Colombian national carrier Avianca has taken delivery of the first of its 15 787 Dreamliners
The airline has orders for 15 787s in total and had expected four to be delivered by end 2014.
The 787 is a return to Boeing for Avianca. The airline had always been mainly a Boeing customer until recent years when they purchased more than 100 Airbus jets.
Avianca’s Boeing 787-8 will carry 28 passengers in business class and 222 in economy class. Passengers in both classes will also experience cabin environment improvements made possible on the 787 such as dynamic LED lighting, the largest windows, bigger overhead bins, a lower cabin altitude, a more humid environment, low interior noise, cleaner air and a smoother ride.
Fabio Villegas Ramirez, Avianca President and CEO:
“The addition of the first Boeing 787-8 to Avianca’s fleet is a milestone for commercial aviation and for our airline, which strives to bring the most advanced aviation technology to our passengers. With this aircraft, we continue to fulfill the dream this company has had from the beginning: To make better and better connections between Latin America and the world, while giving our customers more enjoyable flights aboard airplanes designed to provide the greatest comfort along with maximum operational performance.”
With 95 years in operation, Avianca is working to fly a younger fleet than ever, flying with leading-edge technology to 24 destinations in Colombia and 98 destinations in South America, North America and Europe.
Avianca fleet
Currently Avianca a fleet of more than 140 aircraft, including 104 from Airbus.
Avianca currently has :
- 10 Airbus A330
- 5 Airbus A321
- 54 Airbus A320-200
- 25 Airbus A319-100
- 10 Airbus A318-100
- 12 Embraer 190
- 9 ATR-42
- 7 ATR-72
- 10 CESSNA-208
Avianca, Air France and British Airways are currently the only airlines in the world to operate every variant of the Airbus A320 family.
Avianca has previously used Boeing 720, 707, 727, 737, 747, 757 and 767 aircraft and also MD-83 and Fokker.
N.B. Image credit: boeing.com
