The aircraft, registered VT-TQE, arrived in Delhi today from Airbus’ production facility in Toulouse, France. It is one of the 13 Airbus A320neo that the airline had purchased in 2018 as part of a larger order totalling 50 aircraft from the Airbus A320neo Family, including the Airbus A321neo aircraft as well.

The new set of A320neo aircraft that the airline has been adding to its fleet comes with higher range capability (77 tonnes of maximum take-off weight), enabling the airline to fly longer regional international routes without payload restrictions.

This addition to the airline’s fleet takes the total count of the airline’s owned aircraft to three. The airline had also purchased six Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft for long-haul international operations, two of which are already in service.

Leslie Thng, Chief Executive Officer, Vistara, said, “The Airbus A320 is an integral part of our fleet and growth story, and this particular aircraft is, indeed, special. It mirrors the maturity that Vistara has achieved in the Indian aviation industry in a short span of time, continuing to steadily grow in scale, size and operational assets. The new aircraft underlines our focus on continuous enhancement of fleet to provide world-class flying experience to our customers.”

The A320neo aircraft come with enhanced operational performance and cabin features that include in-seat AC Power Outlet, USB Charging Ports and PED (Personal Electronic Device) holders. It has a total of 164 seats in a three-class cabin configuration, including 8 seats in Business Class, 24 in Premium Economy and 132 in Economy. The airline now has 46 aircraft in its fleet, including 36 Airbus A320, 2 Airbus A321neo, 2 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner and 6 Boeing 737-800NG aircraft. 

Vistara is India’s highest-rated airline on Skytrax and TripAdvisor and has been the winner of several ‘Best Airline’ awards. In a short span of six years since starting operations, the airline has raised the bar for operations and service delivery in the Indian aviation industry by offering a world-class flying experience to travellers.

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Middle East region’s largest travel and tourism showcase, Arabian Travel Market continues this week from Monday 24 May to Wednesday 26 May with the highly anticipated ATM Virtual event.

During the three-day showcase, those unable to attend the in-person event this year have the opportunity to view sessions recorded from the in-person event, as well as participate in a range of webinars, live conference sessions, roundtables, speed networking events, destination briefings, as well as make new connections in one-to-one meetings.

Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market, said: “We are thrilled to be able to continue with ATM Virtual 2021 off the back of the hugely successful in-person event at the Dubai World Trade Centre last week. We must be able to reach a wider audience as possible as the travel and tourism sector unites to pave the way forward towards fast-paced recovery beyond COVID-19.”

Under the theme of ‘A new dawn for travel & tourism’ , the virtual event begins with an exclusive airline industry leadership keynote interview with Emirates’ President Sir Tim Clark, with airline expert John Strickland from JLS Consulting.

It will be followed by IATA’s Director General Willie Walsh keynote interview also with John Strickland and will explore the priority issues on Willie Walsh’s agenda and seek his views on how IATA needs to drive engagement and consistency of approach to permit airlines to begin the process of recovery.

One of the many highlights from the in-person event last week, the Saudi Arabia Tourism Summit returns virtually on Monday 24 May, for an exclusive look at the future of Saudi Arabia’s hotel landscape. With the long-term tourism outlook more bullish than ever, hotel industry heavyweights including Accor’s TIMEA CEO Mark Willis, Olivier Harnisch, Head of Hospitality, Public Investment Fund (PIF), Saudi Arabia, Hassan Ahdab, President of Hotels Operations for Dur Hospitality, and Christopher Lund, Director, Head of Hotels, MENA Region, Colliers International, will discuss the vast potential for new and innovative hospitality concepts that keep pace with this demand and fast-changing guest demographics, now and in the future.

Elsewhere on the conference agenda on the first day of ATM Virtual 2021, Douglas Quinby, Co-Founder and CEO of Arival, shares exclusive research on the outlook for tours, activities, attractions and key trends shaping the sector’s revival post-pandemic.

Meanwhile, delegates will hear from Emaar Entertainment’s CEO Zeina Dagher on her experience of how attractions have adapted to the downturn and where attraction development, distribution, and guest experience is headed in 2021 and beyond.

Other hot topics include a session exploring the changes afoot amid the rise of online travel agencies (OTAs) and what this means for tour and attraction operators across the region, as well a candid interview with Peter Jamieson, Head of technology at Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture and Tourism, as he discusses how the UAE’s capital is looking to reimagine the guest experience by creating a truly connected and personalised experience from travel planning to arrival and experiencing the destination.

Later in the week at ATM Virtual 2021, the ATM Hotel Industry Summit will examine hospitality trends such as wellness and sustainability.

“The ATM Hotel Industry Summit is the opportune platform for hotel industry trade professionals to explain how they’ve adapted to the super-acceleration of global wellness and sustainability movements, evolving their hotels and services to respond to overwhelming traveller demand for health and wellbeing solutions and sustainable practices that support the environment and local communities,” Curtis added.  

The third day of ATM Virtual on Wednesday 26 May, will include highlights such as Cultural Tourism for Growth and Responsible Technology for Travel & Tourism sessions, as well as the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) Conference, with the theme, Ready.Safe.Travel.

The Middle East Tourism Investment Summit organised by ITIC in partnership with Arabian Travel Market 2021 will also take place virtually on 27 May.

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Moran Birger has been appointed as the Head of Sales for South Asia, Middle East and Africa effective 01 April 2021. Moran will be based in the airline’s headquarters in London and will be responsible for all sales and commercial activity for the region.

Prior to this, in 2019 Moran was appointed as British Airways Head of Sales for the Asia Pacific and Middle East, Japan, and was based in Tokyo.

He was responsible for the overall marketing and commercial operations of all the markets in the region. He has previously worked in Ghana and has also held the position of Commercial Agreements Executive – Revenue Management for British Airways looking after the carrier’s relationships with a broad portfolio of key European airlines.

Moran Birger began his career with British Airways in 2011 and has worked in many of the airline’s key business areas including Community Investment, Revenue and Operational Management of the company. Additionally, He was responsible for driving British Airways’ relationship, strategy and joint selling efforts with Japan Airlines, Iberia and Finnair as part of the 4 carriers’ joint venture.

Moran Birger, British Airways’ Head of Sales for South Asia, Middle East and Africa said: “I am excited to take up this opportunity in such important geographical markets. My immediate focus is to provide safe and hassle-free air travel to all our customers travelling to meet friends and relatives or to engage in business. We are constantly looking at innovative ways to simplify our customers’ journey and ensure that they travel with confidence and enjoy the British Airways experience.”  

Moran Birger is a graduate from the University of Manchester in business and politics. Moran is a multilingualist who knows English and basic Spanish and Russian. His hobbies include travelling, snowboarding, squash/tennis.

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