A220 Range Boost Opens New Markets for Airbus

News Airbus announced at Innovation Days that the A220 has increased gross weight and range, now 3,350nm for the A220-300 and 3,400nm for the A220-100. This increase in range brings transatlantic operations from New England into play, and makes the A220 a true transcontinental aircraft even against strong headwinds. Christian Scherer, Airbus Chief Commercial Officer, stated “this new MOW will allow operators to reach markets where they today cannot be served by other small single-aisle aircraft types.” One of the key markets for the aircraft will likely be London City to New York, which has substantial demand. With the increased MTOW, such a service would not need to be all business class, and a full load of passengers could be accommodated, unlike previously used aircraft. Analysis There are quite a number of long-thin routes that are presently underserved, but could be successful financially with non-stop service. Saving time for business travelers is key, and scheduling the A220 to or between smaller cities could be just the ticket to stimulate traffic. While London City, for which the A220 is approved for steep approach, is a logical target, other smaller cities could emerge for an airilne wanting to exploit a market niche. JetBlue will likely utilize the A220 for an interesting set of routes from Boston, replacing the E190s currently based there. Given Boston’s close proximity to Europe, the increased range opens up a number of potential routes to smaller cities that heretofore have not had non-stop service. Cities like Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Berlin, Nice, Barcelona and others are now within range, joining the UK and Ireland. Traffic to and from smaller and easier to navigate airports may be a potential differentiator for an innovative airline. Insight The A220 has further distanced itself from the E190E2 and E195E2 in capabilities, with the added range opening new potential routes that the competition cannot serve. This flexibility may become important as markets to smaller cities in Asia and the Middle East with lighter traffic can now offer more convenient service. A key benefit the A220 offers is the ability to compete economically with larger narrow-bodies despite fewer seats. With a 20% fuel efficiency benefit over prior generation aircraft of similar size, an A220 can be competitive for low cost carriers as well as network carriers, and does not require high yield markets to be competitive. With innovative new entrants such as Moxy on the order book, interesting new routes could be a possibility give the increased range. While we don’t expect the A220 to replace wide-bodies on major international routes, the aircraft can become the route pioneer aircraft that airlines can use to test the feasibility of new markets, which can graduate to larger aircraft as traffic grows, much like Emirates began markets with A330s, then 777s and finally A380s as traffic grew. LCCs could find the A220 and interesting introductory aircraft, growing from the -100 to -300, and up the Airbus product line as new routes are proven. Adding range and flexibility bring new possibilities for an aircraft, and the A220 has pulled away from its competition in that regard.

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