TAP Portugal are the inaugural airline of the A330 900 neo and operated along with Airbus a proving flight from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro. Some journalists and vloggers were invited along as well and one of the YouTube channels i follow did a video of the flight and the product that TAP will have on it's A330 900 neo's and it looks pretty good.
 
TAP Portugal are the inaugural airline of the A330 900 neo and operated along with Airbus a proving flight from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro. Some journalists and vloggers were invited along as well and one of the YouTube channels i follow did a video of the flight and the product that TAP will have on it's A330 900 neo's and it looks pretty good.

Looks pretty nice
 
TAP transatlantic expansion is continuing from Lisbon and also Porto.

So what else is he planning? Neeleman rattled off the wish list for new cities on its route map: a second West Coast gateway in Los Angeles; a Midwest foothold in Chicago and Houston, both major hubs for United, which is TAP’s biggest U.S. codeshare partner. When it takes delivery of the A321neo, the opportunities go up exponentially—using the narrowbody to hop the pond will facilitate nonstops between smaller markets. Starting next year, TAP plans to start flying to spots like Providence, Hartford, and the Washington, D.C. area. If that formula sounds familiar, it’s because Norwegian last year began flying to some of those same secondary airports also with a narrowbody—the 737 Max—proving that passengers will tolerate a longer flight of up to seven hours on a single aisle plane, for the right price. Neeleman hasn’t said what fares will be, but it has its own version of a basic economy fare. There will be more nonstops to Porto, the northern gateway to wine country: This fall, TAP will increase its Newark-Porto service to daily, and will add Boston-Porto nonstops as well.

TAP does offer more frills than the ultra-budget airlines that charge for meals and assigned seats. It just introduced a real business class, meaning it comes with fully lie-flat seats, wide seat-back screens and other amenities on the new A330neos, which will start arriving in September; the widebodies will have 298 seats, including 34 business class and 96 coach seats with more legroom.

Azores (which few travelers could even find on a map a few years ago). United is flying a seasonal daily nonstop from Newark to Porto through October 3. Since 2016, the country has added 100 new hotels.

How far can this go before Portugal becomes, well, the next overtourism poster child? There’s at least one brake on the boom, Neeleman points out—the limited capacity at Lisbon’s close-in airport, which has discouraged newbies like Wow from coming in. Government plans for a new airport to serve the capital have yet to move off the drawing board.

“Lisbon is very tough to get into,” Neeleman said. And that automatically gives TAP the homefield advantage.

from conde nast traveller
 
New A330 neo start route proving world tour.

TAP Air Portugal’s A330neo starts world tour
IMG_3049-1170x530.jpg

Pilot and Plane
June 24, 2018 Catarina Madureira 0
The new A330-900neo that will be delivered to TAP Air Portugal later this summer is doing a world tour and will be en route to 15 major airports on five continents throughout it with the goal of conducting 150 hours of flight tests.

This world tour started on the 19 of June in Lisbon with a presentation on TAP’s maintenance hangar. The event was attended by the president of Airbus as well as the president of the Portuguese airline.

Airbus-A330neo-route-proving.jpg

Image by Airbus


Antonolado Neves, CEO of TAP Air Portugal, believes that “This Lisbon passage of the new A330neo marks another important milestone in the plan to transform TAP into the company with one of the most modern fleets in the world. It allows us to continue to affirm Portugal as the Atlantic hub of air transport and TAP as a relevant player between Europe, Africa, and the Americas, contributing to the economic growth and development of tourism in our country. ”

This plane is fully equipped with an “Airspace by Airbus” cabin with new and modern entertainment system, plus Wi-Fi internet.

The aircraft is equipped with Rolls-Royce Trent 7000 engines that offer more comfort to passengers, as they have a lower noise level in the cabin and are modern and efficient. Plus, there is differentiated design: the aircraft features a new aerodynamic wing shape, which generates a fuel economy of approximately 14% and generates 25% fewer emissions of pollutants compared to other aircraft.
 
New TAP A330 neo

TAP Air Portugal has become the first airline to take delivery of an Airbus A330neo, with the hand-over today of its first of an eventual 21 A330-900s.
Financed by Avolon, the twinjet will make its operational debut in the coming weeks on services from Lisbon to São Paulo in Brazil.
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Airbus
Two further aircraft will arrive before year-end, with another 15 to be delivered in 2019.
TAP chief executive Antonoaldo Neves, speaking at a delivery ceremony in Toulouse, said that by the end of next year, 78% of the carrier's flown block hours will be on the A330-900.
Powered by Rolls-Royce Trent 7000 engines, the widebody is configured in a 298-seat, three-class layout.
TAP will also add to its medium-haul fleet next year with the addition of the A321LR, says Neves, which will be used for transatlantic services.
 
New service beginning next June LIS-SFO.

TAP Air Portugal: San Francisco-Lisbon nonstops to begin in June
Ben Mutzabaugh USA TODAY
Published 9:21 PM EST Dec 14, 2018


TAP Air Portugal has announced San Francisco as its newest U.S. destination, saying that nonstop flights to its hub in Lisbon would begin in June.
The move continues a rapid U.S. expansion for the Portuguese carrier, which also announced just two weeks ago that it would add service from Chicago O’Hare and Washington Dulles.
The new San Francisco service will launch June 10. TAP will operate five flights a week on its new Airbus A330-900neo jets.
TODAY IN THE SKY: TAP Air Portugal uses 'proving flights' to show off new Airbus A330neo
“We’re excited to keep adding new cities from the USA to Portugal,” David Neeleman, founder of JetBlue and a major shareholder in TAP, said in a statement announcing the new route. “Despite being a 73-year old airline, this year TAP is one of the world’s top 10 fastest growing airlines. As Portugal has become a more popular destination, U.S. travelers have not only found out about Portugal but also about flying TAP beyond Lisbon to our 70-plus destinations across Europe and Africa.”
With San Francisco, TAP will fly to eight destinations in North America, including seven in the United States as well as Toronto in Canada.
Neeleman had already hinted that San Francisco was being considered as a new destination in a November interview with USA TODAY’s Today in the Sky blog.
TODAY IN THE SKY: Maintenance hangar tour: Behind the scenes with TAP Air Portugal (story continues below)


"The West Coast is important to us," Neeleman said then. "There are a lot of Portuguese that live in that area. Getting from the West Coast to Lisbon is an important market for us."
TAP has grown aggressively both in North America and in Europe since Neeleman bought a stake in the carrier in 2015. He’s been particularly bullish on the North American market, saying even more destinations are likely in the coming years.
“It was always our goal to have at least as many destinations in North America as we have in South America," Neeleman said to USA TODAY after announcing service to D.C. and Chicago in November. “With Washington and Chicago, we’re up to seven. And we’re going to be able to – hopefully by next summer – make it to 10, which is what we have in Brazil.”
TODAY IN THE SKY: TAP Portugal debuts lie-flat seats on new Boston route
TAP’s Chicago-Lisbon flights begin June 1 while the Washington-Lisbon service starts June 16.
Beyond TAP, Neeleman also has big plans for the U.S. domestic market.
In June, he confirmed that he’ll launch a new U.S. airline, codenamed “Moxy” in investor presentations.
Neeleman and investors have already placed an order for 60 Airbus A220 planes for the effort. The first jets from that order won’t arrive until 2021, but – given Neeleman’s successful track record with startups like JetBlue, Canada’s WestJet and Brazil’s Azul – the effort has generated a lot of buzz.
For now, Neeleman was relatively tight-lipped about plans for his new U.S. start-up.
“I think it’s kind of premature. Planes have to get delivered,” he said to Today in the Sky last month. “Once we get them, we’ll be able to talk more about it."
IN PHOTOS: A look at Airbus in North America over the years


636654259382491854-2018-06-23-TAP-A330neo-MIA-32.jpg

TAP Portugal's first Airbus A330neo visits Miami International during a pre-delivery proving flight run by Airbus on June 23, 2018.
Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren, special to USA TODAY
 
They are definitely in expansion mode! Will be interesting to see how alot of these airlines get on operating the A321NEOLR across the Atlantic.
 
Interesting article on how TAP hope to open new markets with their A321LR

TAP-ping into the benefits and opportunities provided by the latest aircraft technology

Nick Preston talks to Nuno Leal, Head of Fleet Planning and Contracts, TAP Air Portugal, which became the first operator of the A330neo and will begin operations with the A321LR in 2019.
Portuguese flag carrier TAP Air Portugal has experienced a number of key developments in recent years, beginning with its privatisation in 2015. More recently, it has embarked on a fleet modernisation programme that saw it become the first operator of the A330-900neo. It is also adding A320neo family aircraft to renew its narrow-body fleet and will be an early adopter of the A321LR.
TAP-Nuno-Leal.jpg

Nuno Leal, Head of Fleet Planning and Contracts, TAP Air Portugal: “TAP has a total order for 14 A321LRs, with the first 10 being delivered in 2019/2020. This aircraft will allow TAP to better leverage the unique position of its Lisbon hub and explore new routes or reinforce the airline’s position on existing services across the Atlantic to North and South America.”
“The airline carried 15.7 million passengers in 2018, representing more than 10% growth compared to 2017,” explains Nuno Leal, Head of Fleet Planning and Contracts, TAP Air Portugal. “TAP continues to reinforce its position as the number one airline from Europe to Brazil, and more and more passengers are benefiting from the ‘Portugal Stopover’ programme that has helped to open Portugal to the world. In 2018, TAP saw significant growth in the North American market and this trend is going to set the pace for 2019 as we plan to add San Francisco, Chicago, and Washington services from Lisbon, and a daily service from Porto to New York Newark. These new routes, plus the introduction of Tel Aviv and the natural growth in Europe, with new services to Dublin, Basel, Tenerife, Naples and reinforced operations in Porto, will allow TAP to grow passenger numbers by more than 10% in 2019.”
TAP’s current mainline fleet consists of 75 aircraft, including: 20 A320s, 21 A319s, four A321s, two A320neos, five A321neos, 12 A330-200s, four A330-300s, four A340-300s, and three A330-900neos. There are a further 17 aircraft operating under the TAP Express brand, including four ATR 72-600s and 13 E190/195s. “We expect to have a total of 17 A330-900neos flying before the end of 2019, completing a major widebody fleet renewal plan that comprises the phase-out of 13 older generation aircraft. This represents a key investment in more efficient aircraft and a much better product for the passenger,” says Leal.
By the end of 2019, TAP will be flying over 75% of its wide-body block hours in new generation aircraft. The total planned A330-900 fleet will reach 21 units.
“A silent revolution is also taking place in the narrow-body fleet,” Leal continues. “We expect to start operations with the A321LR later in March. TAP has a total order for 14 A321LRs, with the first 10 being delivered in 2019/2020. This aircraft will allow TAP to better leverage the unique position of its Lisbon hub and explore new routes or reinforce the airline’s position on existing services across the Atlantic to North and South America.”
The A319/A320ceo renewal process started in 2018 and is due to continue in 2019 and onwards. The A319s are being replaced by A320neo and A321neos, which burn less fuel and will also ‘upgauge’ the fleet. TAP has orders for 14 A321neos and 20 A320neos. Some of these will be used to replace older generation aircraft that will be retired, while others will be deployed to continue the impressive growth that the airline has seen during the last few years.
Next generation economics
“The new generation aircraft bring impressive economics that are already starting to be realised,” says Leal. “On the A330-900neo fleet, we are seeing a fuel burn reduction of 10%, while the aircraft are capable of carrying 10% more passengers than the majority of the previous generation types, without compromising passenger comfort and product levels. By the end of 2019, over 75% of the wide-body flown block hours will be in these new generation aircraft, and this represents major cost savings and a natural fuel hedging based on technology.”
On the narrow-body side, the A320neo and A321neo save 20% in fuel burn compared to the older aircraft. This means that the A321neo is burning less fuel than the older A319s, while carrying up to 72 additional passengers, resulting in a major reduction in fuel burn per seat. It is this level of improvement that TAP is targeting to better position itself as one of the most efficient airlines in the world.
TAP-GV.jpg

Exploring new markets
“The new generation of aircraft will allow the operation of routes that were not economically viable before,” Leal explains. “Our A320ceo fleet currently operates numerous five-hour sectors on services to Africa and across Europe to Moscow. The increased range of our incoming neo variants will help the airline to explore longer distance sectors, and the improved economics will be a very important contributing factor to the profitability of such routes. Exploring these routes is essential for TAP’s hub and spoke strategy out of Lisbon and the connections to Europe.”
Portugal’s geographic position is a natural gateway from Europe to North America, South America and Africa. These new generation aircraft will help TAP explore this positioning even further.
“Compared to the previous generation, these more efficient aircraft have additional usable range and will enable new markets to be created, while improving economic efficiency on the current network,” Leal comments. “The A321LR has a range of around eight hours out of Lisbon and this will open a vast number of new growth opportunities in North America, South America, Africa and even the Middle East. Whether it’s opening new thin routes, operating existing routes with additional frequencies, or existing routes in close cooperation with the wide-body aircraft, the A321LR will play a key role in TAP’s strategy for years to come. The A321LR will push the boundaries of single-aisle aircraft operation even further, without compromising the passenger experience, and will contribute to the consolidation of the Lisbon hub as a major gateway.”
Leal adds that the A321LR will enable TAP to start new thinner routes that are potentially not economically viable today with wide-body aircraft. A mix of A330neo and A321LR operations will also be possible on several routes currently operated with wide-bodies, enabling dynamic capacity management. “Both aircraft offer passengers the same product level in order to ensure a seamless experience. This includes the latest generation full-flat business class seats, the same high comfort economy seats, the full suite of IFE and connectivity, and free messaging.”






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Article regarding keeping lifeline link for expats in Venezuela.

Portugal: Emigrants in Venezuela hope TAP flights resumed despite blackout
Portuguese nationals living in Venezuela are nervously waiting to see whether TAP, Portugal’s national carrier, will continue to serve Caracas, after it cancelled a flight on Tuesday, citing a lack of operational conditions at the city’s main airport, Maiquetía
MNA_nophoto.jpg

Portuguese nationals living in Venezuela are nervously waiting to see whether TAP, Portugal’s national carrier, will continue to serve Caracas, after it cancelled a flight on Tuesday, citing a lack of operational conditions at the city’s main airport, Maiquetía.
“What several people have told me is that this is a temporary measure due to the operational conditions at the airport, as a result of the blackout affecting the country,” said one Portuguese community counsellor, Fernando Campos, adding that “if there is a prolonged suspension there will be concern.”
One Portuguese entrepreneur in Venezuela said he believed that, once Venezuela “stabilises the electricity system … the frequency of flights will resume”.
In the past, even when Venezuela faced difficulties with foreign exchange, and funds were retained in Caracas, TAP kept the flights going, he noted, stressing that “there is a very large community here that would very much disapprove of a suspension.”
Other Portuguese nationals said that they plan to travel to Portugal in the coming months, mainly June, July and August, and believe that “there will be more flights at that time”.
The flight that TAP had scheduled for Venezuela on Tuesday was cancelled due to a lack of operational conditions in Caracas, a company official told Lusa. The airline is watching developments in Venezuela “very closely … to decide in good time on the Saturday flight” – the next scheduled service.
Venezuela’s electricity grid has been down since last Thursday, following a breakdown in the El Guri hydroelectric plant, the country’s largest, that also affected two secondary systems and the main transmission line.
On Monday, the government in Caracas suspended work and school for 24 hours, with this later being extended for a further 24 hours.
In Caracas, electricity has come back on in several neighbourhoods, but intermittently.
The blackout has affected fixed and mobile communications, payment terminals and internet access. It also affected operations at Simón Bolívar de Maiquetía International Airport, causing delays for national and international flights, and forcing several airlines to suspend services as well as manually check passengers’ luggage.
 
New African service announced Lisbon to Conakry starting in July.

TAP Air Portugal will launch flights between Lisbon and Conakry, capital of Guinea, on July 3rd.
The Portuguese carrier will offer three weekly flights between the two capitals.
Tickets are already available for sale on the new flights which will depart from Lisbon on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday at 19:25 and arrive in Guinea’s capital at 23:10.
Return flights will depart from Conakry on Monday, Thursday and Sunday at 00:05 and arrive in the Portuguese capital at 05:30.
With the launch of a new route to Africa, TAP now covers 17 African cities in 11 countries.
 
New Airbus A321 LR have joined TAP's fleet to expand long range services.

The first of 12 Airbus A321LRs has been delivered to TAP Air Portugal.
The CFM International Leap-1A-powered aircraft is equipped with a 171-seat cabin, comprising 16 full-flat business seats, 48 “Eco Premium” and 107 economy seats.
 
The latest generation aircraft has been an important factor in the transformation and modernisation of TAP
TAP Air Portugal, the leading airline from the UK to Portugal, has marked a historic point in its 74-year history. With the arrival of another A330neo – CS-TUI, which has been named King Afonso Henriques – the company has 100 aircraft in its fleet for the first time with 71 new aircraft due to arrive by 2025.

The new airplanes have allowed TAP to open new routes with the airline continuing to grow in Brazil, a market in which TAP retains market leadership in connections to Europe and where there has been a 22.8% increase in the number of passengers between 2015 and 2018.

TAP also has a strong commitment to the North Atlantic market, where there has been a 176.5% growth in passenger numbers between 2015 and 2018, alongside a quadrupling of the number of seats available in the past four years. TAP was the fastest growing European airline on routes to the United States, offering 245,000 more seats compared to 2015. TAP will continue receiving new aircraft throughout 2019, with new routes launching to Chicago, San Francisco and Washington in June 2019.

In 2018, TAP was responsible for bringing 4 million tourists to Portugal, who contributed 5.5 billion euros to the national economy. The new fleet is also an important contribution to the country. Each new TAP aircraft makes a significant contribution to the country’s GDP, generating an average of €28 million in duties and taxes each year to the Portuguese economy and creating more than 750 jobs in Portugal on average.

The growth in TAP’s fleet has, in just four years, placed the company above the growth average of other leading European airlines: TAP’s fleet grew by 21% between 2015 and 2018, while other European airlines have grown by just 13% on average, according to data from Flight Global.

With regard to transported passengers, TAP also grew above the average of other European reference companies: 39% more passengers transported between 2015 and 2018, compared to an average of 19% over the same period in the other competing European airlines.



TAP MILESTONE 100 AIRCRAFT IN FLEET, FIRTST TIME IN 75 YEAR HISTORY
 
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TAP has become the first European carrier to fly the A321LR transatlantic. They did this in their Porto to Newark route, the routes frequency has also gone from 2 to 5 per week.


TAP Air Portugal takes their A321LR Transatlantic
01/06/2019 by Kevincm 1 Comment

TAP Air Portugal has taken its Airbus A321LR (the long-range variant of the Airbus A321neo) on a trip eastbound – to Newark International Airport for its first Transatlantic flight.

TAP Air Portugal Airbus A321LR - Image TAP
TAP’s first A321LR readying for its first transatlantic flight – Image, TAP Air Portugal.
They become the first European carrier to operate the type on a transatlantic mission (with Air Transat beating them to the punch a few weeks earlier for the first operator to use the A321LR on a transatlantic mission).

The flight is currently in progress at the time of writing – operated by CS-TXA, replacing the normally used Airbus A330 that is normally used on that route.

TAP Air Portugal A321LR first TATL flight map - Data: FlightRada24
TAP Air Portugal A321LR first TATL flight map – Data: FlightRadar24

Whilst TAP Air Portugal has been using the type for both medium haul and short haul flights (for example the plane flying to Newark tonight has been to as far flung places such as Praia, Funchal, Sao Tome, Tel Aviv, Rome and Amsterdam).

With the plane configured with in-flight entertainment and Wi-Fi provisioned, and some comfort options including a 16 full-flat business seats, 48 “Eco Premium” extra space economy seats and 107 economy seats.

Whilst transatlantic flying with a single aisle aircraft is nothing new (Air Canada pioneered this using an A319 between St Johns and London, before switching that route to a Boeing 737 MAX – another transatlantic single aisle favourite before the type was grounded), Airbus brings range to the party.

For those who are looking at their long haul operations who are already operating the A320 family, there could be a lot to like here.

And for those operating the Boeing 757… it might be part of the answer of how to serve long and thin routes.
 

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