Airline News
Report: Delta looking to acquire ex-SIA 777s for Asian growth
October 23rd 2015
Delta Air Lines chief, Richard Anderson, made the headlines last week, and sent the shares of Airbus and Boeing temporarily tumbling, after he warned of a surplus of second-hand widebodies, raising concerns about manufacturer ability to command good prices for new aircraft. Read More »
The low fuel prices have encouraged some airlines to think twice about spending on new fuel-saving models. Anderson, whose airline has recently ordered both second-hand and new planes, told a conference call on last Wednesday the used wide-body market was a "bubble" and "ripe" for purchases by Delta over the next 12 to 36 months. This would be a trademark move for Delta, having acquired significant parts of its fleet second-hand in the past. This Week in Asia-Pacific Aviation understands that Delta is considering the purchase of up to twelve ex-Singapore Airlines B777-200ERs to expand its growing presence in the Asia-Pacific region, fortified this summer with the acquisition of a 3.55% stake in China Eastern Airlines, and the carrier’s recent request to the U.S. Department of Transportation to return the slot at Tokyo’s Haneda recently released back to American Airlines.
Delta’s partner, Virgin Atlantic Airways, is also looking to acquire around 20 777s.
Meanwhile, Atlanta-headquartered Delta has reported a third-quarter net profit of $1.34 billion, more than tripling net income of $357 million in the year-ago period, on total third-quarter revenue of $11.11 billion, down 1% year-on-year. Responding to the revenue performance, Delta will keep system capacity flat in the fourth quarter and it provided guidance for growing system capacity between 0% and 2% in 2016
