LEVEL (Barcelona El Prat) will only add two more widebody aircraft in 2019 and does not plan to open any new bases this year, CEO Vincent Hodder told Routes Online.
"LEVEL was started very quickly - in terms of the lead time for the Barcelona El Prat operation, the Paris Orly operation and then the Austrian operation - and that has meant that we have some work to do to standardise the way we operate. This will ensure that when we start to scale the business at a very aggressive rate, we have a very solid base on which to build. I think we will start to see that growth in 2020," Hodder said.
In 2019, the carrier will take two further A330-200, adding to its existing fleet of five units of the type (of which three are operated under Iberia AOC and two by OpenSkies). Of the two incoming units, one each will be based in Barcelona and at Paris Orly.
Going forward, the carrier is also nearing a decision on its future fleet with Boeing B787 Family jets and A330-800 types being the frontrunners.
"We believe they are the two most appropriate aircraft for us to consider. It will be a very big decision which one we’re going to choose as the platform for our future growth," Hodder said.
Besides its two long-haul bases at Barcelona and Paris Orly, LEVEL also runs short-haul services out of Vienna and, as of April 2019, Amsterdam Schiphol. These bases are operated by the group's Austrian production unit Anisec Luftfahrt (Vienna) under the LEVEL brand.
"In the case of IAG, where we use separate production units, we not only have the capability to increase the number of aircraft at any one of the production units, but we have the opportunity to introduce new production units," Hodder added.
