Cebu Pacific receives its first A330 aircraft

Budget carrier Cebu Pacific (CEB) received its first A330 aircraft in France on Thursday, and is set to fly it to Manila on Friday.

"With the A330 we can embark on the next phase of growth for Cebu Pacific: long-haul flying," Cebu Pacific's Long Haul Division general manager Alex Reyes was quoted as saying during the delivery ceremonies in Toulouse.

The Cebu Pacific A330 is powered by two massive Rolls Royce engines and is currently the most efficient, quietest and cleanest engine for the A330 class.

According to the company, the A330 can seat about 59 average Filipino households, and is as long as 10 standard Philippine jeepneys and 13 African elephants.

In February 2012, CEB signed signed operating lease agreements with CIT Aerospace, a unit of the CIT Group Inc., for four new Airbus A330-300 aircraft leases to be delivered from 2013 to 2014.

It earlier said that it will lease up to eight aircrafts, which is in line with the company's plan to enter the long-haul business.

The Airbus A330 aircraft has a range of up to 11 hours, which will allow CEB to serve markets such as Australia, Middle East, parts of Europe and the US.

Dubai will be CEB's first long-haul destination, with direct daily flights beginning on October 7, 2013. — Danessa O. Rivera/BM, GMA News