AviancaTaca snaps up 51 A320s

   South America’s largest airline, AviancaTaca, on Thursday signed an agreement to buy 33 Airbus A320neo planes, as well as 18 other A320 aircraft.
   The plane order, the largest from a single airline in the region in terms of number, follows a memorandum of understanding signed during the Le Bourget Air Show in Paris in June.
   “With this order AviancaTaca and our subsidiaries will continue the modernization process that includes fleet renewal as its primary focus,” said Fabio Villegas, president of AviacaTaca, in a statement.
   AviancaTaca has placed firm orders for 190 Airbus planes (including the latest 51) and has 88 A320s and eight A330s currently in service.
   The A320neo is a new engine option for the A320 plane, entering service in 2015. Airbus estimates fuel savings will reach 15 percent, due to the neo’s more powerful and efficient engines.
   Airbus has sold 666 aircraft in Latin America, and has a backlog of 351 planes.