Easyjet to buy 120 A319s, with options for another 120 a/c
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Does this mean that EZY will finally be able to land in the fog at Luton in the winter months, rather than diverting to STN and surrounds while the likes of Monarch and Britannia merrily trundle on in with their CATIIIb approaches?
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I agree with brabazon....this has been a very thorough study. The analysis has been entirely based on cost and political issues such as slots were not an issue.
With a multi-base operation such as eJ, the "complexity" of operating two types is not insurmountable. Key bases (starting with GVA, then moving onto.....LGW, STN, etc.???) will no doubt transition one at a time to an Airbus operation, with crew training etc. taken into account. This has all been factored in, with allowance made for 'complexity costs' etc.
eJ will still be operating a very sizeable fleet of 737's....the fleet size of that will still give considerable benefits.
The traditional cost model of sticking to one aircraft type becomes invalid if a new (and better) product comes along.....do you stick with the old type even if your detailed study says this is the wrong thing to do?
This gives the opportunity to negotiate the best supplier deals....not just for the aircraft but maintenance, support, etc. rather than being held to ransom by a single supplier.
Compared with the 737-700 the A319 offers a wider, more passenger-friendly fuselage, same or better seat-pitch throughout, etc.
Wider aisle and bigger overhead lockers means quicker pax boarding and disembarking. Size and geometry of the holds means baggage loading is as fast or probably faster. (Bear in mind the 737-700 is high enough to warrant a beltloader in most stations, so the higher holds of the A319 is not an issue.)
All in all a better aircraft, a very good financial deal, increased passenger appeal, turnround times same or better, a multi-base environment where the type can be introduced progressively on a base-by-base approach, etc. etc. Sounds like a winning formula to me.
(....and a nice little fold-down table for the packed lunch!)
With a multi-base operation such as eJ, the "complexity" of operating two types is not insurmountable. Key bases (starting with GVA, then moving onto.....LGW, STN, etc.???) will no doubt transition one at a time to an Airbus operation, with crew training etc. taken into account. This has all been factored in, with allowance made for 'complexity costs' etc.
eJ will still be operating a very sizeable fleet of 737's....the fleet size of that will still give considerable benefits.
The traditional cost model of sticking to one aircraft type becomes invalid if a new (and better) product comes along.....do you stick with the old type even if your detailed study says this is the wrong thing to do?
This gives the opportunity to negotiate the best supplier deals....not just for the aircraft but maintenance, support, etc. rather than being held to ransom by a single supplier.
Compared with the 737-700 the A319 offers a wider, more passenger-friendly fuselage, same or better seat-pitch throughout, etc.
Wider aisle and bigger overhead lockers means quicker pax boarding and disembarking. Size and geometry of the holds means baggage loading is as fast or probably faster. (Bear in mind the 737-700 is high enough to warrant a beltloader in most stations, so the higher holds of the A319 is not an issue.)
All in all a better aircraft, a very good financial deal, increased passenger appeal, turnround times same or better, a multi-base environment where the type can be introduced progressively on a base-by-base approach, etc. etc. Sounds like a winning formula to me.
(....and a nice little fold-down table for the packed lunch!)
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When the final envelopes were opened, the A319 came in £100 million cheaper, thats why easyJet had to buy it (and why Stelios is so delighted). Since no airbus yet built has taken a pounding with a dozen takeoffs and landing a day on the sectors we operate, it will be interesting to see how they do hold up. Knowing that theyt are now committed to buying 120 aiframes should help the pay negotiations for the pilots, because under present conditions they will never get enough guys to fly them!!
:o
:o
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Its great to see the instant experts come out of the woodwork to dispense their wisdom to us lesser mortals.
Do you gloom & doom merchants really think EZY would go ahead with such an order without having researched it thoroughly and have some backup/guarantees from Airbus.
This is great for European jobs, maybe even those of you who knocked the low cost airlines might think again, then again I hope you dont bother !.
MJBD if you spent anytime in GF you will know that the 320 was/is a great workhorse for GF, the 340 had the major teething problems, and the 2 incidents you quote, well how can you blame the a/c for that ?!!!!
Do you gloom & doom merchants really think EZY would go ahead with such an order without having researched it thoroughly and have some backup/guarantees from Airbus.
This is great for European jobs, maybe even those of you who knocked the low cost airlines might think again, then again I hope you dont bother !.
MJBD if you spent anytime in GF you will know that the 320 was/is a great workhorse for GF, the 340 had the major teething problems, and the 2 incidents you quote, well how can you blame the a/c for that ?!!!!
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In Trim, most of what you've said, I was going to say.
Having worked for an operator who made the same change, all these arguments were brought up at that time.
Issues such as Airstairs (or not), baggage holds that are too high, engineering problems etc, are all important, but being selfish about it, it is ALL good news for the pilots.
Get the type rating, get the experience and then leave fi you want to. Just don't let them bond you and make sure you get the package right.
By the way, the Airbus is worse on dispatch reliability (with my airlie anyway).....trust me.
Regards
Having worked for an operator who made the same change, all these arguments were brought up at that time.
Issues such as Airstairs (or not), baggage holds that are too high, engineering problems etc, are all important, but being selfish about it, it is ALL good news for the pilots.
Get the type rating, get the experience and then leave fi you want to. Just don't let them bond you and make sure you get the package right.
By the way, the Airbus is worse on dispatch reliability (with my airlie anyway).....trust me.
Regards
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No flare ,
I was merely highlighting these accidents which have happened on Airbus{none on b767 or tristar}.
Plus before you come up with the usual argument an expat was on one of those flights.
I am merely stating what the a320 reliability was like over the 4 years I was there.
Anyway ,it will all come out in the wash.
I was merely highlighting these accidents which have happened on Airbus{none on b767 or tristar}.
Plus before you come up with the usual argument an expat was on one of those flights.
I am merely stating what the a320 reliability was like over the 4 years I was there.
Anyway ,it will all come out in the wash.
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Not air europe tigger. easy are largely filling their aircraft every day. Evidently about 80-85 pax per sector average is the break even load factor. Most all flights operating with 130+pax. Even the crack of dawn and late night ones!.
The bus IS reliable. I also have 4000+ hours on the 20/21 in several different companies and the reliability is there.
Airbus is bending over backwards in many directions to "facilitate" the 319's into service. Thus the financial risk should be about the same as with a Boeing re-order. And also, when it comes time for the next purchase this keeps both airfraimers honest. No complacency here with easy's preference.
Again well done!
The bus IS reliable. I also have 4000+ hours on the 20/21 in several different companies and the reliability is there.
Airbus is bending over backwards in many directions to "facilitate" the 319's into service. Thus the financial risk should be about the same as with a Boeing re-order. And also, when it comes time for the next purchase this keeps both airfraimers honest. No complacency here with easy's preference.
Again well done!
ex-Tanker
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Well it looked like an interesting subject for a couple of posts, until the aggro brigade got on it. Let's see if we can get back on track...
Very nice for the GVA operation who have been having to stay on the -300, while the -700 was being introduced in the UK. And - who knows if this won't let some force-retired Swissair guys get a look-in on the home turf (and incidentally free up qualified 737 guys to help out in LTN?)
I would have said that it was just what was needed to inject some nouse and pride into easy again - the posts above make me wonder - can they really be what they say?
Very nice for the GVA operation who have been having to stay on the -300, while the -700 was being introduced in the UK. And - who knows if this won't let some force-retired Swissair guys get a look-in on the home turf (and incidentally free up qualified 737 guys to help out in LTN?)
I would have said that it was just what was needed to inject some nouse and pride into easy again - the posts above make me wonder - can they really be what they say?
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319/320 nice airplane???
Been flying 319/320 for the last 10 months 2 weeks 12 hours
a load of **** but I must say it is reliable can not wait to get back to Boeing in the new year.
a load of **** but I must say it is reliable can not wait to get back to Boeing in the new year.
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Excellent news for all of us, and if as some claim, the 319 is not too reliable, good news for the engineering erks as well.
Great news.
Great thread.
Can't wait for the My Little Ponies at dawn. If that's the maturity that goes with 14k hours TT I hope I never get my ATPL!! Grow up girls.
Great news.
Great thread.
Can't wait for the My Little Ponies at dawn. If that's the maturity that goes with 14k hours TT I hope I never get my ATPL!! Grow up girls.
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Good god, will you guys please grow up, are you really pilots?
This is good news for all pilots of airbus operators, there are a lot of experienced fo's out there, who may well consider moving to Easy for a command.
As for reliability, the A320 and A321 have very good despatch reliability, the difference between that and that 737 is negligable. I don't know what the A319 reliability is like, anybody from BA like to comment?
There will definitely be a disadvantage to having no airstairs, but if easy keep on top of their handling agents it shouldn't prove to be too much of a problem.
As for the share price, I think that you will find that it is usual for the value of a company to go down when it makes a large purchase. It has nothing to do with lack of approval from the market.
The things that I would be most worried about are:
1. They are going to need a lot of staff for this enormous expansion. They are struggling now to find crews, ground agents, baggage handlers, check in staff etc. as it is. Where the hell are they going to come from?
Imagine the scenario, in order to attract all these staff, eJ have to increase pay and conditions (especially for Pilots, Cabin Crew, Engineers and Ops) therefore costs go up, therefore ticket prices go up, therefore eJ become less competitive and BA and BMi start to do better again. Could eJ become a victim of it's own success?
2. Is there REALLY a market for all these additional flights? When does easy reach its saturation point? Always be wary of a company that expands quickly.
We certainly live in interesting times.
This is good news for all pilots of airbus operators, there are a lot of experienced fo's out there, who may well consider moving to Easy for a command.
As for reliability, the A320 and A321 have very good despatch reliability, the difference between that and that 737 is negligable. I don't know what the A319 reliability is like, anybody from BA like to comment?
There will definitely be a disadvantage to having no airstairs, but if easy keep on top of their handling agents it shouldn't prove to be too much of a problem.
As for the share price, I think that you will find that it is usual for the value of a company to go down when it makes a large purchase. It has nothing to do with lack of approval from the market.
The things that I would be most worried about are:
1. They are going to need a lot of staff for this enormous expansion. They are struggling now to find crews, ground agents, baggage handlers, check in staff etc. as it is. Where the hell are they going to come from?
Imagine the scenario, in order to attract all these staff, eJ have to increase pay and conditions (especially for Pilots, Cabin Crew, Engineers and Ops) therefore costs go up, therefore ticket prices go up, therefore eJ become less competitive and BA and BMi start to do better again. Could eJ become a victim of it's own success?
2. Is there REALLY a market for all these additional flights? When does easy reach its saturation point? Always be wary of a company that expands quickly.
We certainly live in interesting times.
Last edited by fmgc; 14th Oct 2002 at 16:09.
Seat pitch at 156 capacity?
As a regular passenger in our A319's ( I'm a commuter) I am a bit perplexed as to how easy are going to get an eventual 156 pax in! The BA aircraft are in 126 config and I wouldn't say leg room is generous. Are they planning to delete galleys and toilets?
Reliability seems good but they are all brand new - one publicised engine prob with a BHX based aircraft but no other stories yet.
One question for easy planners - are you going to stick with containerised luggage or specify the hold modification for lose stowage like Boeing??
Reliability seems good but they are all brand new - one publicised engine prob with a BHX based aircraft but no other stories yet.
One question for easy planners - are you going to stick with containerised luggage or specify the hold modification for lose stowage like Boeing??
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Reliabilty & Turnarounds
1) The new 319's/320's are the most reliable new aircraft BA have ever bought (%despatch reliability)
2) No probs with quick turnarounds - brakes on today into XXX at XX.31, brakes off at XX.56 without breaking sweat.
1) The new 319's/320's are the most reliable new aircraft BA have ever bought (%despatch reliability)
2) No probs with quick turnarounds - brakes on today into XXX at XX.31, brakes off at XX.56 without breaking sweat.