 family aircraft and 15 A330s/A340s). Finnair was the first airline to commit to the A350 XWB with a total of 11 aircraft on order.

The A321 is an extended version of narrow body A320 Family. To date, more than 9,800 A320 family aircraft have been ordered and over 5,700 delivered to more than 390 operators worldwide.

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Photos and videos: American Airlines receives first Airbus A319

by Devesh Agarwal and Vinay Bhaskara

Dallas-Fort Worth headquartered American Airlines recieved its first Airbus narrow body aircraft, an A319-112(WL). MSN 5678 is registered N8001N, is the first A319 delivered, equipped with Sharklets, and the 100th A320 family aircraft delivered, fitted with the new wing-tip devices. The engines are from CFM.

Our Vinay Bhaskara captured these exclusive photos at the Hamburg delivery centre on behalf of airchive.com. You can read his story about the events of the delivery day here.


The videos are below the fold. All images are credit of airchive.com.

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Photos: Four new airlines take delivery of A320s with Sharklets

The fleet of Airbus A320s equipped with the new wingtips called "Sharklets" is growing by the day.

During the last fortnight, four new airlines have taken delivery of Sharklet fitted A320s.

Spain's largest low cost carrier Vueling, the largest low cost airline in Spain, took delivery of its first A320 Sharklet aircraft, becoming the first Spanish carrier to do so. Vueling’s in-service fleet rises to 61 A320 Family aircraft

Monarch Airlines, became the first UK carrier to take delivery of a Sharklet A320.

Germany's airberlin group took delivery of its first Sharklet Airbus A320. This aircraft will join the fleet of group member, the Austrian based airline NIKI. Till 2015 the airberlin group, will receive 13 more Sharklet fitted A320-family aircraft.

Wizz Air Ukraine, took delivery of a Sharklet A320, becoming the first Ukrainian carrier to do so.

Photos courtesy Airbus S.A.S.

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Jumbo orders from Turkish Airlines and Lion Air further consolidate A320neo lead

On the eve of the 25th anniversary of its first delivery, the European Airbus A320 narrow body, is ratcheting up the pressure on competitor the American Boeing 737 booking two high profile orders during this month.

The first order cames from national Turkish Airlines (THY), which signed a contract, the biggest ever by a Turkish carrier, for up to 117 A320 Family aircraft (25 A321ceo, four A320neo, 53 A321neo and options for 35 additional A321neo aircraft). Turkish Airlines already operates 75 A320 Family aircraft. (ceo=classic engine option, neo=new engine option).

The coup, though, was a 234 A320 Family aircraft order, comprising 109 A320neo, 65 A321neo and 60 A320ceo, from Indonesian carrier Lion Air, until now a Boeing only operator, which had placed Boeing's largest commercial airplane order, at the time. The carrier currently operates a fleet of Boeing 737s dominated by 737-900ERs in an all economy 213 seat configuration. Lion Air will configure its A320 family in an all economy layout, with its A320's seating 180 passengers and its A321's seating 236.

Incorporating new engines and large Sharklet wing tip devices, the A320neo will enter into service from late 2015, followed by the A319neo and A321neo in 2016.

Below is a video of the thank you extended by Airbus employees to Lion Air.

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IndiGo continues to expand domestic operations

by Vinay Bhaskara

As its fleet grows with the introduction of new Airbus A320s, including India’s first sharklet retrofitted A320, low cost carrier (LCC) IndiGo continues to expand its domestic services. The carrier will be adding one additional daily flight to Jaipur, Nagpur, and Kolkata from its hub in Mumbai with schedules as follow:

Mumbai – Jaipur
6E296 BOM – JAI -- 1120 – 1300 – 320 -- Daily
6E295 JAI - BOM -- 1330 – 1515 – 320 -- Daily

Mumbai – Kolkata
6E327 BOM – CCU -- 1725 – 2000 – 320 -- Daily
6E328 CCU – BOM -- 2030 – 2335 – 320 -- Daily

Mumbai – Nagpur
6E403 BOM – NAG -- 1540 – 1705 – 320 -- Daily
6E412 NAG - BOM -- 0910 – 1035 – 320 – Daily

The new flights will all begin March 20th.

IndiGo continues to saturate the routes between major Indian metros, lacking other avenues of expansion given that runways at Tier II and III Indian airports are largely unable to handle the A320, nor do those markets have the demand to support 180 seat jets.

This lends credence to the idea that IndiGo will explore new avenues of expansion in the form of a regional airline operating turboprops. Furthermore, its existing operations, especially the longer distance ones, will become more profitable as the fuel burn savings are accrued from the continuous introduction of Sharklets equipped A320 aircraft.

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Lufthansa becomes first European airline operating A320 with Sharklets

German mainline carrier Deutsche Lufthansa has taken delivery of its first A320 equipped with new Sharklets, and becomes the first carrier in Europe to take benefit of the new fuel-saving wing-tip devices. The airline will receive 21 more A320 Family aircraft equipped with Sharklets until 2015.

Lufthansa A320 with Sharklets

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Video: JetBlue launches first A320 retro-fitted with 'Sharklets'

by Devesh Agarwal

United States low cost carrier JetBlue has retrofitted the first Airbus A320 worldwide (N821JB), with the new fuel saving wing-tip 'Sharklet' devices. The carrier was able to carry out the retrofit quickly since the aircraft wing had already been modified to accommodate the increased weights of 'Sharklets'.

JetBlue will deploy this and other 'Sharklet' fitted A320 aircraft on their trans-continental US routes; between New York JFK and Oakland and San Francisco, and between Boston and Los Angeles, Oakland and San Francisco. About 1% of these flights have to make technical refuelling stops, mostly in Las Vegas or Salt Lake City, when there are excessive headwinds. The carrier hopes to eliminate almost all these stops with the aid of the new fuel saving winglets.

Sharklets reduce wing-tip vortexes reducing drag

'Sharklets' are to the Airbus A320 family, what the AVP Blended Winglets are to the Boeing 737NG (-700, -800, 900ER) family.

The 'Sharklet' devices help conserve fuel thus giving the airline option of an additional 100 nautical miles range or increased payload capability of up to 454 kgs. (1,000 pounds).

At present Airbus is still delivering some A320 family aircraft with the old wing-tip fence winglets.

From 2014 onwards, the airframer has indicated, from 2014 onwards, it expects only 'Sharklet' fitted aircraft to be delivered.

This is a time-lapse video of the retrofit.



Images and video, courtesy JetBlue. For more pictures click here.

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GoAir takes delivery of its first Airbus A320 fitted with Sharklets

Just a day after, IndiGo took delivery of its first Airbus A320 equipped with Sharklets, Wadia Group owned GoAir, has taken delivery of its first Sharklet equipped A320, registration VT-GOL.

VT-GOL is the 14th aircraft delivered from a 20 A320 classic engine option (A320ceo) order placed in 2006. Just like IndiGo, all subsequent A320 deliveries to GoAir will be equipped with Sharklets. In 2011 GoAir also placed an order for 72 A320neo (new engine option).

The aircraft is financed by ACG (Aviation Capital Group) under a sale and leaseback arrangement, and is powered by CFM engines.

Giorgio De Roni, GoAir CEO said

“We already operate one of the youngest and most fuel efficient aircraft fleets anywhere in the world and the introduction of the Sharklet will add further efficiency. Our investment in the every latest technology like Sharklets, and also the A320neo, is a demonstration of our commitment to our customers and to the growth of our valued airline,”

Due to the very strong customer demand for Sharklets, all Airbus’ single-aisle final assembly lines (FALs) will be engaged in building A320 Family aircraft with Sharklets. These FALs are located in Toulouse (France), Hamburg (Germany) and Tianjin (China) and will soon be followed by an additional A320 FAL in Mobile, Alabama (USA).

Sharklets are an option on new-build A320 Family aircraft and offer operators the option of an additional 100 nautical miles range or increased payload capability of up to 450 kilograms. Sharklets are standard on all members of the A320neo Family.

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IndiGo becomes first Indian airline to operate A320 with Sharklets. First globally with IAE V2500 engines.

As reported by Bangalore Aviation last month, India's largest domestic airline, IndiGo, has taken delivery of its first Sharklet fitted A320 aircraft, registration VT-IFH, and thus becomes the first Indian carrier, and third globally to operate this new version of the A320 aircraft. IndiGo is the first carrier globally to operate a Sharklet fitted A320 powered by the IAE V2500 engine, since the first two operators, Malaysia's AirAsia and Philippines' Cebu Pacific power their A320s with CFM engines.

Sharklets are newly designed wing-tip devices that improve the aircraft’s aerodynamics and significantly cut the airline’s fuel burn and emissions by four per cent on longer sectors. The devices are named Sharklets since they resemble the dorsal fins of sharks. In the high tax, high cost aviation fuel, environment of India, the improved fuel burn is highly desired.

It appears, all future new A320s inducted into the IndiGo fleet will be equipped with Sharklets. The next A320 aircraft of IndiGo, MSN5460 which will become VT-IFI, and had its first flight last Thursday, January 25th, is also equipped with Sharklets.

In 2005, IndiGo placed an order for 100 A320 aircraft. This was followed up in 2011, with the largest ever jet aircraft order in history, at that time, for 150 A320neo (new engine option), and 30 more A320 Classic. It appears that order has been amended to 180 A320neo and the 30 A320 Classic have been dropped.

IndiGo has a fleet of 62 A320s today, all of them fitted with the IAE V2500 engines.

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Video: Making of Cebu Pacific's first Airbus A320 Sharklet RP-C3272

Philippines, low cost carrier, Cebu Pacific Air took delivery of its first A320 equipped with Sharklets yesterday during a ceremony in Manila. Below is a quick time-lapse video on the making of the aircraft. Hope you enjoy.

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Cebu Pacific flies past IndiGo and GoAir with second global A320 with Sharklets

by Devesh Agarwal

Low cost carrier, Cebu Pacific Air beat out India's IndiGo and GoAir, to become the second operator, globally, when it took delivery of its first A320 equipped with Sharklets today during a ceremony in Manila, Philippines.

The first ever A320 with Sharklets was delivered to Malaysian low cost carrier, AirAsia, late last year.

India's IndiGo and GoAir will complete the procession of Asian low cost carriers to operate the A320 Sharklet when they take delivery of their aircraft later this quarter.

IndiGo's A320 Sharklet aircraft serial number MSN 5437 which will become VT-IFH (see photo and read story), and GoAir's A320 Sharklet MSN 5463 which will become VT-GOL (see photo) both had their first flights on January 15th.

In an exclusive interview with Bangalore Aviation, GoAir CEO Giorgio Di Roni had indicated GoAir might be the first Indian carrier to operate the A320 Sharklet. With the neck and neck progress, GoAir might even just pip IndiGo to the post.

Sharklets are newly designed wing-tip devices allowing airlines to reduce fuel burn by up to 4% on longer sectors. Sharklets are made from light-weight composites and are 2.4 meters tall. Cutting airlines’ fuel bills by around four percent, Sharklets offer the flexibility to A320 Family operators of either adding around 100 nautical miles more range or allowing increased payload capability of up to 450 kilogrammes.

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IndiGo will be first operator in India to receive A320 with Sharklets. Update 1 - First flight conducted

by Devesh Agarwal

A week ago, Airbus S.A.S. rolled out an A320 aircraft serial number MSN 5437 from its assembly line. This aircraft is destined to become Indian budget carrier IndiGo's first 'Sharklet' equipped A320 VT-IFH, and when delivered only the second airline aircraft in the world to be fitted with the new fuel saving large wing-tip device.

Photo copyright Gerd Bielfuss. Used with permission. Do not copy or reproduce.

Sharklets are Airbus' answer to the large wing-tip devices already found on the Boeing 737NG family i.e. 737-700, 737-800, and 737-900ER.

'Sharklets', so named, since they resemble the dorsal fin of a shark, are made from light-weight composites and are 2.4 metres tall and are designed to reduce fuel burn and emissions by improving the aerodynamics of the aircraft significantly. Over a longer flight, they are expected to improve fuel burn by 3.5% - 4%. Sharklets offer airline-operators the option of enhancing the performance of their A320s, either by adding around 100 nautical miles more range or allowing increased payload capability of up to 450 kilogrammes.

The first 'Sharklet' equipped A320 was delivered to Malaysian low cost carrier, AirAsia, less than a week ago on December 21. (Click here to see a video).

Hopefully we shall see VT-IFH grace the Indian skies in January.

Update 1 - January 17, 2013.

MSN 5437 conducted its first flight successfully on January 15th.

Photo copyright Gerd Bielfuss. Used with permission. Do not copy or reproduce.

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Video: The first Sharklet equipped Airbus A320 is delivered to AirAsia

A well made video showing off the first Wingtip device (called Sharklets) fitted A320, which was delivered to AirAsia.

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Exclusive interview: Giorgio De Roni - CEO GoAir - Part 1: GoAir is profitable

Over the last 18 months, the soft spoken Giorgio De Roni has been quietly turning around the Wadia family promoted GoAir. From a rock bottom position, dismal market share, and reputation for frequent cancellations, De Roni has grown GoAir to surpass Kingfisher Airlines and JetLite in market share, and made GoAir a contender in the Indian airline industry, with the confidence to place large orders for 72 Airbus A320neo aircraft.

In a broad ranging two-on-one interview, Devesh Agarwal and Vinay Bhaskara spoken to De Roni. During the interview, De Roni dispelled the misconception that IndiGo is the only profitable airline in India.

GoAir is profitable, and this profit is achieved purely by operations, without the income from sale and lease back of aircraft.

In the first of this two part report, we cover the financial and strategic aspects of the interview.

Q: In March this year, at India Aviation, Mr. Dinesh Keskar was saying that India is having "profitless growth." Airlines were experiencing growth in passenger numbers but profits were very hard to come by. In less than 3-4 months, growth has stagnated, but profits are there. What are your thoughts on this odd situation?

My thoughts are that the industry should not operate below cost of production. Unfortunately the situation in the past in India was that most competitors were more interested in market share rather than profit. So I more than welcome the shift in strategy from most of my competitors. And this has brought fares in line with costs, and in fact we have been able to deliver a profit for the first quarter.

Q: Any numbers you could share?

No, not really, we are not a listed company and as a policy, we do not share our results. I can say, that I am relatively satisfied of the results. The net profit was in percentage terms higher than IATA average, and differently from some of my competitors, it was purely reached by operational factors; so by revenue from passengers, and not from non-operational sources [referring to sale and leaseback income and other non passenger sources of revenue]. I never comment on my competitors, I try to learn from them…. And it’s [Sale and lease-back income] not something that only happens in India.

Editor’s Note: The IATA figure is 1.4%. Since GoAir’s figures came purely from passenger revenues, they outperformed the passenger figures at both SpiceJet and Jet Airways.

Q: You were mentioning your fellow competitors. If you look over the past year at your fellow LCC competitors, both SpiceJet and IndiGo have pursued a rather aggressive growth in their own form. SpiceJet has been going into virgin territory withthe Q400 in to Tier II and Tier III markets, and IndiGo has been adding a new A320 literally every 3 weeks; and they have gained a lot by the implosion or the contraction, of Kingfisher. However, GoAir has pursued a very modest growth path. In fact we think you’ve added only one aircraft net in the last year.

In this financial year we added two net aircraft. One in April and one in August, with a third one coming in January 2013. Yes, we have a more cautious approach to growth. We are exclusively targeting profitability and not really market share. We do have an ambitious expansion plan, and in fact last year we ordered 72 A320neos.

So we are committed to better serve the country. I think that we had some advantage in being a small carrier last year. Our losses were limited. It’s an airline 100% owned by the [Wadia] family . They are committed to the airline business, but I feel personally that we can grow only if we deliver profit. So I would prefer to deliver a profit and remain small as opposed to growing rapidly and having challenges on the bottom-line.

Q: Could you describe what trends you’ve seen in the unit PRASK revenues (passenger revenue per available seat kilometer) in the past several months, because we do know that SpiceJet recorded PRASK growth of more than 17% and Jet Airways recorded PRASK growth of more than 15% on its domestic network. Are you seeing similar numbers?

Yes, I would say that we are pretty satisfied of the [PRASK] growth. What is inconvenient is that the cost structure also suffered a significant increase. Airport charges increased due to the devaluation of the rupee against the dollar, fuel prices increased heavily. Since September 1st, I think we reached the historical peak of the cost of fuel in India, which is not the case in other parts of the world. So I just wonder how we structure the cost of fuel in India versus other geographical areas.

Q: Is it possible for you to share in percentage terms roughly the breakup of costs at GoAir?

Fuel costs are about 50%, more precisely it might reach around 55% of our total cost now with fuel at Rs. 72 per litre? That is the figure I remember most clearly, because it is a huge amount. I would say that the cost of personnel is pretty efficient, also because the most expensive community, the pilots are pretty well utilized with more than 900 hours per year, the cap being 1,000 per year in India. Certainly we are suffering from the weakness of the Rupee as far as lease rentals and maintenance costs are concerned; due to the fact that maintenance is performed primarily with US dollars.

Q: And you did mention airport charges?

Of course airport charges are huge. You are aware that Delhi Airport increased charges by 334%. It was a number that did not meet their expectation of a 700% increase. But I’m challenging anyone to find any other airport in the world with such a huge increase year by year.

And this is a serious concern.

Of course when we say that fares have increased year over year, we have to consider that we have to shift to the customer the burden of increasing costs. Because we cannot absorb any increase in costs, we have to transfer them to the customer. What is the result? The result is that volume and demand have decreased, as the data in June and July have shown.

So I don’t think that the way airports keep growing their costs and increase their inefficiency is smart. At the end of the day, they suffer due to a decrease in demand.

Q: Can you give us a brief financial outlook for the next year, and then maybe 3 years out?

Well I can tell you that we forecast to achieve a profit at the end of the year. Of course the first quarter was positive. The second quarter was the weakest from a cyclical point of view of the financial year, so we are definitely suffering. That said, for the entirety of the year, I am relatively confident that we will deliver a profit.

Q: What do you assume will be your revenue growth over the next one and three years, relative to 2011-12?

Well what is important to us is to remain flexible. Although we have a purchase order for roughly 80 aircraft between today and 2020, we should bear in mind that if the market is not growing, if there are turbulences, we have to be more flexible and be cautious. Or if the market offers more opportunities, we have the flexibility to take more aircraft and our part of the growth.

Q: Do you currently have any purchase options for the A320neo?

We don’t have options at the moment. 72 A320neo and the 7 remaining A320 classic orders are all firm. Anyway you know that there is a sort of over-production of narrow-body aircraft. And it’s not really a problem to add aircraft if the market requires.

Q: How do you think valuations in the used market are looking as both the 737MAX and A320neo are coming closer to delivery? Are you finding any impact on the secondary markets?

The residual value will be impacted definitely. We still have to see whether those manufacturers will deliver as per the schedule, or if, as it is normally, there might be some delays. But the impact on the present values might be negative.

Q: GoAir has selected the PurePower (Pratt and Whitney GTF) engine for the A320neo. And we’ve heard that CFM has not quite been able to deliver on the performance parameters of the LEAP-X?

I would disagree. First of all, we are very satisfied with CFM engines for the current fleet. Then, as I told you a few minutes ago, I don’t want to go for over-promising. And I don’t like my providers to over-promise. And since I’m not commenting on my competitors, I don’t understand why my provider comments on their competitors. They are free to do whatever they like.

[Editor's note: Our source of information on the LEAP-X engine is not Pratt and Whitney]

Q: So can you talk about some of the factors that drove your decision to purchase the PurePower engine?

So we did an overall evaluation from a financial and technical point of view and in the end we found Pratt and Whitney’s proposal to be better. But this is not to say that we are not satisfied with the present [CFM] engines that we have on our fleet.

Q: You did mention aircraft program delays briefly. And since both Boeing and Airbus have had trouble with delays recently on the 787 and A350 programs respectively, how concerned are you about delays [on deliveries].

We are among the first carriers in the world to receive the A320neo in the first quarter of 2016. So far, I do not expect any delays. But we aware that in new aircraft, some delays might happen. Although, considering that 95% of the airframe is common to the current airframe, and considering that the same engine technology will be utilized on other aircraft in the next year, I feel relatively confident that Airbus will be able to deliver the aircraft as per schedule. You are aware that anyhow that we have current engine A320s on order, and so we are not really planning for an environment with delays. But it might happen.

Q: Will GoAir be adding Sharklets to its A320 classic fleet?

Yes, our next [A320] delivery in January will be with Sharklets. In fact, I think we will be among the first airlines to have sharklets; most probably the first in India, though it’s not really a race against IndiGo.

[Editor's note: Sharklets are new wingtip devices fitted on the A320 family aircraft]

Q: Has Airbus indicated the possibility of retroffiting sharklets?

Yes they have. There is no clear picture on the cost involved and the time-frame of grounding the aircraft. As soon as they come out with a final picture, we will evaluate. We are keen to reduce fuel burn, both for savings and for the pollution reason.

Q: What sort of numbers are you looking at in terms of fuel burn reduction from the Sharklets?

Based on our network, we are looking at something around 1.5% savings.

Q: And what about the A320neo?

On paper, they [Airbus] say that there will be a saving in the range of 15%. That would be a great achievement.

Q: Your order for 72 A320neos have a list price of almost $5.6 billion dollars, which will require around $280 million in upfront financing costs. How is GoAir planning to pay for this order?

[De Roni laughs] Your calculation is pretty precise.

We are well funded. If there are opportunities in the market we will consider them carefully, but there is no concern [about paying for the aircraft].

Q: So there is no feeling at GoAir that it is time to turn to the public market with an IPO?

Well inside the company last year, there was a project to develop an IPO. It was not pursued due to the overall position of the market. We are open, but that is a question that needs to be asked of the chief shareholder. I will say that overall we are comfortable with the funding for the next set of deliveries.

Stay tuned for Part 2 of this interesting interview. Comments and feedback are always welcome.

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Video and photos: Airbus A320 Sharklets flying display at ILA Berlin 2012 show

Courtesy Airbus S.A.S. enjoy photos and a video of the first production A320 fitted with Sharklets wing-tip devices. This aircraft is due to be delivered to Malaysian low cost carrier AirAsia after certification.

Airbus Test Pilot Christophe Cail takes you along for the ride during a flight presentation with a Sharklet-equipped A320 jetliner, providing step-by-step commentary during this aircraft’s flying display at the 2012 ILA Berlin Air Show.

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Video: AirAsia to be first operator of Airbus A320 fitted with 'Sharklets' wing-tips

Malaysian low cost carrier AirAsia, the world’s largest customer for the Airbus A320, will become the first operator ‘Sharklets’ fitted A320s when they take delivery of the first A320 equipped with these fuel-saving wing-tip devices at the end of this year.

The carrier has ordered a total of 375 single aisle aircraft, comprising 200 A320neo and 175 A320ceo, of which 103 have been delivered to date.

The first Indian carrier to operate the 'Sharklet' A320 remains a toss-up between IndiGo and GoAir, though the latter is thought to have the edge.

See a video of the ceremony below.

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Photo: First new-build Airbus A320 equipped with Sharklets

Airbus has produced the first new-build A320 with Sharklets. Photographed at its roll-out in Toulouse, MSN 5098 will be one of several A320 family aircraft in the certification flight-test campaign starting in May this year and lasting around 600 flight hours.

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VIDEOS: Fitting the wingtip Sharklets on the A320 and its first flight

On Wednesday Airbus completed the first flight of its 'Sharklet' equipped A320 test-bed aircraft. Two videos on the subject for your Friday viewing pleasure.

The first one shows how the new wingtip devices are fit on to the aircraft, and the second covers the first flight itself.

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