Airbus delivered the first two Airbus A330-800neo aircraft to Kuwait Airways, the launch customer of the aircraft type.
Kuwait Airways ordered a total of eight A330neos in October 2018. The first two aircraft (registered as 9K-APF and 9K-APG) first flew in June and July 2020, respectively. The two A330-800 wide-body aircraft departed Toulouse Blagnac Airport (TLS) at 11:15 and 11:17 AM local time (UTC +1) and are set to join Kuwait Airways fleet upon their arrival at Kuwait International Airport (KWI).
The A330neo, including its two variants the -800 and the -900, was launched in July 2014. Despite the A330ceo being one of the most popular wide-body aircraft, with 1486 orders from various customers, the A330neo so far only managed to grab 332 orders. The Airbus A330-800neo is in a considerably worse situation, as Airbus only has 14 outstanding orders for the type. Apart from the eight Kuwait Airways orders, two are set to go to Uganda Airways, while four are attributed to an undisclosed customer.
The smaller variant was certified on February 13, 2020, while the -900neo was certified by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in September 2018.
Apart from the A330-800s, the flag carrier of Kuwait also operates 10 Airbus A320 aircraft, including three A320neos, five A330-200s and 10 Boeing 777-300 aircraft. The airline also has 12 Airbus A320neo and five Airbus A350 aircraft on order.