Garuda Indonesia Cancels A330neo Order

The Airbus A330-800, part of the broader A330neo programme, continues to experience substantial struggles after another reported order cancellation.

Garuda Indonesia, one of the few airlines to commit to the A330-800, has now, according to Aviation Week, cancelled an order for the type.

The relatively small order was for just the four units from this variant; however, it represented one of the only still-standing orders for this out-of-four variant.

Garuda Indonesia already flies the A330neo series, focusing on the more popular -900. Fleet data indicates the airline has three of these to its name, with one unit listed as parked.

The A330neos average an age of 5 years in the Garuda fleet, with the jets 10 years younger than the A330ceos, which the -200 and -300 still feature.

A commitment for the A330-800 came just before the global pandemic when the company had already secured deals for the A330-900 and was delivering them that year.

The A330-900 deal included 12 units, but fleet data indicates Garuda’s A330neo operation has delivered just three units, all in the same year.

Garuda’s Letter Of Intent (LOI) for the A330-800 was placed in 2019, but now, that intent appears to be no more, and the airline is looking elsewhere.

Reporting indicates that Garuda Indonesia is still interested in acquiring additional widebody aircraft. However, it believes that entering the leasing market is a more suitable option for sourcing additional aircraft.

Interestingly, this means that all things considered, Garuda Indonesia already has a solution in mind. However, the ramifications for Airbus and the A330-800 as a variant are seemingly more so.

The A330-800 remains a highly unfavourable aircraft type in the Airbus programme and struggles to attract any firm interest. Any customer seeking the A330neo will almost always head to the A330-900, with the mere mention of the -800 not even coming up.

The state of the A330-800s is often comparable to that of the 777-8. However, the latter benefits from the doubt that it remains unbuilt and uncertified.

Since the variant’s conception, the -800 has struggled to attract market interest and is only looking to continue.