Malaysia Airlines (MAS) took delivery of its sixth Airbus A380 aircraft on Friday, the last of a purchase order made by the carrier in Dec 2003.
MAS group CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said the plane was also the 100th A380 to be released from its assembly plant in Toulouse, France.
"It's a long time coming, and we're very happy to receive the sixth aircraft," he told reporters at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).
According to MAS, the aircraft departed from France on Thursday before arriving in Malaysia at around 3:30pm.
With a capacity of 494 seats, MAS plans to use the plane as part of the A380 fleet's double daily trips to London and single daily trips to Paris.
The A380s will also fly daily trips to Hong Kong, starting May 1, 2013.
Ahmad said the A380 will replace MAS' single daily flight to Hong Kong with its Boeing 777 flight, as the carrier was confident of an increased passenger volume.
On the possibility of adding new A380s to the MAS fleet, Ahmad said the company wanted to get used to the aircraft first before making any decisions.
MAS' first A380 touched down in KLIA on May 30 last year. The airline received another three aircraft in 2012, with the fifth arriving in February.
Ahmad added that MAS was looking for more pilots with the expansion of its fleet, and actively recruiting cabin crew.
Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) senior general manager (operations) Datuk Azmi Murad congratulated MAS on its latest addition.
He said that MAHB had upgraded KLIA's runaways, taxiways, parking aprons and gates to prepare for the arrival of the A380s.
According to Azmi, only Emirates and MAS operated A380s at KLIA so far.
He added that KLIA would serve as an "alternate aerodrome" for Singapore International Airlines in the event of bad weather or Changi Airport's closure.
MAS group CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said the plane was also the 100th A380 to be released from its assembly plant in Toulouse, France.
"It's a long time coming, and we're very happy to receive the sixth aircraft," he told reporters at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).
According to MAS, the aircraft departed from France on Thursday before arriving in Malaysia at around 3:30pm.
With a capacity of 494 seats, MAS plans to use the plane as part of the A380 fleet's double daily trips to London and single daily trips to Paris.
The A380s will also fly daily trips to Hong Kong, starting May 1, 2013.
Ahmad said the A380 will replace MAS' single daily flight to Hong Kong with its Boeing 777 flight, as the carrier was confident of an increased passenger volume.
On the possibility of adding new A380s to the MAS fleet, Ahmad said the company wanted to get used to the aircraft first before making any decisions.
MAS' first A380 touched down in KLIA on May 30 last year. The airline received another three aircraft in 2012, with the fifth arriving in February.
Ahmad added that MAS was looking for more pilots with the expansion of its fleet, and actively recruiting cabin crew.
Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) senior general manager (operations) Datuk Azmi Murad congratulated MAS on its latest addition.
He said that MAHB had upgraded KLIA's runaways, taxiways, parking aprons and gates to prepare for the arrival of the A380s.
According to Azmi, only Emirates and MAS operated A380s at KLIA so far.
He added that KLIA would serve as an "alternate aerodrome" for Singapore International Airlines in the event of bad weather or Changi Airport's closure.
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