HONOLULU – Hawaiian Airlines has welcomed its first new, long-range Airbus A330-200 aircraft that the airline says, “will set the company’s course for growth and expansion”.

Mark Dunkerley, Hawaiian’s president and CEO,who was among a crowd of employees greeting the plane’s arrival in Honolulu, said it was a special moment “to see more than three years’ planning and coordination come to fruition”.

“This first A330 heralds a new era for Hawaiian, one of growth and new services for our customers.”

Hawaiian plans to introduce up to 27 new Airbus aircraft into its fleet by the end of this decade.

Hawaiian is leasing three A330s that are joining the fleet this year, and has signed a purchase agreement with Airbus to acquire seven A330s (starting in 2011) and six A350XWB-800 (Extra Wide-Body) aircraft (starting in 2017), as well as purchase rights for an additional five A330s and six A350s.

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