Qantas to expand its air fleet through mass leasing

AUSTRALIAN flag carrier Qantas plans to lease five more Boeing 737-800s and extend leases on two B737-800s, lease another ten Airbus A320s and extend the leases on eleven A320s. It will also lease an A330-200 for Jetstar, purchase ten Fokker 100s for Network Aviation and lease two extra B717s for QantasLink.


From now until the end of its 2013 fiscal year, Qantas plans to expand its domestic international fleet to support "ongoing growth and operational efficiencies."


"Today we are announcing significant moves that will build on this strength and meet our strategic needs in the short to medium across, particularly, in the domestic and Asian markets," said CEO Alan Joyce.


Mr Joyce said that with the domestic Australian market continuing a strong post-downturn recovery and growth, the carrier will need additional capacity to meet the expected growth.


He added the group currently has thirty-three B737-800s on order, with the first of these aircraft scheduled to be delivered April to serve domestic routes.
(Source:http://www.schednet.com)