The Airbus A321neo fleet continues to stretch its legs worldwide, with Frontier unveiling the airline’s first aircraft at its Tampa home.
The aircraft is the first of 158 A321neos to be delivered to the carrier by Airbus between now and 2029. Frontier currently has 226 aircraft on order which will nearly triple its fleet size by the end of the decade.
The airline has chosen to go all-in with a dense configuration of 240 seats installed in the aircraft. These are based on the Recaro SL3710 seat the airline ordered some time ago.
The debut event in Tampa also included unveiling a highly striking special-edition aircraft livery, along with the animal featured on the aircraft’s tail – Frederick the Bald Eagle, inspired by Pratt & Whitney and named for its founder Frederick B. Rentschler. Rentschler was a trailblazer in aviation, designing engines that were dramatically lighter and more fuel efficient than their predecessors.
In Quotes
Barry Biffle, president and CEO, of Frontier Airlines, said:
“The addition of these new A321neo’s to our fleet will make the greenest airline in the U.S. even greener with these aircraft able to achieve 120 miles per gallon per seat,” said
“They are the most fuel-efficient aircraft in operation among major U.S. airlines and are capable of delivering immediate, tangible reductions in fuel consumption, carbon emissions and engine noise. Frontier continues to lead the way in reducing fuel consumption and lessening our environmental footprint and the addition of the A321neo to our fleet is another step in that journey,
Rick Deurloo, president of Commercial Engines at Pratt & Whitney added:
“Frederick Rentschler transformed aviation with the most efficient, dependable engines of their time. Our employees, who voted to name this plane in his honor, carry on his vision with new technologies like the revolutionary geared fan at the heart of our GTF engines,”
“With up to 20 percent in savings, GTF engines are the most fuel efficient with the lowest greenhouse gas emissions for the Airbus A320neo family. These GTF-powered aircraft fly more passengers, farther, more sustainably, and with lower operating costs — helping Frontier add new routes and keep fares low.”
Jeff Knittel, chairman and CEO of Airbus Americas added:
“Frontier has the largest A321neo backlog in North America — a concrete example of their core focus on efficiency and the environment,”
. “With its lower fuel burn, emissions and noise footprint, the A321neo will fly Frontier deep into the ‘green’ future, pleasing passengers while concentrating on sustainability, priorities we at Airbus admire and share.”
Barry Biffle concluded:
“The introduction of the A321neo into our fleet is an important step in our company’s sustainability goals and continued growth,” said Biffle. “The fuel-efficiency offered by this aircraft also provides savings that can be passed on to our customers, helping us continue to deliver on our mission of providing ‘Low Fares Done Right’ across America and beyond.”
Growing the fleet
Frontier’s fleet continues to grow – with the airline currently operating 14 Airbus A320, 80 Airbus A320neo and 21 Airbus A321, with the airline taking delivery both of the Airbus A320neo and Airbus A321neo for some time to come.
With its renewed focus on serving markets using its ultra-low-cost carrier methodology and wanting to grow its fleet to support that operation, these new aircraft provide Frontier to increase its network size or deliver unbeatable frequencies.
The trick – of course – is to ensure that seats are filled when you have a fleet of any size – with passengers paying more than a few pennies (excluding taxes) to fly.
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Liking the new livery tweak, and Frederick’s looking good on the tail here at my home airport!
Apparently Frederick is named after Frederick Rentschler, founder of P&W, nice touch.