Airbus in talks with Malaysia airlines for its A220 planes

[KUALA LUMPUR] European planemaker Airbus is holding talks with airlines in Malaysia for its A220 aircraft, state news agency Bernama said on Monday (May 19), citing a top company executive.

Airbus sees potential for the A220 in Malaysia, where about 150 of its other commercial planes operate, said Anand Stanley, the firm’s Asia-Pacific president, and it expects about 400 further orders for future delivery, the agency said.

“We see a lot of potential demand coming from Malaysia,” the agency quoted Stanley as saying. “We are still only in conversations, but we do hope, even though I cannot comment on timing, that we can see the A220 in Malaysia.”

The South-east Asian nation is the third-largest market for Airbus in the Asia-Pacific region, after China and India, Stanley added.

Budget airline AirAsia was already a major customer of the firm’s A320 and A330 planes, while Malaysia Airlines operates a widebody fleet of Airbus jets, he said.

The report did not say which airlines Airbus was in talks with, however.

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Last month Malaysia Airlines’ parent company Malaysia Aviation Group said it was expecting 20 new Airbus A330neo wide-body jets by 2028, with two in service and eight more expected this year.

This month Airbus said its deliveries this year stood at 192 aircraft, down 5 per cent from the same point in 2024. It also reaffirmed a target of 820 commercial deliveries for the whole year, up 7 per cent, despite delays in receiving engines. REUTERS