Xiamen Airlines welcomes its first Airbus aircraft in Xiamen, East China’s Fujian Province on January 1, 2023. Photo: Courtesy of Airbus

Xiamen Airlines, which has previously relied on Boeing, welcomed its very first Airbus aircraft, an A321neo in Fujian, East China’s Fujian Province, on Sunday.

The plane, which is on lease from CMB Financial Leasing, is the 211th aircraft for the carrier.

The company said it plans to put the aircraft for commercial flying in the spring of this year, and will cover the routes flying for Beijing Daxing International Airport, Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport and Chengdu Tianfu International Airport in Southwest China’s Sichuan Province.

Xiamen Airlines’ A321neo aircraft is powered by CFM International LEAP-1A engines and configured in a high comfort two-class layout with 208 seats, with eight in Business Class and 200 in Economy Class. The cabin features 60 percent larger overhead bins for added personal storage.

With this visionary decision, the aircraft is believed to benefit Xiamen Airlines for regional flying for the layout of around 200 seats, and our next step is to help the airline fly the aircraft well, said George XU, EVP of Airbus & CEO of Airbus China.

Xiamen Airlines has mainly relied on Boeing since its establishment in 1984. Currently, it has a total of 210 Boeing aircraft, including the 737 series, 787 series and 757 series. As a result, Xiamen Airlines is the largest Boeing fleet airline in China.

In the past three years, the fleet size of Xiamen Airlines has barely grown. The annual report of China Southern Airlines said that as of the end of 2019, Xiamen Airlines had 206 Boeing aircraft.

Market watchers said Xiamen Airlines may be facing insufficient capacity as some of its Boeing aircraft are grounded and the deliveries of new aircraft are still uncertain. 

The introduction of brand-new aircraft models is a milestone for the airline’s future development strategy, said Xiamen Airlines.

Xiamen Airlines welcomes its first Airbus aircraft in Xiamen, East China’s Fujian Province on January 1, 2023. Photo: Courtesy of Airbus

 

Xiamen Airlines welcomes its first Airbus aircraft in Xiamen, East China’s Fujian Province on January 1, 2023. Photo: Courtesy of Airbus

 
Xiamen Airlines said it reached a preliminary cooperation intention with Airbus as early as 2019, and signed the first purchase contract for 40 A320 series aircraft in September of 2022, in a bid to gradually promote the structural adjustment and optimization of the fleet.

The 40 jets will be delivered between 2024 and 2027, said China Southern Airlines, which owns 55 percent of Xiamen Airlines, according to the filing posted on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

The introduction of this Airbus aircraft for Xiamen Airlines helps for a stable expansion of fleet size, Qi Qi, an independent market watcher, told the Global Times on Sunday. 

The Chinese aviation market has seen a gradual recovery in recent months, and the Civil Aviation Administration of China said at the end of 2022 that it will lift COVID-19 travel restrictions from January 8, vowing to restore international passenger traffic, subdued for three years due to the pandemic, which also gives confidence for the manufacturers. 

China is a huge aviation market, and I have confidence in the market, especially after China has optimized its COVID-19 response, Xu from Airbus told the Global Times on Sunday, adding that it will also cut the delivery cost for the manufacturing. 

As of the cooperation between China and Europe, Xu said there will be many opportunities for cooperation in the industry chain, as some Chinese manufacturers have already shown very good competitiveness, no matter from the quality and cost competitiveness standpoints.

“We hope to strengthen cooperation with the Chinese aviation industry chain,” Xu said.

China Aviation Supplies Holding Company signed a General Terms Agreement with Airbus to buy 140 aircraft in November of 2022. The deal includes 132 A320 series aircraft and eight A350 aircraft, with a total value of about $17 billion.