In-principle agreement for orders and purchase rights of up to 134 A320neos and A220s over 10 years from 2024.
Qantas has just announced the selection of the Airbus A320neo and Airbus A220 families as the preferred aircraft for the long term renewal of its domestic narrow-body fleet, in what it’s describing as “the largest aircraft order in Australian aviation history”.
The carrier expects to make a firm commitment for 40 aircraft by the end of June next year, along with a further 94 purchase right options over a decade-long delivery window as its existing Boeing 737s and 717s are phased out. The deal is on top of an existing Jetstar agreement for more than 100 A320neo aircraft, with that order to be combined so the group can draw down on a total of 299 deliveries across both the A320 and A220 families as needed for Qantas, QantasLink and Jetstar.
CEO Alan Joyce also gave a market update, noting strong demand for the airline’s new Delhi routes, but confirming a “significant drop in booking momentum for international flights” due to news of the Omicron variant and additional quarantine restrictions imposed. He also announced that the return of flights from Sydney and Brisbane to San Francisco had been “paused”.
Domestic bookings had also been impacted by COVID-19, but as states and territories continue to open up the Group expects domestic flying to be about 75% of pre-COVID levels by the end of December, rising to more than 100% in February 2022.
More details in today’s issue of Travel Daily.