MEA receives its first A330-200 aircraft directly purchased from Airbus

The aircraft was handed over to Mohamad El-Hout, Chairman and Director General, MEA, by Habib Fekih, President, Airbus Middle East, in a delivery ceremony in Toulouse.

The aircraft is part of an order for four Airbus A330-200s placed in 2006 to replace an existing fleet of three leased A330s. MEA has chosen a spacious cabin layout consisting of 44 seats in Cedar Class and 200 in Economy. The A330 is powered by Rolls Royce Trent 772 engines.

"This is the first A330-200 being delivered to MEA with a new livery reflecting the Lebanese flag. With its efficient fuel economy and passenger comfort, the A330-200 will enable MEA to meet and respond to the rising demand for passenger services between Lebanon, the middle East, Africa and Europe,"

said Mr. El-Hout.

MEA flies an all Airbus fleet including A321s and leased A330-200s on non-stop routes to Europe, within the Middle East and Africa. The new directly purchased A330s will be deployed to increase capacity on existing routes.

"Airbus' partnership with MEA is an amazing success story. It dates back to the early days when MEA operated the A300s and A310s - and today as the company embarks on a future with the world's most efficient, operationally cost effective and most comfortable aircraft in its class, all of us at Airbus wish MEA the most prosperous future," said Mr. Fekih.

With a true wide-body fuselage allowing very high comfort standards, the A330-200 is able to accommodate seat and class configurations to suit diverse customer requirements. It has a range of up to 6,750 nm / 12,500 km with a full passenger load. Its large under-floor cargo holds can also carry standard pallets and containers side-by-side.

It also has the excellent operational flexibility necessary to serve a wide range of route structures, providing operators with very low operating cost per seat. Its proven record of economy and superior passenger comfort provides operators with a significant competitive advantage in the market today.

Airbus is an EADS company.