Airbus Updates No.4063

 

Viva Aerobus orders more A321neos

On 5 July 2023, Airbus announced it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Mexican ultra low-cost carrier Viva Aerobus for additional A321neos. In total, the deal is for 90 aircraft. Both companies will now continue working together in order to firm the deal.

Viva Aerobus was launched in 2006, and initially operated the Boeing B737-300. In 2013, it ordered 52 A320s to replace the Boeings, with deliveries starting in 2015. In 2018, the airline placed a follow-on order for 25 A321neos.

Today, it operates an all-Airbus fleet consisting of 22 A320s, 22 A320neos, nine A321s, and 21 A321neos.

Airbus Updates No.3494

 

50 Aircraft And Counting: Viva Aerobus Continues Fleet Expansion

This week, the Mexican low-cost operator Viva Aerobus received its 50th aircraft, an Airbus A321neo, registration XA-VBM. The new airplane is part of Viva Aerobus’ plans to nearly double its fleet in the next five to six years. Let’s investigate their plans further.

Viva Aerobus received its 50th plane earlier this week. Photo: Viva Aerobus

The new plane

On July 31, 2021, Viva Aerobus took delivery of the A321neo, registration XA-VBM. The plane came directly from Hamburg, Germany, with stopovers in Keflavik, Iceland, and Bangor, United States.

Juan Carlos Zuazua, Viva Aerobus CEO, said,

“The arrival of our fiftieth plane is a symbol of the compromise we have with affordable air connectivity in Mexico. It is also an acknowledgment of our ultra-low-cost business model and our fleet expansion plan.”

This A321neo has a capacity for 240 passengers and will allow Viva Aerobus continuous growth for the next few years. So far, the low-cost airline has carried 6.4 million passengers, a 19.39% growth compared with 2019 levels. It has also posted a minimal first-half profit, coming back to the black following the COVID-19 pandemic crisis.

Viva Aerobus will get 40 more planes in the next five years. Photo: Getty Images

More A320 aircraft coming up

Currently, Viva Aerobus has a fleet of 50 aircraft and an average age of 4.4 years. This means Viva has the most modern fleet in Mexico and the second in North America.

The Mexican carrier expects to increase the number of airplanes it has in the following years.

According to Juan Carlos Zuazua, Viva Aerobus will receive up to 40 new planes in the next five to six years. If the airline doesn’t retire any older airplanes, it could have up to 90 jets by 2026. According to ch-aviation, Viva’s A320 and A321ceo fleets are 7.7 and 7.6 years old.

The company stated,

“This fleet expansion plan brings the carrier the necessary backup to deal with the growing demand it has had recently, even in the midst of a challenging environment worldwide. Viva Aerobus is leading the sector recovery, surpassing its pre-pandemic passenger levels.”

New routes, to where?

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Viva Aerobus has been growing. The Mexican low-cost carrier closed 2021’s second-quarter operating 133 routes. It has 104 domestic flights and 29 international.

During the first half of 2021, Viva Aerobus launched ten new routes, including five international. It started operations between San José del Cabo and Cincinnati; El Bajío and Houston; El Bajío and San Antonio; Harlem and Monterrey, and Bogotá-Mexico City.

But the carrier isn’t quite done yet. Viva Aerobus plans to continue growing both domestically and internationally.

In Mexico, there’s still a gap left by Interjet, so the domestic airlines are still developing new routes to fill it.

Abroad, Viva Aerobus faces the challenge of not being able to grow into the United States. Mexico currently has a Category 2 safety rating by the Federal Aviation Administration, meaning Viva Aerobus and other Mexican airlines can’t add new routes, frequencies, and planes into this country.

Nevertheless, Zuazua left open the question that Viva may launch new flights to North America, Central, and South America. Some of these new routes could open up in January 2022, so it will be interesting to follow Viva’s developments.

Airbus Updates No.3103

 

Viva Aerobus A320 Evacuated After Possible Gear Failure 

A Viva Aerobus Airbus A320 lost its front landing gear today while departing from Puerto Vallarta, en route to Monterrey, in Mexico. The 127 people onboard exited the aircraft safely, and currently, Puerto Vallarta’s airport is closed due to the incident. What happened?

An Airbus A320 of Viva Aerobus lost its landing gear while departing from Puerto Vallarta in Mexico. There are no injuries. Photo: Getty Images

What happened?

Today, at approximately 13:40 local time, an Airbus A320, registration XA-VAZ, suffered an incident while departing from Puerto Vallarta in Mexico. The airline immediately activated all safety protocols, and no one was injured, according to Viva Aerobus in a statement sent to Simple Flying.

Reporting from the airline states it is currently rescheduling all the passengers that were onboard flight VIV4343. They were traveling to the Mexican city of Monterrey.

According to JacDec News, the aircraft suffered the incident while lined up to depart from runway 22. Currently, Viva Aerobus is doing a maintenance check on XA-VAZ while the Puerto Vallarta airport remains closed.

XA-VAZ had its last flight earlier today, between Monterrey and Puerto Vallarta, according to RadarBox.com. The aircraft is 15 years old and arrived with Viva Aerobus back in 2016. Previously, it flew with Kingfisher Airlines, ZestAir, and AirAsia Zest, according to airfleets.es.

As of February 2021, XA-VAZ was averaging 4.8 flight hours per day and operated 40 flights in the month, according to stats provided by RadarBox.com. The aircraft has mainly operated out of Monterrey and Mexico City, the two main hubs of Viva.

Viva Aerobus’s first landing gear failure

This was the first time Viva Aerobus suffered a landing gear failure in its history, according to AeroInside. The Mexican low-cost carrier has had a few engine shutdowns, including one that happened on November 16, 2020, while flying from Monterrey to Cancun.

You can also see a video of today’s incident in a Facebook video posted a few hours ago.

Viva Aerobus has one of the youngest fleets in all Latin America, and it is all Airbus A320 family-based. As of December 31, Viva Aerobus had a fleet of 43 aircraft, with an average age of 4.4 years.

It had 20 Airbus A320ceo (like the one in this incident), 20 Airbus A320neo, and three Airbus A321neo. The Mexican airline is currently in growth mode and expects to receive five more A321neo in 2021. Viva Aerobus expects to have a fleet of 80 aircraft by 2026.

Viva Aerobus currently has a fleet of 43 aircraft. Photo: Getty Images

What’s been happening lately with Viva Aerobus?

Viva Aerobus and its low-cost competitor Volaris had a V-shaped recovery during 2020’s last two quarters. By November, Viva Aerobus was already operating a full schedule, compared to the previous year, the first airline in the Americas to do it.

Nevertheless, the airline still had a net loss due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Viva Aerobus had a net loss of 2.7 billion pesos in 2020 (nearly US$133 million). The carrier suffered a 36.1% decrease in its revenues, while the expenses only decreased by 19.2%.

Moreover, in 2021’s first quarter, Viva Aerobus has had to adjust its capacity. In February, the number of passengers it carried fell down to the same levels it had in August. This is partially explained due to the low-season in Mexico, which is between January and March.

Airbus Updates No.1900

Viva Aerobus firms up order for 25 A321neo, 16 A321neo upconversions

Viva Aerobus, the ultra-low-cost carrier based in Mexico, has firmed up an amendment for 25 incremental A321neo and 16 upconversions of A320neos to A321neos to their existing purchase agreement. This latest order brings the all-Airbus operator’s total orderbook to 80 A320 Family aircraft (including 15 A320ceo, 24 A320neo, and 41 A321neo) and the airline’s total backlog from 36 to 61 aircraft. Viva Aerobus has not yet decided on the engine selection and will announce at a later date.

Gian Carlo Nucci, CEO of Grupo Viva Aerobus, said: “Our decision to introduce the A321neo to our fleet reflects our long-term commitment to cost reduction, to innovation, operational and environmental efficiency, and enhancing our passenger experience. These additional aircraft will allow us to capture opportunities in Mexico, and we can think of no aircraft better suited than the A321neo with 240 seats with which to endeavour our growth objectives. Of course, these new aircraft will help us offer even lower fares, more destinations and allow us to continue improving our customer service."

Eric Schulz, Airbus Chief Commercial Officer, said: “We are proud about this repeat order by Viva Aerobus; it serves as a testament to the A321neo being the aircraft of choice in the mid-market segment. Viva Aerobus will benefit from the A321neo’s additional capacity, superior performance, and the very lowest operating cost as they strive to meet the growing demand for cost-efficient air travel in Mexico.”  

Viva Aerobus has based its fleet renewal strategy on the A320neo Family. In 2013 Viva Aerobus placed an order for 52 A320 Family aircraft, the largest Airbus aircraft order placed by a single airline in Mexico at the time. Since then, Viva Aerobus has ordered three additional A320ceo aircraft, which were integrated into the airline’s fleet between 2017 and 2018. To date, Viva Aerobus operates 26 A320 Family aircraft, including four A320neo.

The A321 is the largest member of the A320 Family, seating up to 240 passengers, depending on cabin configuration. Incorporating the latest engines, aerodynamic advances and cabin innovations, the A321neo offers a reduction in fuel consumption of at least 15 per cent per seat from day one and 20 per cent by 2020.