Malaysia Airlines to use six A380s for Hajj
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Malaysia Airlines has revealed plans to use six surplus Airbus A380 superjumbos to form the core of a fleet of 700-seat jets dedicated to transporting Muslim travellers on the annual hajj pilgrimage to Mecca.
The carrier’s CEO Peter Bellew has met with Airbus’s senior management in Toulouse, France, last week to discuss details of the plan.
Establishing a religious-focused charter operation is attractive because it would offer guaranteed revenues and predictable fares, passenger numbers and plane requirements, according to Bellew, who also looked at selling the A380s to Chinese airlines. The week-long Hajj and year-round Umrah pilgrimage could employ 20 superjumbos within five years and Bellew said the business might also tap further aircraft coming off lease or unwanted by other carriers.
“This is a huge, huge global movement of people,” Bellew said. “We’ve done a lot of homework and the figures are adding up.” The operation could be given a name and formally launched before the end of the year, he added.
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