13 A320neo family a/c ordered for shorthaul international arriving 2017-2019
Nothing that moves the needle short term, but a decision has been made with regard to replacing current A320 international aircraft (currently on lease).
Points of interest:
- decision taken to wait for the A320neo, rather than take ceo's earlier and have full commonality with domestic fleet
- ordering a minimum of 3 A321's with options to convert A320's
- rapid arrival schedule (13 in 2 years!!)
My thoughts:
- although the leases are ready to exit in the near term, the economics of the NEO, especially on the longer sectors NZ operates (3 hours is the shortest), have been too significant to ignore
- A321 clearly offers growth potential, and lower CASM
- reflecting the fact NZ would prefer them sooner, they have gone for an accelerated delivery rate
This does mean the current A320's will probably be strung out till replacement. They are generally in okay shape so I wouldn't expect a refit. Expect complaints in 2016 and 2017 as they look old though :)
Looking forward to 30 August
mod