Cebu Pacific powers fleet with first Airbus A321neo

Cebu Pacific, the country’s biggest budget airline, is expanding its fleet as it took delivery of its first Airbus A321neo on Monday.

The delivery of the aircraft, which was ordered directly from European plane maker Airbus, is part of an order for 32 A321neos. The aircraft can carry more people and burn less fuel than its predecessor.

The announcement was made by Airbus, which said Cebu Pacific would receive another five A320neos that were leased from Dublin-based Avolon.

Cebu Pacific’s A321neos were configured with 236 seats. It also has quieter engines while fuel savings were pegged at 20 percent.

Cebu Pacific is expanding its fleet as passenger volume continues to grow.

In a separate statement on Monday, Cebu Pacific said that during the peak Christmas season from Dec. 16, 2018 to Jan. 7, 2019, passenger volume rose 7.4 percent to 1.4 million passengers.

On Dec. 21 alone, passenger volume reached a record 68,284. This was higher than the 65,298 passengers flown on May 7, 2018, which was also during a busy travel period—the summer season.

Cebu Pacific operates flights out of seven hubs in the Philippines—Manila, Clark, Iloilo, Kalibo, Cebu, Cagayan de Oro (Laguindingan) and Davao—to 37 domestic and 26 international destinations.

It ended last year with a fleet of 71 planes. These are comprised of 36 Airbus A320s, seven Airbus A321CEOs, eight Airbus A330s, eight ATR 72-500s, and 12 ATR 72-600 aircraft.

Besides the 32 Airbus A321neos, Cebu Pacific also expects the delivery of five Airbus A320neos and four ATR 72-600 aircraft between 2019 and 2022.