Aer Lingus set for fleet expansion

New Aer Lingus owner IAG is to boost its airlines’ fleets as it moves to challenge the European dominance of Ryanair and EasyJet.

The owner of British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia, and Spanish low-cost carrier Vueling said yesterday that it has converted a purchase option on 15 Airbus A320 ‘neo’ short-haul planes, originally announced two years ago, into firm orders.

As a result, the aircraft will be delivered between 2018 and 2021. IAG said the new vessels can be used by any of its airlines for fleet replacement purposes.

The announcement coincides with news that IAG is boosting the long-haul fleets of Aer Lingus and Iberia. IAG had purchase options on two Airbus 330-300 vessels and two A330-200 long-haul aircraft, which it has now converted into firm offers.

The two Airbus 330-300s will be delivered to Aer Lingus next year, with Iberia gaining delivery of its two new planes in 2017 and 2018.

“They will enable the airlines to expand their existing long-haul fleets,” said IAG. “The modern, fuel-efficient aircraft will bring both cost efficiencies and environmental benefits to the airlines.”

Recent figures from IAG covering the first nine months of this year showed a positive early contribution from Aer Lingus.

In its first month under new ownership, Aer Lingus generated an operating profit of €45m and contributed €262m in revenues for its new owner.

It also contributed €958m in fresh cash levels to IAG between August 18 (when it was formally acquired) and the end of September.

It also represented 1.6 points of IAG’s capacity increase during the nine-month period. Meanwhile, Airbus is facing an order drought for its €393m A380 Jetliner model, once tipped to dominate long-haul travel for decades, as the firm heads into the lucrative Dubai Air Show.

Meanwhile, German airline Lufthansa said it will resist increasing spending on employees even as its flight attendants prepare for their biggest-ever walkout in a retirement dispute and a ground-handling and cargo-division union start talks.

Lufthansa is negotiating with various staff groups as it tries to reduce costs and talks over pensions.

The head of Lufthansa’s main cabin crew union said strikes at the carrier are now unavoidable, after the union reviewed the latest proposals on pensions and early retirement benefits from management.