American Airlines currently maintains a fleet of almost 1000 planes, which ranks it among one of the biggest fleets on the globe. North American’s average aircraft age is between 10 and 15 years, while for American Airlines it is also between 10 and 15 years. Indeed, this places America in an average position among major U.S. airlines in terms of the age of the fleet.
The condition, age, and overall model of the aircraft that an airline uses are also key determinants of cost, efficiency in fuel consumption, comfort, and reliability. The first cost impact is that older aircraft have a higher level of repairs and maintenance than newer models, which leads to high operating costs. They also, for example, consume more fuel than new models with sleeker appearances and updated engines. Older planes do not have many creature comforts that passengers have gotten accustomed to, such as individual touch-screen entertainment systems, electrical outlets, and Wi-Fi connectivity.
But how, in terms of average fleet age within 10–15 years, does American Airlines look compared to other major US airlines? Delta Air Lines has the largest age of its planes, and on average, it is 16.7 years old, which makes it the leader among large companies in the United States. According to United Airlines, the average age of the aircraft is about 15 years old. Southwest Airlines has one of the youngest fleet ages at 11. 1 year and that is considered to be one of the youngest fleet ages in the industry.
As for America, it has concentrated on the type of fleet renewal in recent years. Over the past three years, more than 250 new narrow- and wide-body jets have been added to the fleet. These include more efficient airplanes such as the Boeing 737 MAX and the Airbus A321neo that incorporate features such as passenger comforts that customers desire. Further, new jets are also planned to be procured over the subsequent years.
Retiring Older Planes
Over the years, America has made some additions to new planes and that is why the airline has phased out many of its oldest models that were as old as 20 years at times. This has helped America significantly reduce the overall fleet age as new jets take over older ones.
Examples of old plane types with the American airline that the company has recently retired include the McDonnell Douglas MD-80 series, which was nicknamed the “Super 80”. The last of these planes that had an average age of over 25 years in the American airline’s fleet operated in the year 2019.
Also, the United States has retired Boeing 767-300 wide-body planes, most of which were ordered in the 1990s, meaning that they are over two decades old. The newest and largest-capacity aircraft are the Boeing 787 Dreamliners, which have replaced the older aircraft on long-haul international routes.
The Boeing 737 800 which was first introduced to American Airlines in the late 1990s and early 2000s has also been gradually phased out in favor of the latest MAX variant in a more fuel-efficient and passenger-friendly way. In the middle of this decade, America should have over one hundred new MAX planes, such as the 737-800 models, serving their prime exit service.
Regional Fleet Details
American directly owns and operates most of the large jets you see with the American Airlines logo, but it relies on its regional affiliates to provide flows from smaller feeder markets to its domestic depths. For example, American Eagle regional airline partners include Envoy, PSA, and Republic, which fly small aircraft.
The average age of the regional aircraft used for American Eagle regional flights is nine years. Some of them include the Embraer E175, and Bombardier CRJ900 aircraft with capacities of 65 to 80 passengers, respectively. The American Eagle operation, which connects very small markets using turboprops, has an average age of under 14 years for its fleet. Such propeller-driven planes include the Bombardier Dash 8, which can accommodate as few as 50 or up to 75 passengers.
Regionals under the American Eagle brand currently serve over 200 small and midsize markets in the USA, Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean, connecting these places to American hubs and international gateway airports. By doing so, America makes sure that its regional partners are flying modern, efficient, and reliable planes delivered by Embraer and Bombardier.
Why Fleet Age Matters
To continue to have planes that are efficient in terms of fuel consumption and that are dependable with all the conveniences that a passenger expects in a plane entails the need to invest in next-generation planes. Americans realize that customers have a choice when selecting an airline today, and aspects like comfort, WiFi, power outlets, personal screens, updated seating, and much more matter.
Yes, getting all brand new planes as they are designed by some of the leading airlines around the world may be the best thing to improve the passenger experience but it comes with a very hefty price tag, with new wide-bodied aircraft costing over $100 million while the narrow-bodied ones cost between $50 million and $80 million. Thus, costs are so high that instead of buying new-generation planes at a premium, airlines become launch customers only for the existing models. This enables them to offer more reasonable fares to the customer than their rivals in the market.
It also has a maintenance advantage since all the bugs and difficulties with new models entering service are solved for mid-aged planes. Furthermore, there are some other factors, such as Fleet consistency in the sense that all pilots are trained uniformly and all staff members are well acquainted with some models of aircraft. This minimizes operational variety, and crews are up to date with a particular model of aircraft or equipment.
Thus, while America does not boast the youngest fleet among discounter airlines such as Spirit and Allegiant, consistent replacement of aging planes with new aircraft with the best service years ahead provides certain predictability. American’s ideal target of 10–15 years for its fleet appears to give the airline the perfect cost, efficiency, reliability, and passenger comfort they want.
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