The Virgin Group has placed a signifi cant A320neo order. From left: Virgin America’s David Cush, Airbus’ John Leahy, Virgin Group’s Sir Richard Branson and Airbus’ Tom Enders. Image courtesy of Airbus/H Goussé.
A320neo
brands such as Republic and Lufthansa, ACA’s Hamlin observes.
The C919, which is designed to accommodate 169–190 passengers, is scheduled for market entry in 2016. In terms of size and range, it competes squarely with the larger versions of the A320 and 737 families, IBA Group’s Ahmed remarks.
So far the C919 has garnered 100 orders from four Chinese airlines, including the country’s top three carriers, and from GE Commercial Aviation Services, whose parent is providing engines for the aircraft. Still, there are doubts about the fl edgling Chinese plane maker and its debut product. “I see the C919 more as a proof of concept that they can design and manufacture a plane in that class. The second step will be to develop a plane that can compete,” comments Hamlin. Ahmed and Erickson view the aircraft as a niche product that will attract orders from operators looking for attractive deals. “There is no game changer out there,” remarks Erickson, an assessment that extends to the A320neo. “The neo is not changing the landscape. It’s a gradual improvement,” he adds.
It is rapidly gaining traction in the market, though, with slightly over
52
300 orders and commitments by mid March. A whopping order for 150 alone came from IndiGo, while ILFC signed up for 100 and Virgin America for 30. In mid March Lufthansa weighed in with an order for 25 A320neo and fi ve A321neo aircraft. Traditional Boeing customers are also expressing interest – in the A320neo as well as in Bombardier’s C–series. Southwest and Delta, which is looking to place an order for 200 planes, have recently commented favourably on both types, adding to the pressure on Boeing to come to a decision.
Oil prices drive need for effi ciency Jitters about high oil prices could well spur airlines to move ahead with their fl eet renewal decisions in favour of more fuel-effi cient planes, while the reduced emissions have been welcomed by the likes of Virgin America. Lessors and fi nanciers, on the other hand, are less concerned about green credentials than residual aircraft values, Ahmed remarks. Prior to Airbus’ decision, there were some misgivings in that camp that the values of their planes could be hit, he notes.
Pardoe sees no problem there, arguing that it will be years before the neo fl eet will have an impact on residual aircraft values. When Boeing switched to the 737NG, this took several years to play out, he says. The neo should have less of an impact, as the B737 had issues in terms of performance and range, which the NG addressed, he thinks.
AirAsia responded to the launch of the A320neo by switching its order schedule. It deferred delivery of 10 A320s until 2015. “A key commercial reason for the deferral of the 2012 aircraft is to afford the company some fl exibility to switch from its current order of the classic A320 to a new generation A320 aircraft which is more fuel effi cient when such aircraft come into production in the near future,” the airline declared in a statement.
Pardoe is loath to predict the future split between orders for the A320neo and the classic version. “A lot depends on the price of fuel,” he says. However, overall Airbus is quite bullish on the A320neo. Over the next 15 years the manufacturer has identifi ed a market potential of 4,000 aircraft.
RN
www.routes-news.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100