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Start-up carrier Breeze Airways has converted 10 Airbus A220-300 options to firm orders as the three-year old company is anticipated to be profitable for the first time in 2024. In addition, CE David Neeleman said on 20 February that by the end of this year, the Utah-based company will fly all of its scheduled service on the new Airbus type. “We wouldn’t be the airline we are today without Airbus,” Neeleman says. “The A220-300 is a game-changer aircraft. The economics of the aircraft enable us to fly long, thin routes profitably.” Breeze launched operations in May 2021 with a fleet of Embraer E190s and E195s, initially with 60 A220 orders and 60 options. It took delivery of its first A220 in December 2021 and today operates 22 of the type. By the end of 2024, it will have 32 of the Airbus jets in service. In the past two years Breeze upped its order book to 80, and now has added an additional ten, with deliveries scheduled through 2028. The airline also still has 30 options. “With 90 firm orders, Breeze is now one of the world’s top three A220 customers,” Neeleman says. The serial airline entrepreneur - Breeze is the fifth carrier he has launched since the 1980s - says company executives are acutely aware of delivery bottlenecks in the coming years, so that is why Breeze has moved with the orders now. “It’s a great time to exercise the options,” Neeleman says. “You have to exercise options to get in line. That’s a critical factor as we look at the lineup of deliveries.”<br/>

Ryanair expects to be at least seven Boeing deliveries short this summer, CEO Michael O'Leary told Reuters on Tuesday. "We still think it's somewhere between seven and 10 but there's a risk it could be worse than that. A lot depends on what comes out of the FAA review which is due to complete, I think, in two weeks' time," he said in an interview. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) launched an audit of Boeing's 737 production line following a Jan. 5 accident where a door plug blew off in mid-flight from a Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9. It has also prohibited Boeing from increasing its MAX production rate without FAA permission. Ryanair, Europe's largest airline by passenger numbers and one of Boeing's main customers, has ordered more than 350 MAX jets in recent years, but has none of the MAX 9 variant. "I certainly wouldn't say the worst could be 10. It could be more than that. But we've no idea," O'Leary said. The company is getting weekly updates from Boeing and in the last three updates there has been no change, he said. "The (Boeing) management team in Seattle don't appear to have a grip on the situation at the moment. In their defence it's in the lap of the FAA and we would like to see some a more expeditious outcome coming from both the FAA oversight and then Boeing ... getting their act together," he said. A bigger shortfall in plane deliveries by a cut-off date of July 10 could impact Ryanair's passenger traffic outlook further, he said. Ryanair's business year runs until the end of March.<br/>

Budget airline EasyJet Plc is on track to reclaim its place in the UK’s blue-chip equity index, almost four years after it dropped out of the benchmark during the Covid-19 outbreak. The company would replace Endeavour Mining Plc, which is set to be demoted to the FTSE 250, according to indicative results announced by index compiler FTSE Russell on Tuesday. EasyJet has rallied more than 50% since an October low amid a broader market rebound while also benefiting from tighter capacity among short-haul airlines, higher pricing and an easing in fuel costs. Last month’s trading update suggested strong summer bookings and increased demand for its package holiday offerings. Still, even after the surge, the shares remain well-below their pre-Covid price. After the pandemic-era plunge, the company later faced fierce competition from discount rivals Ryanair Holdings Plc and Wizz Air Holdings Plc, while also being hit by industrial action that disrupted travel from its base, London Gatwick.<br/>

Air Serbia has ended its co-operation agreement with Greek carrier Marathon Airlines in the wake of a serious accident involving a departing Embraer 195 at Belgrade. The Serbian carrier is not waiting for the findings of an investigation into the 18 February accident, in which the twinjet sustained serious fuselage damage on take-off while operating flight JU324 to Dusseldorf. Air Serbia says it contacted the Serbian civil aviation directorate and the transport accident investigation centre immediately after the occurrence. It adds that it is not disclosing any details of the event while the investigation is in progress. But the carrier states that, “regardless of the results” of the inquiry, it has informed Marathon Airlines about termination of their co-operation pact, and no Air Serbia flights will be operated by the Greek airline’s aircraft from 21 February. “Flights that should have been operated by Marathon Airlines will now be operated by other aircraft in the fleet to maintain traffic continuity,” it adds.<br/>

China's Tibet Airlines on Tuesday finalised an order for 40 C919 and 10 ARJ21 jets from COMAC designed to be suitable for high-altitude plateaus, becoming the launch customer for a new variant the Chinese state-owned planemaker is developing. The two companies signed the deal on the sidelines of the biennial commercial and defence-focused Singapore Airshow. The announcement came after Tibet Airlines and COMAC in December announced that they would jointly research a shortened variant of the C919 that will seat 140-160 passengers and can take off and land at high-altitude airports. Chinese state-backed Henan Civil Aviation Development and Investment Group on Tuesday also signed an agreement with COMAC for six models derived from the smaller ARJ21 regional jet specialised for firefighting, medical services and emergency management. COMAC's C919 is in Singapore on its first trip outside Chinese territory, and the Chinese planemaker is positioning the jet as a viable alternative to the Airbus A320neo and Boeing's 737 MAX single-aisle jet families, as they struggle to meet demand for new planes, and Boeing grapples with a string of crises.<br/>

Philippine budget airline Cebu Pacific will decide in May or June whether to choose Airbus or Boeing for an order of more than 100 narrowbody aircraft flagged last year, the carrier's CEO Michael Szucs said. Cebu Pacific is deciding whether to choose a combination of Airbus' A320neo and A321neo models or Boeing's high-capacity 737 MAX 8-200 and 737 MAX 10 for delivery from 2027, he said in an interview on the sidelines of the Singapore Airshow. It will be a significant market test for Boeing following the latest in a series of crises when in January a mid-air cabin panel blew out on a MAX 9 jet mid-flight. Cebu Pacific needs a mix of shorter and longer plane models to cope with the Philippines' varied runway types. It currently has an all-Airbus narrowbody fleet that includes A320neos and A321neos, meaning a switch to Boeing would be a major win for the U.S. planemaker. Szucs said Boeing was fully communicating with Cebu Pacific and he had every confidence it would solve the problem that led to the panel blowout. The carrier said in October it was looking to order 100 to 150 narrowbody aircraft worth up to $12b at list prices in what could be the Philippines' largest-ever jet purchase. Cebu Pacific has said it aims to more than double its fleet by 2035 to take advantage of a long-term travel boom across Southeast Asia following the pandemic.<br/>

Boeing and Royal Brunei Airlines today announced the airline's purchase of four 787 Dreamliners to renew its widebody fleet. Royal Brunei Airlines' selection of the 787-9 supports the airline's long-term growth strategy, sustainability goals and focus on passenger comfort. "The forthcoming arrival of the 787-9 Dreamliner symbolizes a bold step forward in our ongoing journey toward innovation and excellence," said Sabirin bin Haji Abdul Hamid, CEO of Royal Brunei Airlines. "Royal Brunei Airlines has been operating the 787-8 for the last 10 years and this order will ensure we continue with a product that our customers have come to enjoy. In our constant effort to offer unparalleled service matched with the highest safety standards to our guests, the new fleet will allow us the potential to tap into new growth areas, strengthening our market appeal and enabling us to provide a superior travel experience to our guests." Royal Brunei Airlines was the first Southeast Asian carrier to fly the 787 Dreamliner over a decade ago. With this 787-9 order, which was finalized in February and will be posted on Boeing's Orders & Deliveries, the airline can fly more passengers and cargo farther while operating more efficiently.<br/>

Pilots at Network Aviation, a subsidiary of Qantas Airways (QAN.AX), opens new tab, has called off their four-day strike plan from Thursday to enable evacuation flights if required due to the threat from ex-Tropical Cyclone Lincoln, a pilots union said. The pilots at Network Aviation, which conducts charter flights from mines in Western Australia, made the decision after talks with the Western Australia state government, the Australian Federation Of Air Pilots (AFAP) said on Wednesday. Qantas, the country's flag carrier, and the union have been negotiating for 18 months with the pilots at Network Aviation having voted down three deals, including an offer of a pay increase of more than 25%, with 3% annual hikes to follow. "The AFAP will monitor the situation regarding any possible future action once the current threat has passed," senior industrial officer Chris Aikens said. "However, we remain open to meeting with the company in the hope that it can offer something that will be acceptable to this pilot group." Qantas did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment. Ex-Tropical Cyclone Lincoln is forecast to strengthen again to cyclonic intensity on Friday, and likely to hit northern parts of Western Australia with wind gusts of up to 100 kilometres per hour and dump heavy rains, Australia's weather bureau said in its latest update.<br/>

Virgin Australia CEO Jayne Hrdlicka will step down after four years in the role, saying the time is right to ensure a new leader is in place to see the airline through a future public listing. The board will shortly start a global search for a new CEO, the carrier said in a statement Tuesday. Hrdlicka, the former head of Qantas Airways Ltd.’s budget Jetstar unit, joined Virgin in 2020 when it was bought out of bankruptcy by Bain Capital. She guided the airline through the Covid pandemic, repositioning it as a value carrier focused on the domestic and trans-Tasman markets — and returning it to profitability for the first time in 11 years. “There is a lot to do and an IPO to deliver,” Hrdlicka said in the statement. “The next phase of this journey is another three to five years, making now the perfect juncture to begin the process of leadership transition.” Bain was targeting to relist Virgin in November 2023 through an initial public offering that would have valued the airline at around A$2.5b ($1.6b), before pushing back the plans, Bloomberg reported last year. <br/>