easyJet adds 19 A320neo orders, eyes ACMI for Gatwick growth

easyJet (U2, London Luton) has announced that it has firmed up seven A320-200N options and twelve purchase rights with deliveries scheduled between January 2025 and September 2027.

“This agreement secures valuable, supply-constrained delivery slots between January 2025 and September 2027 for aircraft with a cash value of USD2.25 billion on delivery at 2021 list prices. All aircraft purchased by easyJet under the terms of the original 2013 Airbus agreement are subject to a substantial discount from list price,” the carrier said in its annual financial report.

Following the new order, easyJet now has 106 A320-200Ns and sixteen A321-200Ns on order from the manufacturer with a further six A320neo options and 53 purchase rights. It underlined that it retains significant flexibility in terms of outstanding deliveries and the potential conversion between A320neo and A321neo. As of November 30, 2021, the airline expects eight deliveries through the end of September 2022, another seven until the end of September 2023, and 18 in the following 12 months, although this is subject to change depending on market recovery dynamics.

The “original” easyJet no longer operates any aircraft. The easyJet Holdings A320neo Family aircraft fleet comprises four A321-200NXs operated by easyJet Europe (EC, Vienna), thirty-seven A320-200Ns and ten A321-200NXs operated by easyJet UK (U2, London Luton), and two A320-200Ns operated by easyJet Switzerland (DS, Geneva), the ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows.

The carrier also said it added new slots at its London Gatwick, Milan Linate, Porto, and Lisbon bases to capture additional growth opportunities. During the presentation, Chief Executive Johan Lundgren revealed the LCC had leased the Gatwick slots from British Airways (BA, London Heathrow) for the “medium-term”, effective from the Summer 2022 season. He did not disclose the duration.

While easyJet will try to utilise these slots with its own fleet, Lundgren said the carrier would also contemplate wet-leasing capacity for its Gatwick operations. The airline plans to base 79 aircraft at the London airport during the next summer season, up from 63 in the pre-COVID times.

The LCC posted a GBP858 million pound (USD1.14 billion) net loss for the year ended on September 30, 2021.