Royal Brunei Airlines (BI, Bandar Seri Begawan) has taken delivery of its first of seven A320neo on order from Airbus (AIB, Toulouse Blagnac). V8-RBA (msn 8231) was positioned to Bandar Seri Begawan from Toulouse Blagnac via Dubai World Central and Bangkok Suvarnabhumi over the course of May 24/25.
The CFM International LEAP-1A-powered twinjet is configured with 150 seats - 12 in business, 18 in economy plus, and 120 in economy class - and will be deployed into service on June 7 with Singapore Changi its inaugural destination.
"The new aircraft also plays an important role in maintaining and enhancing our operational capabilities," CEO Karam Chand said in a statement. "The A320neo provides RB with a low-risk option to spearhead its entry into new mid-range markets of up to seven hours flying-time for which we will announce new routes in the coming months."
As part of its fleet renewal programme, Royal Brunei expects the entire complement of seven A320neo, as well as its fifth B787-8, to be delivered by the end of the year. The state-owned carrier also has options for three more A320neo and has said in the past that it is considering converting these options to the A321neo(LR).
Royal Brunei also operates six A320ceo averaging 10 years of age. Overall, it serves 18 destinations in 13 countries spanning Thailand, Indonesia, China, the United Arab Emirates, Australia, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, the Philippines, and Vietnam.
