CebuPac beefs up fleet

CEBU Pacific Air, the country’s biggest budget airline, is looking to at least double its fleet of short-range aircraft as it placed an order for next-generation planes from French-Italian plane maker ATR during the Paris Air show.

In a statement, Cebu Pacific said it had ordered for 16 ATR72-600 planes while sealing an option for another 10 aircraft. The 26 planes have a list price of $673 million, the statement showed. Cebu Pacific said aircraft deliveries would start in the third quarter of 2016.

“We have been operating ATR aircraft since 2008, and they have enabled us to bring safe, reliable, and affordable air transport to smaller cities and islands throughout the Philippines,” Cebu Pacific CEO Lance Gokongwei said in the statement.

The order is part of Cebu Pacific’s fleet renewal program. The airline currently operates a fleet of eight ATR 72-500 aircraft, which will be retired as the new aircraft enter service. This is part of its fleet of 55 planes as of the end of March, composed mainly of mid-range Airbus A319s and A320s, as well as the long-range A330s.