Icelandair CEO reveals why Airbus' A321LR is the perfect 757 replacement — and why the airline isn't ditching Boeing

10.12.2024 - 14:37 / insider.com

Icelandair has received its first-ever Airbus aircraft, breaking from its all-Boeing fleet for the first time in its nearly 90-year history.

The new A321neoLR planes, which can travel up to nine hours nonstop, were delivered in Reykjavik on December 3. By 2027, the 7 new planes will replace Icelandair's aging fleet of Boeing 757s.

Icelandair CEO Bogi Nils Bogason told Business Insider that the A321LR is the "best replacement" for the inefficient 757s as it is 30% more fuel efficient per seat with a similar capacity.

He also said the Airbus order has nothing to do with Boeing's ongoing production issues.

"We ran a campaign between Boeing and Airbus in 2022 and finalized that in early 2023 with Airbus," he said, meaning the deal was signed before the Alaska Airlines 737 Max blowout in January.

The 757 has been the backbone of Icelandair's operation since 1990, connecting Iceland to North America and mainland Europe. Its smaller size makes it cheaper to fly compared to widebody planes while still providing sufficient capacity to be profitable.

But Boeing never built a replacement for the 757, which was discontinued in 2004. This gave Airbus an opportunity to seize the transatlantic narrow-body market with its long-range A321neo family.

Plenty of other Boeing planes will remain in Icelandair's fleet. It currently flies 21 Boeing 737 Max aircraft, which it ordered in 2012 before the A321LR or A321XLR were available.

Cirium data shows nearly 22,000 Max flights scheduled for 2024 across cities in Europe and the US. At least 23,000 Max flights are scheduled for 2025, including new routes to Nashville and Istanbul.

"We are operating, on our scale, a very big Boeing fleet into the future, so Boeing continues to be a very important partner of Icelandair," Bogason said.

Icelandair also flies a small fleet of Boeing 767s on routes where it can carry a lot of cargo alongside passengers. Bogason said these will continue to fly for the "near future."

Icelandair's first passenger A321LR flight took off Tuesday, flying from Reykjavik to Stockholm, with later flights scheduled to Copenhagen.

Cirium data shows that the A321LR will expand to 15 more European cities through 2025, like Rome, Helsinki, Munich, and Zurich. In North America, the jet will fly up to eight hours nonstop to cities including Seattle, Toronto, and Portland, Oregon.

None of these are new Icelandair routes and are already served with Boeing jets, but the A321LR will slowly phase out the 757 or fly alongside the Max to these cities, per Cirium.

Icelandair's A321LR plane has 187 seats in two cabins: 165 in economy and 22 in "Saga Premium."

Saga resembles premium economy, featuring large reclining seats with privacy wings, a legrest and footrest, and