Cebu Pacific In Talks For New Aircraft

Cebu Pacific is intensifying its commitment to the next generation of flying as it continues to pursue a new aircraft order.

After placing significant orders for the Airbus A321neo series in recent years, Cebu Pacific wants to add more planes.

The additional aircraft are expected to aid growth across the business in the coming decades, which aligns with comments made by executives recently who have discussed the company’s long-term ambition.

By the end of the decade, Cebu Pacific believes additional, more specifically, single-aisle jets will be required across its business if demand continues to head upward, which it’s expected to do.

The existing order book is expected to play an important role for the business in the coming years; however, the focus of a new prospective order rests on what will follow.

As aircraft delivery slots, especially for popular single-aisle types such as the A321neo, get snapped up, airlines are forced to methodically plan out their fleet for the next decade to ensure they aren’t short on capacity come the turn of the 2030s.

With aircraft availability being a problem and also supply chain woes, the airline’s CEO, when speaking with Aviation Week at the end of February, stated that the more planes in the backlog, the better for the company’s long-term prospects.

Cebu Pacific remains adamant that, whatever it heads for future orders, the deal must make sense and align with the expected growth the carrier expects to occur in the next few years.

The airline hasn’t been afraid to mention on several occasions that its fleet has become more complex than necessary because of its geographical positioning and past decisions; therefore, navigating through this will be important.

Cebu Pacific Rules Out Embraer

In a report published in February, Cebu Pacific wasn’t afraid to dip into discussions surrounding the prospective new Embraer aircraft that has been mentioned in recent years.

However, now the airline is simply ruling out this plane maker and even the popular E2 series, which has been making its presence felt worldwide.

Cebu Pacific says that purchasing additional A321 jets will be the most likely move the airline makes, especially as it continues with fleet simplification efforts.

While the E2 on paper remains a good aircraft, Cebu Pacific feels its fleet is already complicated, and adding a smaller aircraft to the fleet wouldn’t make sense for the business in the long term.

This will remain a persistent challenge for Embraer as they find prospective customers with already established fleets of single-aisle jets who remain unwilling to overcomplicate matters.

As a result, Embraer will need to work tirelessly to break into specific markets with game-changing deals and propositions.