News
Thai Lion receives maiden A330
December 1st 2017
The Don Mueang-based subsidiary of Lion Air Group, Thai Lion Air, has taken delivery of its maiden widebody, an A330-300. Read More » The airline has two more -300s in its books which it expected to receive before year-end, said Thai Lion CEO, Aswin Yangkirativorn.
Speaking to Thai media, the Thai Lion boss said the carrier’s first A330 would be do crew familiarization flights from Don Mueang to Chiang Mai and Phuket before being rostered on international services to North Asia – China in particular – in the first quarter of 2018.
Thai Lion operates an extensive Thai domestic network, as well as Mainland flights to Changsha, Chengdu, Chongqing, Guangzhou, Hefei, Jinan, Nanchang, Nanjing and Taiyuan.
Unlike previously reported, Thai Lion’s A330s will have a 392-seat two-class configuration. Parent Lion Air has a 440-seat, all-economy class layout on its -300s. Thai Lion Air launched in 2014. The carrier operates an A330, 17 B737-900ERs and ten B737-800s. It will induct “at least” five B737 MAX 8s from the group’s massive order backlog next year, Yangkirativorn said.
Lion Air Group ordered six A330-300s in 2014. The first three of that order have been delivered to Lion Air and operate on high-capacity domestic hops from Jakarta to Denpasar, Makassar and Medan, as well as on occasional charter flights.
The Lion Air Group has orders for 720 aircraft: six A330s, 41 A320ceo, 113 A320neo, 65 A321neo, 106 B737-900ERs, 45 B737-800s and 350 B737 MAX series aircraft.
