Frontier Airlines plans to add a bigger model of aircraft to its fleet – the Airbus A320 – as it orders new planes.
Frontier is adding 10 A320s to its fleet by the end of its fiscal year 2011. By then it will also have 49 A319 planes, which seat 132, and 11 A318 planes, which seat 114. Frontier has an all-Airbus fleet.
The A320 typically has about 162 seats and is in the same family as the A318 and A319. It would be used on high-traffic routes such as Denver to Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Dallas and Chicago.
Frontier chief financial officer Paul Tate said in December the airline was looking at Airbus 320s closely, particularly since Southwest Airlines introduced lower fares in some markets. A larger plane uses more fuel but could bring economies of scale to make up for lower fares if the airline can fill the seats.
“It’s kind of a real big growth step for us,” said Frontier spokes man Joe Hodas. “We’ve attracted enough customers. We’re carrying enough people to warrant an A320.”
The first A320 would be delivered in Frontier’s fiscal 2008.
The new order, subject to confirmation by March 31, includes six new A320 aircraft and the exchange of an eight- A319 order for four A318s and four A320s. It will extend Frontier’s fleet-growth plan by three years.
The different-sized planes will allow Frontier to “right- size” its markets, according to Frontier chief executive Jeff Potter, using smaller planes on routes that attract fewer passengers and larger planes on those that draw more.
Staff writer Kelly Yamanouchi can be reached at 303-820-1488 or kyamanouchi@ denverpost.com.
