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Malaysia to buy superjumbos
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Malaysian Airline System, the state-controlled airline, agreed on Friday to buy 6 Airbus A380 superjumbos for $1.5 billion. Airbus, which is challenging Boeing's 30-year stranglehold on the jumbo market, on Friday declined to comment on the exact price of the deal as discounts are routine. The 555-seat A380 superjumbo will be the world's biggest passenger aircraft when it rolls out in 2006 and each plane sells for more than $240 million. "Deliveries to Malaysia Airlines are scheduled to begin in 2007. Current planning will see the airline operate the A380s on key trunk routes,'' said Airbus, which is owned by European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co and Britain's BAE Systems. Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's government took over the assets and debts of Malaysian Airlines in an effort to revive the struggling airline. The latest deal should help the airline to reduce costs. "We are very well positioned in the region and combined with the encouraging traffic growth on our flagship long-haul routes, slot constraints in our key destinations and the A380's expected cost advantages, we believe there is a strong economic rationale for this addition to the fleet,'' said Malaysian Airline managing director Mohamad Nor Yusof. The airline is most likely to use A380s on routes between Australia and London via Kuala Lumpur. Malaysian Airline is now the third A380 customer in the Asia Pacific region, after Australia's Qantas Airways and Singapore Airlines. "This purchase meets our requirements for the future and we expect the A380s to become a key part of our fleet,'' said Penerbangan Malaysia Bhd, the parent company of Malaysian Airline System. Airbus now has 103 orders for the passenger and cargo version of the A380 superjumbos. But analysts have said the jet maker needs to sell between 250 and 300 for the project to breakeven. Malaysia is the tenth customers for the A380 programme.
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