The news services down here are saying that the A320s/A321s will no be purchased but will be leased. Figures which I am sure were quoted were 20 initially, with an additional 10 later on (maybe). Also, I had to laugh at the report below saying "with government support". With government support a long time ago, Ansett would still be flying in pretty much the old guise....not this shameful excuse for what they are calling Ansett today. ----- Original Message ----- From: Bill Hough To: AIRLINE@LISTSERV.CUNY.EDU Sent: Monday, February 11, 2002 3:28 AM Subject: SF Gate: Investment group behind Ansett agrees to buy 30 Airbus jets The bad news just doesn't stop. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This article was sent to you by someone who found it on SF Gate. The original article can be found on SFGate.com here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/news/archive/2002/02/10/f= inancial1214EST0005.DTL ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunday, February 10, 2002 (AP) Investment group behind Ansett agrees to buy 30 Airbus jets (02-10) 09:14 PST PARIS (AP) -- The investment firm behind troubled Australian airline Ansett has agreed to buy 30 Airbus A320 family airliners and take an option on another ten, Airbus said Sunday. Investment group Tesna, who the airline's administrators chose to run the company, signed a memorandum of understanding under which the jets will be delivered in the second half of 2002, Airbus said. "I have confidence that this acquisition provides the basis for Ansett to grow and prosper in an extremely competitive and growing market," Tesna co-chairman Solomon Lew said in the statement. The order will involve a mix of A320 and A321 aircraft, Airbus said. The A320 can carry about 150 passengers, while the A321 has a maximum capacity for 220 passengers. Airbus did not indicate the value of the deal, but the A320 has a catalog price of between $55.4 million and $59 million, while the A321 has a price of between $67.9 and $72 million, an Airbus spokeswoman said. Ansett, Australia's second-biggest carrier, was put into voluntary administration in September and was later grounded under the weight of heavy debts, throwing most of its 16,000 employees out of work. With government support, Ansett's administrators managed to get some planes back into the air and chose the Tesna consortium to buy a new slimmed-down version of the carrier. Toulouse, France-based Airbus is a European plane-making consortium and the top rival to Chicago-based Boeing in the market for commercial jets. On the Net: www.airbus.com www.ansett.com =20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2002 AP