Aer Lingus has signed memorandum of understanding with Sabena Technics about base maintenance and cabin refurbishment for the Irish carrier's Airbus A330 fleet. The long-haul jets will undergo heavy checks and "extensive future-proofing" at the French MRO provider's facility in Bordeaux over three winter maintenance seasons, from 2026 to 2029, Sabena Technics says. It notes that the two companies have been collaborating for nearly 20 years under a "partnership that extends from the hangar floor to senior management". "This new phase will allow us to expand our resources and facility slot capabilities to meet the demands of this complex project, which will ensure that Aer Lingus's A330s fleet continues to offer industry-leading comfort and quality into the future," states chief executive Herve Grandjean. Aer Lingus's fleet includes 12 A330-300s and three A330-200s, all powered by GE Aerospace CF6-80E1 engines, Cirium fleets data shows. The A330-300s were built in the 2006-2020 period and have an average age of 12 years, while the -200s were built between 2001 and 2007. Each of the A330-300s is configured with 30 business class seats – 10 aircraft feature Thompson Aero Vantage business seats while two have Recaro furniture – and 283-287 Recaro economy seats. The A330-200s are each equipped with 23 Vantage business and 243-258 economy seats. Cirium's ground-events data lists 11 base maintenance and three heavy checks for Aer Lingus's A330 fleet at Sabena Technics' Bordeaux site since June 2023, and one heavy check in Dublin earlier this year. Aer Lingus chief technical officer Javier Jimenez says the MRO provider's "consistent delivery, deep technical expertise, and shared commitment to operational excellence have played a pivotal role in supporting the safety, reliability, and performance of the Aer Lingus fleet". Parent IAG in May ordered 21 A330-900s for operation at Aer Lingus, Iberia or Level. In a parallel order with Boeing, the airline group signed for 32 787-10s for use by British Airways.

EgyptAir's follow-on order of six Airbus A350s, disclosed at the Paris air show, had previously been counted in the airframer's published data, attributed to an unidentified customer. Airbus confirms that in January, EgyptAir converted A350-900 options, adding six firm orders to the 10 it had placed at the Dubai air show in 2023. Data shows that the North African carrier's mixed fleet of widebodies includes eight leased Boeing 787-9s and five leased 777-300ERs, in addition to five A330-200s – four owned, one leased – and four owned A330-300s. It also has converted passenger-to-freighter A330-200s.

China Eastern Airlines will start a Shanghai Pudong-Auckland-Buenos Aires service in December, reinstating a nonstop link between New Zealand and Argentina since March 2020. Auckland airport states that the airline plans to start with two additional weekly flights from Shanghai continuing to Buenos Aires Ezeiza airport, complementing its daily flights to Auckland. Data shows that China Eastern will be the only carrier on the route, and only the second carrier to fly between Auckland and South America after LATAM Airlines, which flies four times per week to Santiago in Chile. Air New Zealand previously flew to Buenos Aires from December 2015 until the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020, but elected not to resume services on the route due to low demand.