- Jul 23, 2024
- 5863
Drukair commits to fleet renewal and expands network from 2030
Drukair signs MoU with Airbus to acquire A320neo and A321XLR aircraft
Drukair - Royal Bhutan Airlines, the national flag carrier of the Kingdom of Bhutan, a fully owned subsidiary of the state holding company Druk Holding and Investments Limited (DHI) commits to His Majesty Jigme Khesar Wangchuck vision of the Gelephu Mindfulness City, and has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Airbus for 3 A320neo and 2 A321XLR aircraft to expand its international network in line with His Majesty's vision of a vibrant economy spurring from the creating of the new city.
The new aircraft are anticipated to start delivery in 2030. The airline plans to fly these aircraft out of Paro International Airport and the new airport at Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC). The new airport at GMC will be situated on a plain and thus allow these aircrafts to be better ultizied to their perfomance capabilities and allow Drukair to expand its connectivity to Europe, South East Asia and Australia. Currently, at Paro Internatonal Airport, the aircraft are subjected to necessary load penalty of 50% due to the high peaks surrounding the airport and the lack of instrument landings while the aircraft meander thru the Paro valley prior to landing. Only a limited number of pilots are permitted to land at Paro Airport at the moment.
Drukair already operates four Airbus A320 Family aircraft consisting of three A319s and one A320. She also operated an ATR42-600 and 2 Airbus H130 helicopters. Drukair currently flies from Paro to 10 international destinations like Singapore, Bangkok, Delhi and Kathmandu.
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