July 5 they (XR) are saying delivery of A320 with some contract support from FMG and plans for some international routes...
Airlines boost fleets for next rescources boom
GEOFFREY THOMAS AVIATION EDITOR, The West Australian
December 14, 2009, 5:39 am
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WAN / Sandie Bertrand ©
Perth Airport is bracing for a rapid build up in aircraft to support the rebounding resources industry with commitments in the past week for 10 more planes.
Cobham Aviation will add five planes to support Chevron's giant Gorgon project on Barrow Island, Skywest Airlines is adding another three to bring its fleet to 19 and Alliance Airlines is adding two.
The $170 million Chevron contract has special environment conditions requiring the quarantining of passengers and the reconfiguring of aircraft to ensure no exotic insects are allowed on to the island. For the life of the contract, the planes are only able to fly for Chevron to Barrow Island.
Cobham is importing two 100-seat Avro RJ100s and will also use three 85-seat BAe146 aircraft for the contract, which will bring its fleet in Perth to 12 planes. The first RJ100 arrives in Adelaide in January for fit-out and will start operating from Perth in April.
Skywest Airlines has confirmed to _The West Australian _that it will take delivery of its eighth 46-seat Fokker 50 this week and has just committed to its 10th 100-seat Fokker 100 jet to support resources contracts.
At the same time, the airline has confirmed that its first 180-seat Airbus A320 will arrive on July 5 next year to support resources contracts.
Insiders at the airline say that this plane will be the first of an initial four, probably over 18 months, and will also enable the airline to launch services from Perth to Bali.
Skywest's fleet size - measured by seats - has trebled in the past 30 months to support the resources boom.
But Skywest Airlines and Cobham, the biggest operators of fly-in, fly-out charters, face fierce competition from Network Aviation, Skippers Aviation and Maroomba Airlines, as well as Brisbane-based Alliance Airlines and Strategic Airlines.
Alliance Airlines will add another 100-seat Fokker 100 this month and a fifth early next year to "support contracts in the pipeline," according to the airline's WA general manager Russell Bryant.
Strategic has taken over the failed OZjet's three-times-weekly Perth-Derby service and is expected to add another A320 to its Perth-based fleet next year.