Could be. We need a 220 nerd to chime in. It's only like 20 seat difference from a 320, though, so I'm not sure how much that capacity difference is worth having 320s stay in the fleet? But I hear what you're saying. Interesting proposition.

I mean, the list on the Airbus Excel sheet linked earlier is a mile long. I'd post it, but it would jack up the whole thread. It could be anyone? I'm sure a large chunk of that list can be ruled out, but why not a leasing company or some foreign airline? I'm no expert, and I do hope the order is ours... simply trying to play devil's advocate. That said, if you look at that Excel sheet, it says we ordered 132 A320 CEOs in the past, so this number 132 is definitely conspicuous. Does 132 have some historical meaning to company history? For a while WN had 737 73s, I thought that was cute.

 

I'm qualified on the A220. But that doesn't mean myself, or most others study the precise difference in payload, range (with payload ) and driftdown capabilities against the A320NEO. And the 20 seat capacity is only a small part of the equation. Payload itself, and even bin space by cubic footage are also big factors on third world routes.

But we will have A320s in the fleet for a LONG time going forward, and having a small sub-fleet of A320s is really not a burden. It's still an A320/321 family aircraft and not very burdensome to carry.

The A220-300 undisclosed order, the very next day from the A321/320 order is very likely the same customer, and really narrows down the number of worldwide operators that have both A320/A220-300 fleets. The timing is correct for JB having a contingency plan in case the merger wasn't approved, and there are very few reasons to place an undisclosed order.

It might well not be JB, but it would be one hell of a coincidence.

 

Further makes ya wonder that, if it's B6, if they're going to spring for the payload increase on the 220. It's....6,000 pounds, I think?

 

Supposedly still in negotiations. Seems like they need to eventually. Otherwise the airplane doesn't do all they want it to do. And I don't think with 6,000 more pounds aboard that it will have the best high altitude performance. But definitely need it for trans-cons.

 

What do they change on the aircraft to buy 6,000 more pounds?

 

Paper.......

Money changes hands, and they get a different sheet of paper with bigger numbers on it. MTOW increase.

Unrelated, but at some point Airbus /Pratt could unlock more power on the engine, if they feel comfortable with durability. That could help with high altitude performance and drift down as well.

 

Word is that Breeze did it on their birds as part of their purchase price.

If it's a paper weight increase, does that mean it transfers with the airplane if it goes to a new operator?

 

Don't know for sure, could depend on how the aircraft are acquired. For example, if they are sold to JB from Breeze, the certification almost certainly goes with the plane. If we acquire Breeze, the certification would come with the plane.

If Airbus were to reposes, or acquire the aircraft in some way, and resold them to Blue (very unlikely situation), they may make Blue pay for that "capability" again.

It's similar to how some Tesla cars come capable of "self driving", but they can't do it until you pay Tesla and they "unlock" the feature. It's a money grab by the manufacturer.

 

You think this was a JetBlue order? What specifics would lead you to that conclusion?

 

Yes, I still think, most likely is a JB order, probably contingent.

As for my reasons, I will keep those to myself.