Jetstar’s new A321neo LR promises to ‘lift the bar’ for low fares travel

There’s a new player in Australia’s aviation game following the long-awaited arrival of Jetstar’s latest addition to its fleet, which promises to improve low fares travel.

Jetstar's brand new A321neo LR features larger overhead storage bins, a USB charging port and flipdown cradle for tablets and smart phones.

There’s a new player in Australia’s aviation game following the long-awaited arrival of Jetstar’s first A321neo (LR) which promises to “lift the bar” for low fares travel.

Ordered in 2011 the long-range, more fuel efficient aircraft was originally meant to arrive in August 2020, but the Covid-19 pandemic meant it was not needed until now.

The first of 18 Jetstar A321LRs touched down in Melbourne on Sunday after a three-stage journey from Hamburg, becoming the only aircraft of its type based in Australia.

With an all economy cabin of 232 seats, the A321LR has room for 46 more passengers than Jetstar’s smaller A320s and can fly up to 1200km further.

In an effort to make flying a more comfortable experience for Jetstar customers, the aircraft has been fitted with slightly wider seats, 40 per cent more overhead storage space, plus a seat back cup holder, flipdown phone or tablet cradle and USB charging port.

Jetstar CEO Gareth Evans said the delayed arrival of the aircraft had not diluted their value to the low fares airline, with the promised fuel savings more needed now than ever.

“Even if the price of oil hadn’t increased, it’s essential,” Mr Evans said after welcoming the new jet into Melbourne Airport on Sunday.

“The big challenge for the industry as a whole over the remainder of this decade and the decades beyond is sustainability, and the A321neos are part of that journey along with sustainable aviation fuel and offsets.”

Jetstar's brand new A321neo LR touches down in Australia for the first time on Sunday, promising a better passenger experience.

As well as burning 15 per cent less fuel than the A320, the A321neo is 50 per cent quieter and has one less coat of paint to reduce weight and deliver further fuel efficiency.

Mr Evans said the aircraft made “huge economic sense” for Jetstar and would help the airline keep airfares low.

“These aircraft can’t arrive too soon for us,” he said.

“We’ve got 18 coming over the next two years, so nine this year and nine the next and another 20 A321XLRs (extra long range) beyond that.”

Although the aircraft has the capacity to fly routes such as Avalon-Bali, Cairns-Auckland and Melbourne-Fiji, it will predominantly be used on domestic routes.

Travellers heading from Melbourne to Cairns will be the first to experience the “new plane smell” of the A321LR, and the benefits of more space for carry on, Mr Evans said.

“This is an aircraft that can move in between the two networks (domestic and international) so we’ve made sure we’ve got good seat pitch (73.6cm), and elements that improve passenger comfort such as the large bins, the USB ports, the phone and tablet cradles and streaming capability,” he said.

“We will continue to fly Boeing 787s to places like Bali. This is about potentially adding more capacity and then possibly freeing up some of the 787 capacity to fly to other places.”

The A321neo LR has extra large storage bins and several other features designed to take some of the stress out of travel.

Monday will mark another first for Australian aviation when new budget carrier Bonza welcomes its first aircraft, a Boeing 737 Max 8.

The jet departed Boeing’s Seattle factory on Friday for Honolulu, and is due into Maroochydore on the Sunshine Coast Monday morning.

The Max 8 will be the first of that aircraft type to be operated on domestic routes in Australia with Bonza hoping to commence operations in September.

Two more Max 8s are due in coming weeks for use on Bonza’s east coast regional routes.

Virgin Australia is also adding the Max 8 to its fleet from early next year with the expectation the aircraft may be used on the airline’s new Gold Coast-Bali route.