Delivery of first A330 to AirAsia X marks entry of Rolls-Royce Trent into Asia’s low-cost carrier market

AirAsia X, the Kuala Lumpur based long-haul, low-cost airline, has celebrated delivery of its first Rolls-Royce Trent 700 powered A330-300 aircraft, making it the first low-cost carrier in Asia to operate Trent powered aircraft. The aircraft entered service on 2 November, flying from Kuala Lumpur to Perth (Australia).

AirAsia X has confirmed orders in place for 15 Trent 700 powered Airbus A330-300s, to be delivered over the course of the next four years. The engine business is worth over $1.3 billion at list prices, including a long-term TotalCare® service agreement.

Azran Osman-Rani, AirAsia X Chief Executive Officer, said: “The Trent 700 is the best engine choice for us on a number of levels. It will give us the widest choice of routes and the greatest revenue-earning opportunities.

”For a low-cost long-haul operation such as AirAsia X, supporting the engine with TotalCare also gives us the ability to have a predictable cost base which is crucial for us to be competitive. We are pleased and proud to be working with Rolls-Royce as we launch our new, long-range services.”

As the only engine specifically designed for the A330, the Trent 700 delivers the greatest performance over the widest range of operational and environmental conditions. It has established itself as the engine of choice on the A330, with a 52 per cent market share and over 50 customers and operators.

Mark King, President – Civil Aerospace, said: ”Rolls-Royce is extremely proud of the reputation and success of the Trent 700, which has proven itself to be an extremely capable and highly successful engine programme, both for Rolls-Royce and for A330 operators. We are now equally proud and delighted to welcome AirAsia X as the latest operator of the Trent 700 engine"

Latest technologies fed into the engine as a performance improvement package mean the Trent 700 has the lowest environmental impact of any engine on the A330. It has the lowest lifecycle fuel burn, the lowest cumulative emissions and the lowest noise levels.