The Airbus A330 is not the flashiest plane in the sky. These days it is mostly outshone
by its glossier sibling, the Airbus A350. But since first entering service in the mid-1990s,
the A330 has proved a continuing hit for airlines and travelers. The A330 is reliable, spacious,
comfortable, and can move large numbers of people a fairly long way in a single leap.
There’s a lot to like about the plane and nowhere has the A330 proved more popular than
in the Asia-Pacific region. But why is this?
The world’s largest operator of the A330 is Turkish Airlines. But of the ten biggest
operators of the A330 type, seven of them are Asia-Pacific-based airlines. These are:
China Southern Airlines, Qantas, Cathay Pacific, China Eastern Airlines, Air China, Korean
Air, and Hainan Airlines. As of November 30, 2020, Airbus had delivered
1,506 A330s to customers worldwide. Of that total, 604 (or 42%) went to airlines based
in the Asia-Pacific region. In contrast, 359 (or 25%) went to European-based airlines and
just 100 (or 6.6% of the worldwide total) fly for North American airlines.
There are a few reasons the Airbus A330 has proved such a hit in the Asia-Pacific region.
To begin with, there are no major aircraft manufacturers based in this region. Whereas
a North American airline might naturally lean towards aircraft from Boeing because it’s
a homegrown aircraft manufacturer, there is less of that bias (implicit or otherwise)
in markets like Asia-Pacific. The popularity of the A330 in the Asia-Pacific
was also aided by the run of problems Boeing had with the development and production of
their 787 Dreamliner. While getting an aircraft from drawing board to delivery is never trouble-free,
Boeing has had far more troubles in the last couple of decades than Airbus has when it
comes to making mid-sized planes.
For many airlines in the Asia-Pacific region, the reliable A330 seemed like a less problematic
default option.
The fast-growing Asia-Pacific aviation market is also underpinning demand for mid-sized
planes with a decent range that can switch between dense short-haul intra-Asia routes
and the inter-continental runs to Europe and the Middle East.
Around 60% of the world’s population lives in the Asia-Pacific region – four billion-plus
people all within half a day’s flying time of each other.
In addition, many of the formerly undeveloped and relatively poor countries in the region
are now developing fast and incomes are rising. It’s a potent mix of factors to underpin
an aviation market.
However, it has not been smooth sailing when it comes to the A330 and the Asia-Pacific
region lately. The 2020 crisis has left a number of Asian
airlines, particularly low-cost-airlines, in deep financial strife.
Many of these airlines have big A330 orders and the future of many of those orders is
now up in the air. Embattled AirAsia X has 78 A330-900s on order with Airbus or about
25% of their total A330neo orders. The collapse of that order would be a serious blow to Airbus.
With so many people now on the move in the Asia-Pacific region, the A330 has come into
its own. For example, the plane works just as well
for Garuda Indonesia on a short hop between domestic Denpasar and Jakarta as it does on
their flights to Europe. The flexibility and reliability of the A330 underpin its appeal
to so many airlines from the Asia-Pacific region.
What do you think? Are you a fan of the A330? Post a comment and let us know.