Mar. 19 – In a sure sign that the battle for Asian air passengers is heating up, Indonesia-based budget air carrier Lion Air recently signed a US$24 billion deal with Airbus to purchase 234 A320 aircraft over the next decade. Included in the purchase are the current A320 aircraft and the soon to be introduced A320neo aircraft. The deal comes as a direct challenge to AirAsia, a Malaysia-based budget carrier that is currently the regions largest budget operator.
John Leahy, Airbus’s chief salesman, stated that Airbus had always wanted to be a dominant player in Indonesia, a country of 17,000 islands and 240 million people. Lion had also already signed off on a deal with Boeing last year for 230 Boeing 737’s worth about US$22.4billion.
Surging demand, especially in Asia has lifted both Boeing and Airbus in recent years, and the acquisition of over 500 aircraft by Lion in the last six months is a sign of things to come.
