The maintenance of the long-haul fleet of the Austrians is becoming more and more expensive, says Lufthansa boss Carsten Spohr. That is why Austrian Airlines will receive new jets as the next subsidiary. He also named the model.
Little has changed in the official statement. It is said in Vienna that they are in constant contact with the fleet management of the Lufthansa Group. “The intended replacement of the long-haul fleet will happen before the end of this decade,” said a spokeswoman for Austrian Airlines.
Francesco Sciortino narrowed down the period for modernizing the long-haul fleet even more narrowly in the spring. “The The Boeing 767, as it is currently set up, can still last another four to five years fly,” said the head of operations at Austrian Airlines. That would mean an exchange by 2028 at the latest.
Maintenance costs are constantly increasing
But for the first time there are now clearer words from the top position. “The AUA is certainly next, with new long-haul models,” said Carsten Spohr before Christmas at an event with employees. According to the Lufthansa Group boss, there is a very solid reason for this. It is becoming “more and more expensive to keep the aircraft that we now have in good condition and in the condition that we need”.
Spohr was addressing the rather old long-distance fleet of the Austrian subsidiary. The six Boeing 777-200s from Austrian Airlines are now 22 years old. The three Boeing 767-300s, which are also to be phased out first, are 23 years old on average.
Lufthansa is in talks with Boeing about more 787s
But Spohr not only said so clearly for the first time that Austrian Airlines will get new aircraft in the near future. He also settled on the model. The group is currently negotiating Boeing on compensation payments for further delayed 777X. And it is always better to take “in kind, i.e. airplanes” than a payment.
Specifically, the CEO of Lufthansa said: “We are now talking to Boeing whether we can add a few more 787s.” According to Spohr, these could be aircraft configured for AUA. However, it is still too early for concrete statements.
Ideal for AUA and Vienna
First, the option of giving the five Dreamliner White Tails to Austrian Airlines, which Lufthansa is taking over, was looked at, Spohr said. That means the five Dreamliners that Hainan Airlines no longer wanted and the German group therefore bought them cheaply got. But according to the CEO, that would also have required adjustments to the cabin and also meant that AUA would have a non-uniform fleet. Because they need more than five planes.
And so Austrian Airlines seems to be getting other Boeing 787s now. Of the In terms of size, Dreamliner is ideal for the demands of the Austrians. In a three-class configuration with Business, Premium Economy and Economy, the Boeing 787-8 offers around 220 seats, the 787-9 around 270 seats and the 787-10 around 310 seats. That suits AUA and the Vienna hub. In the Boeing 777, the airline has 320 seats after the conversion (32/40/258), in the Boeing 767 213 seats (26/30/157).
synergies in the group
And a previous impediment has been removed. Lufthansa, too, now flies with Boeing 787s. Synergies within the group are therefore secured.