Spirit Airlines (NK, Fort Lauderdale International) has dropped Embraer E2 regional jets from the future fleet considerations and will now analyse only Airbus and Boeing aircraft, CEO Ted Christie told Flightglobal.
"We think the Embraer product is very good. But, for now, we had to tailor ourselves down to just where we are in a Boeing/Airbus world," Christie said.
The American ultra-low-cost carrier is in the final stages of evaluation and wants to place an order within the next few months. The contract could include more than 100 aircraft with deliveries starting in 2022. Spirit Airlines is analysing both the A220 and the A320neo families from Airbus and the B737 MAX from Boeing.
According to the ch-aviation fleets module, Spirit Airlines currently exclusively operates Airbus aircraft. Its fleet includes thirty-one A319-100s, sixty-four A320-200s, twelve A320-200neo, and thirty A321-200s. It has a further one A320 and forty-three A320neo on firm order with Airbus.
The carrier's fleet is among the world's youngest with an average age of 5.8 years. The A319s are the oldest sub-fleet with an average age of 12.8 years.
The Embraer E2 has yet to gather any firm orders from the United States. SkyWest Airlines (OO, Salt Lake City) and Trans States Airlines (St. Louis Lambert International) both placed conditional orders for the E175-E2s but are currently barred from operating the type due to their major airline customers' scope clauses in pilot labour agreements.
