SINGAPORE -(Dow Jones)- Singapore Airlines Ltd. (C6L.SG) unit Silk Air is considering adding smaller jets to its fleet to serve new destinations in the region, and has asked manufacturers to make preliminary bids, the Business Times reported Friday, citing industry sources and the carrier's chief executive.
Silk Air has issued a request for proposal to aircraft manufacturers for planes including Embraer SA's (EMBR3.BR) ERJ-190/195 and Bombardier Inc.'s (BBD.B.T.) C-Series, the newspaper reported.
The regional jets can be operated on low-density routes to smaller airports in the region that aren't equipped to handle relatively larger jets such as the airline's fleet of narrowbody Airbus A320 aircraft, it said.
The report quoted Marvin Tan, Silk Air's chief executive, as saying the airline may or may not acquire the smaller planes and will make a decision based on the economics of deploying them.
Newspaper website: http://www.businesstimes.com.sg
-By Singapore Bureau; Dow Jones Newswires; 65-6415-4150; djnews.singapore.bureau@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 19, 2012 22:20 ET (02:20 GMT)
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