"Sky high" fleet costs grounds Aer Lingus plans?
According to today's Sunday Times, rising fleet costs have left Aer Lingus's fleet replacement plans "in tatters". The ST also reports that WW was close to a fleet deal when he quit last year.
It certainly is the case that suitable widebody aircraft are difficult to come by ... 777s, A330s, etc and the new generation of widebodies, the A350 and 787, is being sold out. The big problem is that Aer Lingus still doesn't know when it can add new routes; the whole EU/US thing isn't really moving anywhere, Canada is a no go (because of the stopover) and the runway length at DUB is going to obstruct plans to expand into Asia (not to mention a less than stellar service product, which hasn't seen investment in some time). With regard to the most immediate issue - the EU/US bilateral, the lack of any progress means that Aer Lingus cannot know when it's going to get access to new routes ... this September, next year, 2007? That makes fleet planning - and consequently, financing - extremely difficult. That said, given the potential EI has for growth, it's difficult to believe that the airline won't be targeted by Airbus and Boeing for a new fleet. Most of the talk I've heard so far has centred on Boeings as EI's first choice.
DM has quite a challenge on his plate when he joins up. Unfortunately, Aer Lingus has been sliding for quite a while and it seems to be an airline in serious need of a morale boost.