easyJet's 75 plane order
 

I have heard a rumour that easyJet will be making the decision tomorrow, regarding their proposal to purchase up to 75 new aircraft.. .. .The rumour also said that Airbus was the favourite at the moment, offering a discount of £2m per aircraft, as well training for 5 crews.. .. .Can anyone confirm, deny or add any other new info on this?

5 crews for 75 aircraft!..must be the new breed of Airbus..radio-controlled or what?

Red Demon: With the list price for the A319 being around £35 million and with Ryanair apparently able to squeeze a 40% discount out of Boeing the other week, easyJet would be looking for a discount of nearer £20 million per aircraft I think. :p

here we go again..... .But what of the time frame for the announcement?

From the easyjet website (fleet information).... .. .information pack - aircraft and fleet information. .. .easyJet operates a single type of aircraft, the Boeing 737, regarded as the workhorse of the industry. It is one of the best selling commercial aircraft of all time, made popular because of its efficiency and cost effectiveness. Uniformity of aircraft in the fleet, is one way that easyJet helps to keep the costs low.. .. .Each single-class aircraft holds a total of 149 passenger seats in a six-abreast configuration. The outside of the aircraft is used to communicate the airline's web site address in the distinctive easyJet orange.. .. .The easyJet fleet, which currently consists of 18 737-300s and 12 next-generation 737-700 (as at February 2002), is already one of the youngest in the world, the average age of the aircraft being just four years old. As new aircraft enter the fleet, other aircraft will be phased out, making the average age of the easyJet fleet even younger.. .. .By 2004, the easyJet fleet will consist of 48 aircraft with an average age of under five years.. .. .Delivery schedule of 737-700 aircraft:. .. .2001 6 . .2002 9 . .2003 8 . .January to May 2004 6 . .. .The airline also holds price protection rights over a further 30 Boeing 737-700 aircraft.. .. .© 1997-2002 easyJet airline company ltd. .use of this site is subject to the terms of our acceptable use policy.. .. .So, which aircraft do you think they are really going to buy...? Not too hard to figure out is it?. .. .(Edited for typos). . . . <small>[ 15 March 2002, 08:54: Message edited by: Flight Safety ]</small>

An Airbus order may not be out of the question. Consider that Airbus have had little success in the no-frills market - except JetBlue, but they are an exception and are not as no-frills as others. Coupled with the fact that there are few such large orders in the near future they will be very keen to get this business.. .. .Also how much spares/maintenance commonality is there between the 737-300 and -700? In some respects easyJet is already operating a 2-type fleet.. .. .So if Airbus are that keen for the business they could broker a deal which outweighs the advantages of staying with Boeing.. .. .I don't know how it's looking right now, but it's certainly not a no-brainer decision.

Flight Safety -. .. .You make the comment that "It's not hard to figure out what type they will buy", based on the current all-737 operation. But that is the whole point....... .. .If EZY go for more 737's now, then they are pretty much tying themselves in as captive customers to Boeing for the future and would not get EZY the best prices on any future orders.. .. .However, a mixed fleet (in the long term) of 50+ 737's and 50+ A319's are both 'stable' fleets in terms of size, economies of scale, etc. It would also give great bargaining power for the future and therefore in any future aircraft purchase would ensure an interesting negotiation and good price from both manufacturers.. .. .Also consider that what Airbus are offering is a modification of the 319 which has not previously been available. EZY are assessing this against the 737-700, but what if it is found to be a better aircraft for the EZY operation? For all the above reasons, EZY would surely be foolish to tie themselves to a single manufacturer?. .. .In trim

Another point is that the 320 is not best suited for the quick turnarounds required by the low cost operators as you need loading equipment to get the bags in and out of the hold. The 737 doesnt need this as they can be loaded at ground level.

But once you have the loading equipment, a 320 turns in less time with fewer ground crew than does a 319, or a 737. Might just pay for the extra cost of renting the loaders. I've seen fully loaded 320s turn in 20 min. Just not possible with the 319's and 737's.

If any of the low cost operators take on the Airbus types, I'd say GO would be the most likely? <img border="0" title="" alt="[Razz]" src="tongue.gif" />

NOFLARE - care to share the info that makes you so certain?

Spiraldiver. .. .Why would it be quicker to turnround a 320 than a 319?

GO had some folks down in TOU a few weeks ago, I saw them !! <img border="0" title="" alt="[Wink]" src="wink.gif" />

Who wouldn't go down when the food and wine are soooooo good.........

Spiraldiver. .. .You most cetainly can turn round a 737, with 130 plus pax, in 20 mins.. .. .It's proven several times daily at BFS,EDI,ABZ,GLA and INV.. .. .Can't speak for the 319 though.

Don't know why anyone is bothering with Airbuses -everyone knows they just clog up the corridors cos they're soooooooo slow. Isn't that right detent?. .. .BTW - Has anyone seen my Porsche - I left my pe*is extension kit in it.....

Sooner they buy 319s the better. Then when I'm in mine on the way back from BCN I won't be continually delayed by those 'low and slow' Easy 737s! <img border="0" title="" alt="[Big Grin]" src="biggrin.gif" />

A few posts regarding loading and use of high-loaders......if easy get 319's they will bulk load to keep it simple and consistent with the 737.. .. .For the 737-700 easy normally use belt loaders due to the additional height compared with the -300, so no additional equipment required.. .. .Airbus holds easier to work in than 737's so loading should not be an issue.. .. .Any comments re 'Low and Slow 737s' presumably refer to the -300's in the fleet. As the debate is between -700's and 319's then this is irrelevant.. .. .In trim. . . . <small>[ 22 March 2002, 17:24: Message edited by: In trim ]</small>

We turn 737's in twenty minutes every day. Quite easily done.. .. .Airbus 319 with cargo loading system? All very well until the day the hi-loader packs in at the rear hold door!. .. .Easyjet requested that drivable steps were not used on any of their a/c after they packed in once. So they gonna ban hi-loaders too if they cause a problem??? . .. .Could be fun times ahead trying to regularly turn a 319 in twenty minutes! But hell, we'll do our best!

It's certainly do-able on a 319 so long as you have a loading conveyor or you can throw the bags on the back of a flatbed truck. We routinely turn a 319 around in 30 minutes and at least 10 minutes of that is waiting for the pax to disembark out of a single door then getting the cleaners on board to give the whole thing the once over then getting the catering on. If we ditched the catering and had the cabin crew clean from the back as the pax disembarked it'd be 20 mins no problem. Laading the hold could be a problem if the bags arrive on one of those tiny trolleys, but it appears there's not that much in it between a 319 and a 700 in that sense.