Passenger experience business

November 15, 2021, Seth Miller commented

When Indigo Partners decides to buy the aircraft, the company will not mess around. The company was previously responsible for one of the world's largest single-aisle aircraft orders. It was announced at this year's Dubai Air Show that the company continued its growth plan and confirmed to order 255 A321neo aircraft. As in previous transactions, these aircraft will be distributed among the four low-cost airlines owned by Indigo Partners worldwide.

With these aircraft, Wizz, Frontier, Volaris and JetSMART will continue to provide low fares, stimulate the markets they serve and improve their industry-leading sustainable development image.

The aircraft ordered this week is a hybrid of A321neos and A321XLR. Indigo hopes to deliver them to its various operating airlines as follows:

In addition to this order, Volaris and JetSMART will also convert 38 A320neo from the existing aircraft backlog to A321neo.

Such a large order, especially on the basis of previous commitments, shows that airlines are not only betting on a rebound in travel demand. On the contrary, it looks a lot like airlines are aiming to grab market share from competitors.

In fact, this level of growth will require large-scale business expansion across all portfolio airlines. For example, Frontier Airlines expects its fleet to increase from 110 aircraft at the end of 2021 to 272 at the end of 2029.

At that time, the Frontier fleet will all adopt the A320neo series and phase out old models. It will also provide more seats for each aircraft than it does now. The current average number of seats on board is 194, and the Frontier fleet has a total of 21,340 seats. By the end of the decade, the average number of seats per Frontier aircraft will reach 223, and the total number of operations is expected to be 60,656.

The Frontier fleet plan also assumes an option to convert 18 A320neo delivered in the future to A321XLR. Given that it has been included in the published calculations, it seems a wise choice to exercise this option.

On the other side of the Atlantic, Wizz Air also expects massive growth. The company currently has nearly 130 aircraft, and its planned expansion will help support growth throughout Europe and beyond.

It is particularly worth noting that the A321XLR model provides an important choice for the destination of Abu Dhabi's New Wize base opened in early 2021. The airline had previously suggested going deep into Europe and providing a sixth free connection through Abu Dhabi. This includes pushing traffic to India and Africa. Long-range aircraft will help promote this growth.

Adding more A321neo aircraft to the fleet also continued to increase fuel efficiency per seat. CEO József Váradi continues to tout his airlines, which is based on a combination of cabin density and updated engine technology.

Volaris and JetSMART are also expected to see significant growth, even if they are not as significant as their larger airline cousins ​​in terms of raw seating capacity. JetSMART's recent equity/loyalty/code sharing agreement with American Airlines should provide a substantial boost to operations.

The 2019 Indigo Partners order proved to be a boon for seat manufacturer Recaro, obtaining an exclusive deal to provide more than 100,000 seats for all airline operations. That was Indigo's first integrated decision-making and signing, but it is almost certainly not the last.

This year's orders are smaller, but the potential for suppliers is still great. To be sure, Indigo Partners actively negotiated these transactions. Nonetheless, expect vendors (seats and other aspects) to scramble for key contacts like this.

Do you like the content? Or learn something useful? Or usually just think that this is the type of story you want to see more of? Consider supporting the site with a donation (any amount will help). It helps keep me independent and avoid credit card problems.

Filing basis: airplane and airport

Seth Miller has more than ten years of experience in the aviation industry. Seth places great emphasis on the passenger experience and has a deep understanding of in-flight connectivity and loyalty programs. As an impartial commentator in the aviation industry, he is widely respected.

Airlines and technology providers often consult him on innovations in passenger experience.

You can contact Seth via email, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

Copyright © 2021 Proton Associates, LLC · Login