Virgin Australia to add 4 Boeing 737 MAX 8 airplanes to service higher demand

div classBodysc17zpet90 cdBBJodivpReuters – Virgin Australia said on Friday it will add four new Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft to its fleet to meet higher demand as the airline expects to hit prepandemic domestic capacity by mid2022.p

“We are on track to return to 100 of preCOVID domestic capacity by June this year and expect to well exceed those levels by years end,” CEO Jayne Hrdlicka said.pdivdivdiv classBodysc17zpet90 cdBBJodiv

The countrys secondbiggest airline, which is now owned by U.S. private equity group Bain Capital, also saw high demand in the resources sector and in contract flying in Western Australia.p

The four new aircraft will take the airlines fleet of 737 planes to 88 and enter service early next year. In 2020, Virgin Australia restructured https:www.reuters.comarticlevirginaustraliaboeingidINL4N2IO1IP its 737 MAX order to include more of the largest 737 MAX 10 variant and had pushed back on the smaller MAX 8.

Reporting by Navya Mittal in Bengaluru Editing by Shounak Dasgupta

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