TAP Portugal signed an agreement with Airbus for 53 aircraft: 14 x A330-900neo and 39 of airplanes from the A320neo family (15 x A320neo and 24 x A321neo). The announcement was made by Atlantic Gateway, the new majority owner of the Portuguese operator. Following this agreement, TAP Portugal replaced the order for 12 A350-900 XWB aircraft with 14 A330-900neo aircraft.
NOTE: : In June 2015, the Portuguese government sold 61% of the TAP Group to Gateway (a joint venture between Azul Brazilian Airlines and Barraqueiro Group), a consortium owned by David Neeleman in partnership with Humberto Pedrosa. There is also a clause whereby Gateway can still buy 34%, but in 2018, and 5% remain with TAP employees.
The 53 of new aircraft will allow the Portuguese operator to expand its operational network, as well as to strengthen its existing routes. The two aircraft models, A330neo and A320neo, offer increased reliability, reduced operational costs and increased comfort.
Currently, the TAP Portugal fleet consists of only Airbus aircraft (21 of Airbus A319-100 aircraft; 19 Airbus aircraft A320-200, 3 x Airbus A321-200, 14 Airbus units A330-200 and 4.
Related to the model A330-900neo, it was announced in July 2014, the Farnborough International Airshow 2014. At that time, Airbus also announced A330-800neo, two new members in the Widebody aircraft family. The new airplanes will be equipped with state-of-the-art engines, the Rolls-Royce Trent 7000. At the same time, the new models will benefit from aerodynamic upgrades and cabs with new features. Deliveries for A330-900neo (on average 310 places) will start in Q4 2017, followed by 2018 entering the market with the A330-800neo model (on average 252 places).
We will return with information on the configurations of the new TAP Portugal aircraft.