Cebu Air to Order 31 Airbus Jets Worth $6.8 Billion

(Bloomberg) -- Cebu Air Inc. ordered 31 aircraft from Airbus SE worth $6.8 billion as the Philippines' largest budget carrier targets an all-new fleet in five years.

The order for 16 A330neo and 15 A320neo family aircraft including 10 A321 XLR was made during the Paris Air Show, the airline owned by billionaire John Gokongwei said in a statement. The jets are scheduled for delivery from 2021 to 2026, adding to the 32 A321neo aircraft ordered in 2011 and for delivery until 2022.

Its 15 A320neo family order will include 10 A321 XLR that will have a range of up to 4,000 nautical miles and can fly for up to 11 hours, allowing the carrier to develop new markets from key cities other than Manila, the company, which now has 72 planes, said.

The A330neo will be fitted with 460 seats and will replace the A330ceo planes which will be retired. Rolls Royce will handle engine maintenance and support, it said.

``Our strategy is to replace our fleet with bigger and more fuel-efficient aircraft to fly more passengers utilizing our existing slots while reducing our environmental footprint per passenger,'' President Lance Gokongwei said in a statement.

--With assistance from Benjamin Katz and Anthony Palazzo.

To contact the reporter on this story: Cecilia Yap in Manila at cyap19@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Stephanie Phang at sphang@bloomberg.net, Clarissa Batino, Andreo Calonzo

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