Brussels Airlines welcomes five brand new A320 neo aircraft and lowers its carbon footprint
And continues to grow its fleet and offer to prepare for summer 2023, creating over 200 new jobs.
Brussels, December 7th 2022 - On top of the three brand new A320 neo (New Engine Option) aircraft joining the Brussels Airlines fleet in 2023, the board of directors approved the phase in of two additional new A320 neos for 2024. Today, fleet renewal is the most powerful measure to reduce CO2 and noise emissions from flights. Next to that, the Belgian home carrier is preparing for another successful summer with new destinations in Europe and additional frequencies to European destinations already flown. Moreover, Brussels Airlines expects its operations on the European sector to grow by 10% next summer. The airline is therefore planning 4 additional aircraft and over 200 additional own staff for next summer.
Fleet renewal for lower carbon footprint
Brussels Airlines aims to reduce its CO2 emissions by half by 2030 compared to 2019. By 2050, the airline wants to be CO2 neutral. Today, fleet renewal is the most powerful measure to reduce CO2 and noise emissions from flights. On top of the three brand new A320 neo (New Engine Option) aircraft joining the Brussels Airlines fleet in 2023, the airline - with the help of the Lufthansa Group - is investing in two additional new A320 neo aircraft. The two additional A320 neos, will leave the Airbus factory during 2024 and will replace older A319 aircraft in the Brussels Airlines fleet.
The A320 neo uses 15 to 20% less fuel compared to the A320 ceo (Current Engine Option) version and produces 50% less noise. As the A320 neos will replace A319 aircraft, the fuel use per flight will decrease with 11%, while the fuel consumption per seat for the same flight will drop by 30% thanks to its higher seating capacity.
"In addition to fleet renewal, intermodality and alternative fuels are important pillars to achieve our climate ambitions. Connecting Brussels Airport to the high-speed train network is essential to reduce short flights. That is not the case today. In addition, most of the emissions come from long-haul flights, for which there is no suitable alternative today. That's why we, together with the whole sector, must invest more in alternatives to fossil fuels. At Brussels Airlines we aspire to have the first flight with Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) in 2023. However, in order to use this more climate-friendly SAF on a large scale, major investments will have to be made in production facilities. Investments that we as a sector cannot bear alone."
Peter Gerber,
Expanded summer offer with new destinations
Brussels Airlines is preparing for another successful summer with new destinations for both business and leisure travelers and with additional frequencies to European destinations already flown.
From the start of the IATA summer season on March 26, 2023, Brussels Airlines will offer flights to Billund, Brindisi, Djerba, Monastir, Warsaw and Zurich, all six new destinations in the airline's network. To Berlin, Bordeaux, Chania, Copenhagen, Frankfurt, Goteborg, Hamburg, Kos, Las Palmas, Lyon, Madrid, Munich, Palma de Mallorca and Tenerife, the Belgian home carrier is increasing the number of flights to offer even better connections to Brussels Airlines' long-haul network for connecting passengers and to optimize travel opportunities for business travelers.
Growth with four aircraft on the European sector
Brussels Airlines expects its operations on the European sector to grow by 10% next summer. The airline is therefore planning four additional aircraft, creating over 200 jobs with the company.
Of the four additional aircraft, two Airbus A320 will permanently join the Brussels Airlines fleet and will be deployed throughout the airline's entire medium-haul network.
In addition, Brussels Airlines will join forces with wet lease company CityJet, which will fly two CRJ aircraft for the Belgian home carrier throughout the summer period. These smaller aircraft with 85 to 100 seats will operate flights to secondary markets such as Bordeaux and Billund, allowing these areas to be linked to Brussels Airlines’ intercontinental and European network.
The majority of the additional jobs created concerns flying staff, of which part has already started their training with the company. In the coming months the airline will still hire 20 more pilots and 90 more cabin crew members in order for them to be trained before the start of the summer. Moreover the Belgian company is also looking for 30 technicians and engineers, around 50 airport employees and 40 commercial & support positions such as Marketeers, Business Analysts and Customer Service Experts. Bringing the total number of open vacancies to 230.
In the course of 2022 the airline already hired more than 300 new colleagues, both as part of previous growth last summer and to ensure stable operations in the current winter and upcoming summer seasons.