Qantas and Virgin Australia face long waits for new jets – a crucial part of their strategy to bring down costs and keep customers happy.
Already a subscriber?As turmoil engulfs Boeing – following a series of incidents with its next-generation 737 MAX-9 plane and the resignation of its chief executive – a quiet storm is brewing when it comes to the transformation plans being touted by Qantas and Virgin Australia.
Having mostly opted for Airbus, Qantas is not facing the same direct problems as Virgin, which admits now it will have toWhile Virgin remains resolute that it will not ditch its plan, and it will ride out the storm with Boeing, the delay will limit the airline’s ability to add seats and grow revenue at a time when it needs to convince investors it can expand.
But even Boeing’s wide-body 787 Dreamliner planes have issues with Rolls-Royce engines, compounding woes at Qantas and Virgin’s trans-Tasman rivalFirst, it retired its older Boeing 777s, thinking demand for air travel would be slower to return. Then, it was embroiled in the Airbus Pratt & Whitney engine troubles plaguing deliveries of A320neos .
Qantas is also waiting longer for its new planes and its executives know that any move by a much bigger airline – such as United Airlines – to diversify away from Boeing could spell more delays for its new fleet of narrow-body A320 and A321 neos.Airbus reportedly picked up new deliveries by 12 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter, but it has signalled Qantas’s flagship A350-1000 engines have hit hiccups with certification.
Hudson says she is energised by the challenge and dealing with complexity is what her people do best.She has recently added two new A220s and is saving $12 million a month flying its A320neos with lower fuel burn and better seat capacity. The A220s have the potential to change the game for Qantas and give it scope to grow where its competitors are constrained.
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