Florida’s Spirit Airlines accelerates A320neo deliveries

Spirit Airlines (NK, Fort Lauderdale Int’l) announced in its annual results for 2020 that it has accelerated deliveries of six A320-200Ns to 2022. The ultra-low-cost-carrier did not disclose when these six aircraft were originally due to deliver. It said that the acceleration of deliveries will translate into an increase in pre-delivery payments due in 2021 from USD40 million to USD105 million. Under the newly updated fleet plan, Spirit Airlines still intends to take 16 new A320-200Ns in 2021, including one in the first quarter, six in the second, five in the third, and four in the last quarter. One delivery has been rescheduled from the fourth to the second quarter. Otherwise, this year’s plan has not been altered. Following the amendment, the airline will take a total of seventeen A320-200Ns in 2022. Spirit Airlines currently operates thirty-one A319-100s, sixty-four A320-200s, thirty-two A320-200Ns, and thirty A321-200s. It plans no aircraft retirements through at least the end of 2022. According to the ch-aviation fleets advanced module, the carrier has a total of forty-one A319-100Ns, sixty-five A320-200Ns, and twenty A321-200Ns on firm order from Airbus.