Taipei Times
Date: , Jul 22, 2015
By: Ted Chen / Staff reporter
EVA Airways Corp (長榮航空) yesterday signed a NT$50 billion (US$1.6 billion) deal with
EVA Air chairman Chang Kuo-wei, left, and Boeing Commercial Airplanes global sales and marketing senior vice president John Wojick laugh during a press conference in Taipei yesterday. Photo: EPA
Boeing Co to procure five new freight aircraft.
The Taiwanese carrier is expected to receive the first of five Boeing 777 Freighters in October 2017 and have all five in operation by September 2019, EVA Air chairman Chang Kuo-wei (張國煒) said.
The 777 Freighter uses about 20 percent less fuel than the older Boeing 747-400 cargo aircraft in the company’s fleet, Chang said.
He said that it is crucial for the company to modernize its fleet, as the cargo sector is beset by dwindling margins and declining transport volume.
“The Boeing 747-400 is no longer the ideal choice, as there is no longer enough demand to fill it to capacity on each flight,” Chang said, adding that the 777 Freighter’s smaller capacity of 85 to 90 tonnes affords much more flexibility. [FULL STORY]
