PARIS: Airbus said on Tuesday that Taiwan’s EVA Air has finalized an order for 33 planes from the European aircraft maker, including 18 long-range A350-1000 planes and 15 single-aisle A321neo models. Airbus did not provide a figure but the deal could be worth as much as $8.5 billion under catalogue prices that the aerospace giant has not updated since 2018. Airbus said it has more than 1,000 firm orders from 60 customers worldwide for its A350 models.

The wide-bodied A350-1000 type can seat up to 410 passengers and travel up to 18,000 kilometers (9,700 nautical miles) non-stop. “The A350 is setting new standards across the board in terms of range, payload, fuel efficiency and passenger comfort,” Benoit de Saint-Exupery, Airbus executive vice president for sales and commercial aircraft, said in a statement.

The A321neo, part of the A320neo family, has received more than 5,600 orders since its launch in 2016. “In both size categories we have selected the most modern and fuel-efficient types, that offer the highest levels of passenger comfort,” EVA Air president Clay Sun said in the Airbus statement. Founded in 1989, EVA Air has a fleet of 86 planes. It carried 2.2 million passengers in 2022. The airline serves 61 destinations over four continents, not including Africa, according to its website. – AFP