Angola’s TAAG has revealed the cabin configuration of the Airbus A220-300s that it will be introducing into its fleet starting in 2024. At the Paris Airshow, the carrier signed a raft of agreements for a total of nine A220s from three different lessors, adding to the six ordered during the Farnborough Airshow last July. TAAG Angola confirms more Airbus A220 leases.
The airline says that the aircraft will be configured with 142 seats, of which twelve are Business Class and 130 in Economy. Deliveries under the long-term dry lease agreements with Aviation Capital Group, Azorra, NAC, and Air Lease Corporation will run from April 2024 to 2025. The aircraft are for fleet renewal and growth TAAG chief Eduardo Fairen, CEO said in a statement on June 21.
“Adding the A220 is a demonstration of TAAG’s ambition for modernization and growth as the company is building a versatile fleet able to address market demand under the airline’s expansion plan with new routes and frequencies increase.”
The carrier also explained that it opted for dry-lease over outright purchase because the “lease agreement format is the most agile and financially sustainable model complying with the company’s current context. From a local content empowerment perspective, the aircraft will have an Angolan crew and an in-country maintenance program, while proper training will be provided to the staff.”
Founded in 1938, eighty-year-old TAAG Angola Airlines serves a network of fourteen domestic and thirteen international destinations. It operates scheduled services to Brazil and Cuba and is supported by a strong medical exchange program.
Although the acquisitions were not directly from Airbus, Mikail Houari, President for Africa and the Middle East of Airbus, described the A220s as “perfectly suited to the requirements of the African market and the ideal choice for TAAG, as it expands its footprint on the continent and beyond.”
TAAG currently operates a 22-aircraft fleet made up of five Boeing 777-300ERs, three -200ERs, six 737-700s, and five De Havilland Canada Dash-8 400s.
