Hong Kong Airlines orders nine Airbus A330 jets in US$2.3 billion deal

Hong Kong Airlines said on Thursday it has ordered nine Airbus A330 widebody jets with a total list price of US$2.3 billion.

The airline said the new A330-300 aircraft purchased from Airbus would be used across its network in Asia and beyond.

“Today’s announcement underscores our plan to operate an extensive regional network in Asia,” said Zhang Kui, president of Hong Kong Airlines.

Hong Kong airlines operates an all-Airbus fleet made up of 11 A320s, 22 A330s and 5 A330-200 and is set to expand this to 50 aircraft with deliveries in 2018.

The airline flies to 30 destinations in Asia Pacific and will launch flights to Auckland, New Zealand in November.

The news comes after Singapore Airlines said it would not renew the lease on the first two-deck A380 it leased when the contract for the plane expires in October 2017.