A year ago this week, Jetstar’s first state-of-the-art A321neo LR touched down in Melbourne, kickstarting a new era of improved sustainability and growth for the low-cost carrier.
A total of nine NEOs have joined the fleet so far, with the initial order of 18 LRs set to be delivered by the end of 2024. A further five LRs and 15 A321neo XLR (extra-long range) aircraft will enter the fleet by 2029.
The NEO’s CFM Leap A1 engines burn up to 20 per cent less fuel than Jetstar’s earlier A321 aircraft.
In the first year of flying, the airline’s current NEO fleet has reduced total emissions by more than 16,000 tonnes – the equivalent of taking 3500 cars off the road.
In addition to the fuel savings, the NEO is up to 50 per cent quieter than Jetstar’s existing A320 and A321 aircraft. This significant noise saving occurs during both departure and arrival.
The longer-range single-aisle aircraft have allowed Jetstar to offer more low fares to new destinations and add capacity and frequency on its most popular routes, including Bali. The NEOs have also freed up the airline’s Boeing 787 fleet to reach new destinations even further away.
The airline has announced or launched seven new international routes in the past year:
- Sydney to Seoul – November 2, 2022
- Brisbane to Auckland – March 27, 2023
- Sydney to Rarotonga – June 29, 2023
- Brisbane to Narita (Tokyo) – October 31, 2023
- Melbourne to Fiji – December 16, 2023
- Brisbane to Seoul – February 1, 2024
- Brisbane to Osaka (Kansai) – February 2, 2024
Supporting performance
The NEOs, which fly both domestic and international routes, have also helped to improve the low-cost carrier’s operational performance. In the first year of flying the Jetstar NEOs are delivering 99.8 per cent mechanical reliability, greater than the NEO world fleet average.
Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics data shows that Jetstar achieved the highest on time arrival rate of the major domestic carriers in June, with the airline’s domestic cancellation rate dropping to 3.7 per cent and its on-time performance increased to 66.2 per cent. The airline has maintained its stronger performance in July.
