Airline of the week

Qantas group have taken some major fleet reshuffle decisions that will completely reshape and restructure its international and domestic network over the next few decades. It has ordered 12 Airbus A350-1000s to operate non-stop ‘Project Sunrise’ flights from Australia to other cities including New York and London. These aircraft will feature market-leading passenger comfort in each travel class with services scheduled to start by the end of calendar 2025 from Sydney. Codenamed Project Sunrise, the flights are undoubtedly the world’s longest commercial flight and Qantas is undoubtedly our Airline of the week.

‘New types of aircraft make new things possible’ – The Qantas reshuffle

New types of aircraft make new things possible. That’s what makes this announcement so significant for the national carrier and for a country like Australia where air travel is crucial,” said Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce, after placing a huge order for Airbus aircraft as Qantas re-shuffles its flights and routes

Qantas recently confirmed an order for 12 Airbus A350-1000s to conquer the final frontier of long-haul travel and enable non-stop flights to Australia from any other city including New York and London from late 2025. The news was announced at a ceremony in Sydney attended by Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce and Airbus Chief Commercial Officer and Head of Airbus International, Christian Scherer.

On signing the agreement, Joyce said: “For more than 100 years, Qantas has been at the forefront of transforming the way the world travels, particularly through direct flights. Now, the A350 and Project Sunrise will make almost any city in the world just one flight away from Australia. It’s the last frontier and the final fix for the tyranny of distance that has traditionally challenged travel to Australia.”

Codenamed Project Sunrise for the airline’s long history of endurance flying, Qantas has also shared preliminary concepts for its A350 cabin of the future that will offer a new level of comfort for all passengers on these direct flights that will cut up to four hours off total travel time compared with one-stop options today.

Joyce further added, “The Qantas A350 travel experience will be truly exceptional, particularly across the premium cabins. Our First and Business Class Seats will set a new benchmark for premium long-haul travel. The first Project Sunrise flights will be from New York and London, but the aircraft will also be able to operate non-stop flights to Australia from destinations such as Paris and Frankfurt.”

Customers onboard Qantas’ new fleet of A350 aircraft will be treated to luxurious First Class suites with a separate bed, recliner lounge chair and personal wardrobe; a next-generation Business suite; a new Premium Economy seat pitched at 40 inches, a new Economy seat pitched at 33 inches; and a dedicated Wellbeing Zone designed for movement, stretching and hydration. It has a total seat count of 238, the lowest compared with any other A350-1000 currently in service.

“Our direct Perth-London flights started in 2017 and showed strong demand for the convenience and time savings from this kind of travel if the product and service is right. Pre-COVID it was the longest route on our network and had the highest customer satisfaction on our network. All signs point to that demand increasing post-COVID.”

Global travellers can expect more direct routes to Australia, significantly reduced point-to-point travel time and a flying experience second to none – with a cabin interior and service design influenced by medical and scientific research carried out on three Project Sunrise research flights from New York and London to Sydney in 2019.

The Project Sunrise

The direct flights were labelled Project Sunrise, a nod to the legendary Double Sunrise flights operated by Qantas across the Indian Ocean during WWII which remained airborne long enough to see two sunrises.

Qantas operated three Project Sunrise research flights using its Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft to gather ground-breaking data about inflight passenger and crew health and wellbeing. The flights had limited passengers to minimise weight and followed two Project Sunrise routes — London and New York to Sydney. Qantas gained almost 60 hours of Project Sunrise flying experience across the three flights and thousands of data points.

The Qantas A350-1000 will have the range for direct flights between Australia and any city in the world. Powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-97 turbofan engines which are 25 per cent more fuel-efficient than previous generation aircraft. A350-1000 to fly the world’s longest routes
Will carry 238 passengers across four classes (First, Business, Premium Economy, Economy), with more than 40 per cent of the cabin dedicated to premium seating. Compares to more than 300 seats on competitor airlines. Will be carbon neutral, with all emissions offset
The cabin is specially configured for improved comfort on long flights and includes a wellbeing zone in the centre and more spacious seating in Premium Economy and Economy cabins with new levels of efficiency, comfort and sustainability
Capital expenditure for Project Sunrise is primarily in FY25-FY27, peaking at $1.2 billion in FY26.

Qantas and Rolls-Royce

Qantas has committed to a deal for 12 Trent XWB-97 powered Airbus A350-1000s that will support its ambitions Project Sunrise. Rolls-Royce and Qantas have also committed to signing a TotalCare service agreement for the Trent XWB-97 engines that will power the 12 aircraft, providing the airline with predictability and reliability for the services and maintenance of the new fleet.

Ewen McDonald, Chief Customer Officer, Rolls-Royce Civil Aerospace, said, “We have been powering Qantas aircraft for more than 40 years and we are delighted to be making more history with Qantas on Project Sunrise. This project is closely aligned with our company’s passion for pioneering new innovations and achieving industry firsts. Our Trent XWB engine already has a pedigree in powering ultra-long-haul flights and doing so with the maximum efficiency and reliability.”

The Trent XWB-97 is the world’s most efficient large aero-engine in service today, delivering a 15 per cent fuel consumption advantage over the first Trent engine, enabling our airlines to fly further on less fuel. It is also ready to operate on Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAFs) as they become more available to airlines in the future – this is in line with our commitment to proving all Trent engines are compatible with 100% SAF by 2023. In addition, through industry leading engine efficiency the Trent XWB has contributed to avoiding more than 10 million tonnes of CO2 since it launched in 2015.

As well as offering improved efficiency, the Trent XWB delivers a step-change in out-of-the-box maturity and reliability for the industry, consistently achieving better than 99.9% dispatch reliability.

Following its entry into service in 2015, the Trent XWB, which exclusively powers the Airbus A350, quickly became the fastest-selling large engine of all time. It has now achieved more than eight million engine flying hours in service with more than 30 operators, demonstrating its versatility and capability by flying a range of different routes, from short-range segments to ultra-long-range flights of around 18 hours.

The Project Winton

Qantas also announced the renewal of its narrow-body jets as part of Project Winton with firm orders for 20 Airbus A321XLRs and 20 A220-300s as its Boeing 737s and 717s are gradually retired.The first of these aircraft will start to arrive in late calendar 2023, with the order including purchase right options for another 94 aircraft for delivery through to at least 2034.These aircraft will be used by the Qantas Group on domestic services across the country, which can extend to over five hours. In addition, the A321XLR offers the range capability for flights from Australia to South East Asia, enabling the Qantas Group to open up new direct routes. The A220 and A321XLR fleets will both be powered by Pratt & Whitney GTF engines.

This agreement is in addition to the existing order for 109 A320neo Family aircraft, which includes the A321XLR for the Qantas Group low-cost subsidiary Jetstar.

After placing the order, Joyce said, “The A320s and A220s will become the backbone of our domestic fleet for the next 20 years, helping to keep this country moving. Their range and economics will make new direct routes possible, including serving regional cities better. These newer aircraft and engines will reduce emissions by at least 15 per cent if running on fossil fuels, and significantly better when run on Sustainable Aviation Fuel. This order brings us closer to our commitment to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. Project Sunrise will be carbon neutral from day one,” he further added.

Qantas’ A321XLR is five metres longer than the outgoing 737s and will be configured to seat 200 people (20 business, 180 economies) – a 15 per cent increase with no reduction in space between seats. It can fly approximately 3,000km further than the 737 (at 8,700km) and opens up a wider range of direct domestic and short-haul international routes (e.g. South East Asia, Pacific islands).
The A220-300 is larger overall than the outgoing 717s and will be configured to seat 137 people (10 in Business, 127 in Economy) – a 25 per cent increase with no reduction in space between seats. It has almost double the range at over 6,000 kilometres, meaning it can fly between any city in Australia.
Both aircraft types will be powered by Pratt & Whitney Geared Turbo Fan engines (PW1100G-JM and PW1500G)
The noise levels of both aircraft are up to 50 per cent lower than the retiring aircraft.
On a per-seat basis, the A220-300 burns 28 per cent less fuel per passenger than the 717. The A321XLR burns 17 per cent less fuel per passenger compared with the 737.

Qantas and Pratt & Whitney

Qantas selected Pratt & Whitney GTF engines to power 40 Airbus A220 and A320neo family aircraft, including A321XLR, which the airline will operate on domestic and short-haul international routes. Pratt & Whitney will also provide Qantas with engine maintenance through a long-term EngineWise Comprehensive service agreement. Aircraft deliveries are expected to begin in the second half of 2023.

Qantas Group currently operates several aircraft types with Pratt & Whitney engines, including more than 100 Airbus A320ceo family aircraft with V2500 engines at Jetstar, De Havilland Canada Dash 8 aircraft with PW100 and PW150 engines at QantasLink, and the world’s first Airbus A321P2F at Qantas Freight, a passenger-to-freighter conversion powered by V2500 engines.

Rick Deurloo, chief commercial officer for Pratt & Whitney said, “We thank Qantas for selecting us to power, not just one, but two of their next-generation fleets. GTF engine technology will deliver unmatched economic and environmental performance, and for aircraft like the A321XLR, superior payload and range.”

The Pratt & Whitney GTF engine is the only geared propulsion system delivering industry-leading sustainability benefits and dependable, world-class operating costs. The GTF engine family reduces fuel consumption and carbon emissions by 16 to 20 per cent and noise footprint by 75 per cent, with NOx emissions 50 per cent below the ICAO CAEP/6 regulation. The engine’s revolutionary geared fan architecture is the foundation for more sustainable aviation technologies in the decades ahead, with advancements like the Pratt & Whitney GTF Advantage™ engine and beyond.

ABOUT THE ORDER

Firm orders for 12 Airbus A350-1000 for Project Sunrise. Deliveries are to begin in 2025 and will be completed by 2028.
Firm orders for 20 A321XLR and 20 A220-300 for Project Winton to start the renewal of Qantas’ narrow-body fleet as its fleet of 95 Boeing 737 and Boeing 717 aircraft retire. Deliveries of A220s to start late calendar 2023; A321XLRs deliveries to start a year later in late calendar 2024.
An additional 94 purchase right options spread across A320 and A220 families, with significant flexibility on delivery timing (over 10-plus years) and aircraft type.
Combines with the existing order of 109 A320s (plus purchase rights) for Jetstar into a single Qantas Group narrow-body order of 299 aircraft (half of which are firm orders and half are purchase right options), with the flexibility to draw down on that order by choosing any variant from the A320 and A220 families.
Demonstration of this flexibility with confirmation today that Jetstar will convert 20 of its existing A320 family order to A321XLRs, which have the potential to fly short-haul international routes, with delivery to start in the second half of calendar 2024. (The first tranche from this existing order – 18 A321LRs – is due to arrive from July 2022 onwards.)
Total cost of the deal is commercial in confidence, though a significant discount from the standard price should be assumed.

About the aircraft

The A220, A321XLR and A350 are the market leaders in their respective size categories. In addition to offering the highest levels of passenger comfort, the aircraft bring a step-change in efficiency, using up to 25% less fuel, a similar reduction in carbon emissions and a noise footprint 50% lower than previous generation aircraft.

All in-production Airbus aircraft are certified to fly with a 50 per cent sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) blend, with a target to increase this to 100 per cent by 2030.

Christian Scherer, Airbus Chief Commercial Officer and Head of Airbus International said, “Qantas is one of the world’s iconic airlines, with a visionary spirit from its inception over 100 years ago. We are honoured by the confidence that Qantas is placing in Airbus and look forward to delivering to the Group one of the world’s most modern, efficient and sustainable fleets. This decision by Qantas underscores the position of the A350 as the reference long-range widebody aircraft.”

All of these next-generation aircraft – through their lower emissions, longer range, less noise and better economics – will improve how people travel around Australia and overseas.

Customers can expect more direct routes and therefore less total travel time. They can expect higher levels of cabin comfort. And, particularly on domestic and regional routes, they can expect more choice of flights at different times of the day due to different size aircraft for peak and off-peak times.

To conclude the deal, Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said, “Throughout our history, the aircraft we’ve flown have defined the era we’re in. The 707 introduced the jet age, the 747 democratised travel and the A380 brought a completely new level of comfort. The A350 and Project Sunrise will make any city just one flight away from Australia. It’s the last frontier and the final fix for the tyranny of distance. As you’d expect, the cabin is being specially designed for maximum comfort in all classes for long-haul flying. We have come through the other side of the pandemic a structurally different company. Our domestic market share is higher and the demand for direct international flights is even stronger than it was before COVID. The business case for Project Sunrise has an internal rate of return in the mid-teens. The Board’s decision to approve what is the largest aircraft order in Australian aviation is a clear vote of confidence in the future of the Qantas Group. Our strategy for these aircraft will see us generate significant benefits for those who make it possible – our people, our customers and our shareholders. The phasing of this order means it can be funded within our debt range and through earnings, while still leaving room for shareholder returns in line with our financial framework.”

These decisions will also improve journeys for millions of people every year, and create over 1,000 jobs as well as many career progression opportunities at the national carrier.