EasyJet Airline Company Limited (styled as
easyJet) is a British airline headquartered in Hangar 89 at
London Luton AirportLondon Luton Airport is an international airport located east of the town centre in the Borough of Luton in Bedfordshire, England and is north of Central London. The airport is from Junction 10a of the M1 motorway...
,
LutonLuton is a town and unitary authority of Bedfordshire, England, 32 miles north of London. Luton, along with its near neighbours of Dunstable and Houghton Regis, form the Luton/Dunstable Urban Area with a population of over 230,000.Luton is home to non-league Luton Town Football Club, whose...
,
BedfordshireBedfordshire is a ceremonial county of historic origin in England that forms part of the East of England region....
,
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It carries more passengers than any other United Kingdom based airline company, operating domestic and international scheduled services on 387 routes between 104 European and North African airports. The airline primarily offers low cost point to point services but sometimes operates full service charter flights on behalf of other companies.
In 2008, EasyJet carried 44.6 million passengers coming only second to
Ryanair
, another
airlineAn airline provides air transport services for passengers or freight, generally with a recognized operating certificate or license. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit.Airlines vary...
with substantial UK operations but based at
Dublin AirportDublin Airport , is operated by the Dublin Airport Authority. Located in Collinstown, in the Fingal part of County Dublin, it is by far the busiest airport in Ireland - over 23.5 million passengers passed through the airport in 2008.Passenger traffic at Dublin Airport is predominantly...
,
Republic of IrelandIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
and who carried some 57.7 million passengers in the same period.
The company holds a United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority Type A Operating Licence permitting it to carry passengers, cargo and mail on aircraft with 20 or more seats.
The
parent companyA parent company is a company that owns enough voting stock in another firm to control management and operations by influencing or electing its board of directors; the second company being deemed as a subsidiary of the parent company...
, EasyJet
plcA public limited company is a type of limited liability company in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland which is permitted to offer its shares to the public.A public limited company must include the words "public limited company" or its...
, is listed on the
London Stock ExchangeThe London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1801, it is one of the largest stock exchanges in the world, with many overseas listings as well as British companies...
. It has 4,859 employees (at September 2007). It is a constituent of the
FTSE 250 IndexThe FTSE 250 Index is a capitalisation-weighted index of 250 UK companies on the London Stock Exchange. They are selected quarterly as being the 101st to 350th largest companies with their primary listing on the exchange. Promotions to and demotions from the index take place quarterly in March,...
.
EasyJet has seen rapid expansion since its establishment in 1995, having grown through a combination of
acquisitionsThe phrase mergers and acquisitions refers to the aspect of corporate strategy, corporate finance and management dealing with the buying, selling and combining of different companies that can aid, finance, or help a growing company in a given industry grow rapidly without having to create another...
and base openings fuelled by consumer demand for low-cost air travel. The airline, along with franchise airline
EasyJet SwitzerlandEasyJet Switzerland SA, styled as easyJet Switzerland is a low-cost airline based in Geneva, Switzerland. It operates scheduled services as an EasyJet franchise from Geneva and Basel. Its main base is Geneva Cointrin International Airport.- History :...
, now operates over 180 aircraft from 19 bases across Europe.
EasyJet is well known throughout the United Kingdom, in part due to the
Airline series broadcast on
ITVITV is a public service network of British commercial television broadcasters, set up under the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC. ITV is the oldest commercial television network in the UK...
which followed the airline's operations at its home base in
London LutonLondon Luton Airport is an international airport located east of the town centre in the Borough of Luton in Bedfordshire, England and is north of Central London. The airport is from Junction 10a of the M1 motorway...
and later at a number of other bases. EasyJet's founder, (now) Sir
Stelios Haji-IoannouStelios Haji-Ioannou KBE , born 14 February 1967 in Athens, Greece, is a Greek born British entrepreneur best known for setting up EasyJet, a low-cost airline. He is of Greek Cypriot origins and is resident in London, Monaco and Athens....
, was featured heavily in the series.
History
The airline was established on 9 March 1992 and started operations on 09 April 1992. It was launched by
Stelios Haji-IoannouStelios Haji-Ioannou KBE , born 14 February 1967 in Athens, Greece, is a Greek born British entrepreneur best known for setting up EasyJet, a low-cost airline. He is of Greek Cypriot origins and is resident in London, Monaco and Athens....
with two wet leased
Boeing 737-200The Boeing 737 is a short to medium range, single aisle, narrow body jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from Boeing's 707 and 727, the 737 has nine variants with the -600, -700, -800 and -900 currently in production.Originally envisioned in...
aircraft. The aircraft were operated initially by
GB AirwaysGB Airways was a UK airline; prior to its dissolution it was headquartered in "The Beehive," a former terminal building, at London Gatwick Airport in Crawley, West Sussex, England. It operated scheduled services as a British Airways franchise to 30 destinations in Europe and North Africa from...
, and subsequently by Air Foyle as EasyJet had not yet received its
Air Operator's CertificateAn Air Operator's Certificate in Europe or an Air Carrier Operating Certificate in the US is an official document issued to an airline by its national safety regulator. It attests to the airline's competence regarding its ability to conduct a safe operation and clearly defines who is in charge of...
. EasyJet initially operated two routes:
London LutonLondon Luton Airport is an international airport located east of the town centre in the Borough of Luton in Bedfordshire, England and is north of Central London. The airport is from Junction 10a of the M1 motorway...
to
GlasgowGlasgow International Airport is located west of Glasgow city centre, near the towns of Paisley and Renfrew in Renfrewshire, Greater Glasgow, Scotland....
and
EdinburghEdinburgh Airport is located at Turnhouse in the City of Edinburgh, Scotland, and was the busiest airport in Scotland in 2008, handling 9,006,702 passengers. It was also the seventh busiest airport in the UK by passengers and the fifth busiest by aircraft movements...
Business and financials
EasyJet was floated on the
London Stock ExchangeThe London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1801, it is one of the largest stock exchanges in the world, with many overseas listings as well as British companies...
On the 5th November 2000.
In October 2004 the
FL GROUPStodir is an international investment company, headquartered in Reykjavík, Iceland with offices in London....
, owner of airlines
IcelandairIcelandair is the flag carrier airline of Iceland, based in Reykjavík. It is part of the Icelandair Group and operates services to 25 cities in 12 countries on both sides of the Atlantic. Its main base is Keflavík International Airport..- History :...
and
SterlingSterling Airlines A/S was an Icelandic-owned low-fare airline, based in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was created in September 2005 through the merger of two Danish airlines - Sterling European Airlines A/S and Maersk Air A/S - which had been bought by Icelandic investment group Fons Eignarhaldsfélag a...
, purchased an 8.4% stake in EasyJet. Over the course of 2005, FL increased its share in the company periodically to 16.9%, fuelling speculation that it would mount a takeover bid for the UK carrier. However, in April 2006 the threat of takeover receded as FL sold its stake for €325m, securing a profit of €140m on its investment.
In November 2005 Ray Webster stood down after 10 years as EasyJet's
chief executive officerA chief executive officer or chief executive is one of the highest-ranking corporate officers or administrators in charge of total management...
and was replaced by former
RAC plcRAC plc is a breakdown company in the United Kingdom supplying products and services for motorists.-History:...
chief executive officer, Andrew Harrison.
| EasyJet Financial Performance |
| Year Ended |
Passengers Flown |
Turnover(£m) |
Profit/Loss Before Tax(£m) |
Net Profit/Loss(£m) |
Basic EPS Earnings per share are the earnings returned on the initial investment amount.In the US, the Financial Accounting Standards Board requires companies' income statements to report EPS for each of the major categories of the income statement: continuing operations, discontinued operations,...
(p) |
| 30 September 2008 |
43,700,000 |
2,362.8 |
110.2 |
83.2 |
19.8 |
| 30 September 2007 |
37,230,079 |
1,797.2 |
201.9 |
152.3 |
36.62 |
| 30 September 2006 |
32,953,287 |
1,619.7 |
129.2 |
94.1 |
23.18 |
| 30 September 2005 |
29,557,640 |
1,314.4 |
67.9 |
42.6 |
10.68 |
| 30 September 2004 |
24,343,649 |
1,091.0 |
62.2 |
41.1 |
10.34 |
| 30 September 2003 |
20,332,973 |
931.8 |
51.5 |
32.4 |
8.24 |
| 30 September 2002 |
11,400,000 |
551.8 |
71.6 |
49.0 |
14.61 |
| 30 September 2001 |
7,100,000 |
356.9 |
40.1 |
37.9 |
15.2 |
| 30 September 2000 |
5,600,000 |
263.7 |
22.1 |
22.1 |
11.9 |
Marketing
EasyJet's early marketing strategy was based on 'making flying as affordable as a pair of jeans' and urged travellers to 'cut out the travel agent'. Its early advertising consisted of little more than the airline's telephone booking number painted in bright orange on the side of its aircraft.
The
Airline TV series created by LWT and filmed between 1999 and 2007 made EasyJet a household name in the United Kingdom. The series, while not always portraying EasyJet in a positive light, did much to promote the airline during this time.
EasyJet has used a number of
sloganA slogan is a memorable motto or phrase used in a political, commercial, religious and other context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose. The word slogan is derived from slogorn which was an Anglicisation of the Scottish and Irish Gaelic sluagh-ghairm...
s since its establishment. Its current slogan is 'Come on, let's fly!', a reflection on the airline's cheeky and cheerful image. EasyJet has previously styled itself as 'the web's favourite airline', a play on the
British AirwaysBritish Airways plc is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in Waterside near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport and is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations. Its second hub is London Gatwick...
slogan 'the world's favourite airline'. This was chosen as EasyJet had sold a higher proportion of seats through its website,
easyJet.com than any other airline.
EasyJet has expanded rapidly since its establishment in 1995, driven by base openings both in the United Kingdom and continental Europe, and by a number of acquisitions. Its expansion has also been fuelled by a rise in consumer demand for low cost travel.
In March 1998 EasyJet purchased a 40% stake in Swiss charter airline TEA Basle for a consideration of three million
Swiss francsThe franc is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein; it is also legal tender in the Italian exclave Campione d'Italia. Although not formally legal tender in the German exclave Büsingen , it is widely used on a day-to-day basis...
. The airline was renamed
EasyJet SwitzerlandEasyJet Switzerland SA, styled as easyJet Switzerland is a low-cost airline based in Geneva, Switzerland. It operates scheduled services as an EasyJet franchise from Geneva and Basel. Its main base is Geneva Cointrin International Airport.- History :...
and commenced
franchiseFranchising is the practice of using another person's business model. The franchisor grants the independent operator the right to distribute its products, techniques, and trademarks for a percentage of gross monthly sales and a royalty fee...
services on 1 April 1999, having relocated its headquarters to Geneva International Airport. This was EasyJet's first new base outside the United Kingdom.
On 16 May 2002, EasyJet announced its intention to purchase rival airline,
London StanstedLondon Stansted Airport is a passenger airport located at Stansted Mountfitchet in the District of Uttlesford in Essex, north-east of central London. It is north northeast of Bishop's Stortford and about outside Harlow....
based
GoGo Fly was the name of an award-winning British airline, trading as "Go", which was purchased by EasyJet in May 2002 for the equivalent of $545 million.-History:...
for £374 million. EasyJet inherited three new bases from Go, at
Bristol International AirportBristol International Airport , located at Lulsgate Bottom in North Somerset, is the commercial airport serving the city of Bristol, England and the surrounding area. In 2003, the airport drew 45% of its passengers from the former county of Avon area, 13% from Devon, 10% from Somerset and 10% from...
, East Midlands and
London StanstedLondon Stansted Airport is a passenger airport located at Stansted Mountfitchet in the District of Uttlesford in Essex, north-east of central London. It is north northeast of Bishop's Stortford and about outside Harlow....
. The acquisition of Go almost doubled the number of Boeing 737-300 aircraft in the EasyJet fleet.
In 2001, EasyJet opened its base at
London Gatwick AirportLondon Gatwick Airport is London's second largest international airport and second busiest in the United Kingdom after Heathrow. In 2008, it was the world's 28th-busiest airport in terms of passenger numbers and 9th busiest in terms of international passengers...
and between 2003 and 2007, EasyJet opened bases in Germany, France, Italy and Spain, establishing a sizeable presence in continental Europe.
On 25 October 2007 EasyJet announced that it had agreed to purchase the entire share capital of
GB Airways LtdGB Airways was a UK airline; prior to its dissolution it was headquartered in "The Beehive," a former terminal building, at London Gatwick Airport in Crawley, West Sussex, England. It operated scheduled services as a British Airways franchise to 30 destinations in Europe and North Africa from...
from the
Bland GroupThe Bland Group is made up of a number of small operating companies based in Gibraltar. The Bland Group used to own GB Airways but sold out to easyJet in 2008....
. The deal was worth £103.5 million and was used to expand EasyJet operations at London Gatwick Airport and also to establish a base at Manchester Airport.
Strategy
EasyJet, like
Ryanair
, borrows its business model from American air carrier
SouthwestSouthwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline. Southwest is the largest airline in the world by number of passengers carried per year . Southwest, the 6th largest U.S. airline by revenue, maintains the third-largest passenger fleet of aircraft among all of the world's commercial airlines....
. Both airlines have adapted this model for the European market through further cost-cutting measures such as not selling connecting flights or providing complimentary snacks on board. The key points of this business model are high aircraft utilisation, quick turnaround times, charging for extras (such as priority boarding, hold baggage and food) and keeping operating costs low.
While the two airlines share a common business idea, EasyJet's strategy differs from
Ryanair
's in a number of areas. EasyJet flies mainly to primary airports in the cities that it serves, while Ryanair often chooses secondary airports to reduce costs. For example, EasyJet flies to Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport and Paris Orly, the primary airports in Paris, while Ryanair flies to the smaller Paris Beauvais Tillé Airport, a 75 minute bus journey from Paris. EasyJet also focuses on attracting business passengers by offering convenient services such as the option to transfer on to an earlier flight for free.
Environment
In June 2007, EasyJet announced plans for construction its own airliner, dubbed
EcoJetThe EcoJet is a proposed short-haul aircraft for 100 to 200 passengers which does not use jet engines, but propels itself by means of propfans...
. Featuring
propfanAn unducted fan or propfan is a modified turbofan engine, with the fan placed outside of the engine nacelle on the same axis as the compressor blades. Propfans are also known as ultra-high bypass engines and, most recently, open rotor jet engines...
engines, the EcoJet would feature an increase in
fuel efficiencyFuel efficiency, is a form of thermal efficiency, meaning the efficiency of a process that converts chemical potential energy contained in a carrier fuel into kinetic energy or work. Overall fuel efficiency may vary per device, which in turn may vary per application, and this spectrum of variance...
. It would be constructed with extensive use of
carbon fiberCarbon fiber is a material consisting of extremely thin fibers about 0.005–0.010 mm in diameter and composed mostly of carbon atoms. The carbon atoms are bonded together in microscopic crystals that are more or less aligned parallel to the long axis of the fiber...
composite materialComposite materials are engineered materials made from two or more constituent materials with significantly different physical or chemical properties which remain separate and distinct on a macroscopic level within the finished structure.- History :The most primitive composite materials were straw...
. The date for the first flight was given to be in 2015.
Since then, no news on the advances of the EcoJet project have been released. Therefore, it is unclear whether easyJet still pursues its construction, or whether the original purpose of project was to set aircraft manufactorers
BoeingThe Boeing Company is a major aerospace and defense corporation, founded by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Its international headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois, since 2001...
and
AirbusAirbus
SAS is an aircraft manufacturing subsidiary of EADS, a European aerospace company. Based in Toulouse, France, and with significant activity across Europe, the company produces around half of the world's jet airliners.Airbus began as a consortium of aerospace manufacturers...
under pressure to construct an airliner that serves the need of EasyJet.
EasyJet is offering the possibility to
carbon offsetA carbon offset is a financial instrument aimed at a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Carbon offsets are measured in metric tons of carbon dioxide-equivalent and may represent six primary categories of greenhouse gases...
the CO
2 to their customer's trips as an extra service via a calculator which calculates a passenger's
carbon footprintA giant footprint is "the total set of blue natural gas caused by an organization, event or product" . For simplicity of reporting, it is often expressed in terms of the amount of carbon dioxide, or its equivalent of other GHGs, emitted....
.
Destinations
EasyJet serves 103 destinations in 27 countries throughout Europe and the north of Africa. Its home base is at
London LutonLondon Luton Airport is an international airport located east of the town centre in the Borough of Luton in Bedfordshire, England and is north of Central London. The airport is from Junction 10a of the M1 motorway...
, however its largest base is at
London GatwickLondon Gatwick Airport is London's second largest international airport and second busiest in the United Kingdom after Heathrow. In 2008, it was the world's 28th-busiest airport in terms of passenger numbers and 9th busiest in terms of international passengers...
which offers 63 destinations. EasyJet maintains other bases throughout Europe, at
BaselEuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg is an international airport northwest of Basel , southeast of Mulhouse , and near Freiburg . It is located in France, on the administrative territory of the commune of Saint-Louis near the Swiss and German borders...
,
BelfastBelfast International Airport is an airport located northwest of Belfast in Northern Ireland. It was formerly known and is still referred to as Aldergrove Airport, after the village of the same name lying immediately to the west of the airport...
, Berlin-Schönefeld,
BristolBristol International Airport , located at Lulsgate Bottom in North Somerset, is the commercial airport serving the city of Bristol, England and the surrounding area. In 2003, the airport drew 45% of its passengers from the former county of Avon area, 13% from Devon, 10% from Somerset and 10% from...
, Nottingham,
EdinburghEdinburgh Airport is located at Turnhouse in the City of Edinburgh, Scotland, and was the busiest airport in Scotland in 2008, handling 9,006,702 passengers. It was also the seventh busiest airport in the UK by passengers and the fifth busiest by aircraft movements...
, Geneva,
GlasgowGlasgow International Airport is located west of Glasgow city centre, near the towns of Paisley and Renfrew in Renfrewshire, Greater Glasgow, Scotland....
,
LiverpoolLiverpool John Lennon Airport is an international airport serving the city of Liverpool and North West England. Formerly known as Speke Airport and RAF Speke, the airport is located within the City of Liverpool adjacent to the estuary of the River Mersey some southeast of the centre of...
,
London-StanstedLondon Stansted Airport is a passenger airport located at Stansted Mountfitchet in the District of Uttlesford in Essex, north-east of central London. It is north northeast of Bishop's Stortford and about outside Harlow....
, Lyons, Madrid-Barajas,
Milan-MalpensaMilano Malpensa Airport "City of Milan" , former "Aeroporto Città di Busto Arsizio" is Milan's largest airport. It is located northwest of central Milan, Italy...
, Manchester,
NewcastleNewcastle Airport is located at Woolsington in the City of Newcastle upon Tyne, England, north-west of the city centre. In 2008 it was the 13th busiest airport in the United Kingdom....
, Paris-Charles de Gaulle,
Paris-OrlyParis - Orly Airport is an airport located partially in Orly and partially in Villeneuve-le-Roi, south of Paris, France. It has flights to cities in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Caribbean, and North America. Prior to the construction of Charles de Gaulle Airport, Orly was the main...
, and Rome Fiumicino which opens on Nov 2 2009.
On 17 December 2007, EasyJet announced that it would be significantly expanding its operations in
North West EnglandNorth West England is one of the nine official regions of England. It has a population of 6,853,200 and comprises five counties of England – Cumbria, Lancashire, Greater Manchester, Merseyside, and Cheshire....
, by opening a base at Manchester Airport. This base was inherited from
GB AirwaysGB Airways was a UK airline; prior to its dissolution it was headquartered in "The Beehive," a former terminal building, at London Gatwick Airport in Crawley, West Sussex, England. It operated scheduled services as a British Airways franchise to 30 destinations in Europe and North Africa from...
on 30 March 2008 and over the next few years EasyJet plan to base more aircraft at the airport for route expansion.
EasyJet briefly operated routes to the Republic of Ireland ‘Ryanair's home ground and one of the top destinations from the UK in terms of passenger numbers each year, but dropped them after stiff competition with Ryanair.
EasyJet was prevented from launching its
Milan MalpensaMilano Malpensa Airport "City of Milan" , former "Aeroporto Città di Busto Arsizio" is Milan's largest airport. It is located northwest of central Milan, Italy...
-
OlbiaOlbia - Costa Smeralda Airport is an international airport in Olbia, Sardinia .-Terminal Information:
Tourist information point
- CiaoSardinia Infodesk
Education and convention area
...
route in April 2006 by the Italian aviation authorities. The route had been assigned to
MeridianaMeridiana is an airline based in Olbia, Italy. It is Italy's third largest airline operating domestic and European services, as well as intercontinental flights by its subsidiary Eurofly. Its headquarters are at Olbia - Costa Smeralda Airport, but the main hubs is at Cagliari-Elmas Airport...
as a public service obligation route. The Italian authorities had granted exclusivity in return for fixed low fares for
SardiniaSardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . The area of Sardinia is . The nearest land masses to the island are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Tunisia, and the Spanish Balearic Islands...
n residents on routes from
MilanMilan in Italy, is the capital of the region of Lombardia and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while the urban area is the fifth largest in the E.U. with an estimated population of 4.3 million...
and Rome to the Sardinian airports of
AlgheroAlghero Airport sign.JPGFertilia Airport or Alghero Airport is an international airport situated north northwest of the city of Alghero, in northern Sardinia, Italy. It is named for the nearby village of Fertilia...
, Cagliari and
OlbiaOlbia - Costa Smeralda Airport is an international airport in Olbia, Sardinia .-Terminal Information:
Tourist information point
- CiaoSardinia Infodesk
Education and convention area
...
. This was however overturned and EasyJet commenced flights from
Milan MalpensaMilano Malpensa Airport "City of Milan" , former "Aeroporto Città di Busto Arsizio" is Milan's largest airport. It is located northwest of central Milan, Italy...
to
OlbiaOlbia - Costa Smeralda Airport is an international airport in Olbia, Sardinia .-Terminal Information:
Tourist information point
- CiaoSardinia Infodesk
Education and convention area
...
on 21 October 2007, and also to the
SardiniaSardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . The area of Sardinia is . The nearest land masses to the island are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Tunisia, and the Spanish Balearic Islands...
n capital
CagliariCagliari-Elmas Airport is an international airport near Cagliari on the island of Sardinia, Italy. The airport was recently upgraded and the terminal was expanded and provided with 6 loading bridges for passenger boarding....
on 29 October 2007.
The base at Dortmund was closed on 26 October 2008 due to inefficiencies and poor levels of revenue. Activities at Rome-Fiumicino are due to be expanded in November 2009 with the opening of a further European base.
In December 2009, Easyjet will discontinue flights at East Midlands airport, in a statement CEO Andy Harrison said the airline could not see a growing long term future at the airport and will therefore focus on higher priority markets.
Fleet
The EasyJet fleet consists of the following aircraft (at October 2009):
EasyJet fleet
| Aircraft |
Total |
Orders |
Passengers |
| Airbus A319-100 |
131 |
55 |
156 |
| Airbus A320-200 |
20 |
10 |
180 |
| Airbus A321-200 |
4 |
2 |
210 |
| Boeing 737-700 |
17 |
0 |
149 |
| Total |
172 |
67 |
|
EasyJet is the largest operator of the Airbus A319.
The average age of the EasyJet fleet, at October 2009, is 3.4 years.
Fleet strategy and aircraft orders
EasyJet initially operated
Boeing 737The Boeing 737 is a short to medium range, single aisle, narrow body jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from Boeing's 707 and 727, the 737 has nine variants with the -600, -700, -800 and -900 currently in production.Originally envisioned in...
aircraftAn aircraft is a vehicle which is able to fly by being supported by the air, or in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil An aircraft is a vehicle which is able to fly by being supported...
exclusively. In October 2002 it broke with its previous philosophy of operating just one aircraft type (a strategy popularised by
Southwest AirlinesSouthwest Airlines Co. is an American low-cost airline. Southwest is the largest airline in the world by number of passengers carried per year . Southwest, the 6th largest U.S. airline by revenue, maintains the third-largest passenger fleet of aircraft among all of the world's commercial airlines....
) by ordering 120 Airbus A319 aircraft (plus 120
optionsAn option, when purchasing aircraft, allows an airline to purchase additional aircraft in the future at an agreed price and date.When placing orders for new aircraft, airlines commonly obtain options from the aircraft manufacturer, for example Airbus or Boeing...
) with CFM56-5B engines.
Airbus A319 Orders
| Date |
Orders |
OptionsAn option, when purchasing aircraft, allows an airline to purchase additional aircraft in the future at an agreed price and date.When placing orders for new aircraft, airlines commonly obtain options from the aircraft manufacturer, for example Airbus or Boeing...
|
Notes |
| October 2002 |
120 |
120 |
|
| December 2005 |
140 |
100 |
20 options converted |
| November 2006 |
192 |
123 |
52 options converted
75 new options |
| June 2007 |
227 |
88 |
35 options converted |
| July 2008 |
227 |
88 |
25 A319 changed for A320 |
EasyJet's Airbus A319 aircraft were first introduced to EasyJet's Geneva base in October 2003.
Due to toilet and galley configuration allowing the installation of more seats than a standard Airbus A319, EasyJet's Airbus A319 aircraft have two pairs of overwing exits, instead of the standard one pair configuration found on most Airbus A319 aircraft, to satisfy safety requirements.
EasyJet has 88 outstanding options with
AirbusAirbus
SAS is an aircraft manufacturing subsidiary of EADS, a European aerospace company. Based in Toulouse, France, and with significant activity across Europe, the company produces around half of the world's jet airliners.Airbus began as a consortium of aerospace manufacturers...
which may be taken as any member of the Airbus A320 family.
EasyJet still operates the Boeing 737-700 from its bases at
London LutonLondon Luton Airport is an international airport located east of the town centre in the Borough of Luton in Bedfordshire, England and is north of Central London. The airport is from Junction 10a of the M1 motorway...
,
BelfastBelfast International Airport is an airport located northwest of Belfast in Northern Ireland. It was formerly known and is still referred to as Aldergrove Airport, after the village of the same name lying immediately to the west of the airport...
and
NewcastleNewcastle Airport is located at Woolsington in the City of Newcastle upon Tyne, England, north-west of the city centre. In 2008 it was the 13th busiest airport in the United Kingdom....
, however from December 2006 the airline started to return the Boeing 737-700 aircraft to their
lessorLessor is the name of two places in the United States:*Lessor, Wisconsin*Lessor Township, Minnesota...
s. The
NewcastleNewcastle Airport is located at Woolsington in the City of Newcastle upon Tyne, England, north-west of the city centre. In 2008 it was the 13th busiest airport in the United Kingdom....
base is currently in the process of being converted to an Airbus A319 operation, and as of February 2009 two A319 aircraft are stationed there, six Airbus A319 aircraft are now based at Luton. EasyJet plan to have disposed of its entire Boeing 737 fleet by 2011.
Through the acquisition of
GB AirwaysGB Airways was a UK airline; prior to its dissolution it was headquartered in "The Beehive," a former terminal building, at London Gatwick Airport in Crawley, West Sussex, England. It operated scheduled services as a British Airways franchise to 30 destinations in Europe and North Africa from...
, EasyJet inherited nine
Airbus A320The Airbus A320 family of short- to medium-range commercial passenger airliners are manufactured by Airbus and are the only narrowbody in their product line...
and six Airbus A321 aircraft. This gave the airline some time to evaluate the feasibility of operating these larger gauge aircraft. Based on this evaluation, EasyJet decided to swap 25 A319 orders for A320 in July 2008.
Previously operated
- Boeing 737-200 - Operated by GB Airways
GB Airways was a UK airline; prior to its dissolution it was headquartered in "The Beehive," a former terminal building, at London Gatwick Airport in Crawley, West Sussex, England. It operated scheduled services as a British Airways franchise to 30 destinations in Europe and North Africa from...
and Air Foyle from 1995 to 1997.
- Boeing 737-300 - Retired from EasyJet fleet in 2006.
Headquarters
Easyjet's headquarters office is Hangar 89 (H89), a building located on the grounds of
London Luton AirportLondon Luton Airport is an international airport located east of the town centre in the Borough of Luton in Bedfordshire, England and is north of Central London. The airport is from Junction 10a of the M1 motorway...
; the hangar, a former
Britannia AirwaysBritannia Airways was the largest charter airline in the United Kingdom, rebranded as Thomsonfly in 2005. Its main bases were London Gatwick, London Luton, Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle and Glasgow...
/
TUITUI AG is a German company headquartered in Hanover. Until 2001 it was an industrial and transportation company named Preussag AG, which in the mid-1990s decided to reinvent itself as a tourism, shipping, and logistics company...
facility, is located 150 metres from EasyLand, the previous headquarters of EasyJet. Hangar 89, built in 1974 has 30,000 square feet of office space and can house three aircraft the size of an Airbus A319 or
Boeing 737The Boeing 737 is a short to medium range, single aisle, narrow body jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from Boeing's 707 and 727, the 737 has nine variants with the -600, -700, -800 and -900 currently in production.Originally envisioned in...
at one time. When EasyJet received H89, it had a 1970s style office setup. EasyJet modernized the building and painted it orange.
Booking
Initially booking was by telephone only, with all EasyJet
aircraftAn aircraft is a vehicle which is able to fly by being supported by the air, or in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil An aircraft is a vehicle which is able to fly by being supported...
painted with the booking telephone number. There is no incentive for travel agents to sell EasyJet bookings because there is no commission, a standard practice for the low cost carriers.
In December 1997, Russell Sheffield of Tableau, one of EasyJet's Design and Adverting Agencies, suggested to Stelios that he should consider trialling a website for direct bookings. Stelios's reply was 'The Internet is for nerds, it will never make money for my business!'. However Tony Anderson, EasyJet's Marketing Director, and Michael Coltman, EasyJet's Business Manager, saw the potential and approved a website trial involving putting a different telephone reservations number on the website, to track success. Once Stelios saw the results he changed his mind, and EasyJet commissioned Tableau to partner with them develop an e-commerce website capable of offering real-time online booking from April 1998 — the first low cost carrier to do so in Europe.
Internet bookings were priced cheaper than booking over the phone, to reflect the reduced
call centreA call centre or call center is a centralised office used for the purpose of receiving and transmitting a large volume of requests by telephone. A call centre is operated by a company to administer incoming product support or information inquiries from consumers. Outgoing calls for telemarketing,...
costs and the aircraft were repainted with the web address. Within a year over 50% of bookings were made using the web site, by April 2004 the figure had jumped to 98%. Now, flights can only be booked over the Internet except during the 3 months immediately before the flight when telephone booking is also available.
Cabin and onboard services
EasyJet's
aircraftAn aircraft is a vehicle which is able to fly by being supported by the air, or in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil An aircraft is a vehicle which is able to fly by being supported...
cabins are configured in a single class, high density layout.
The airline's main fleet, comprising the Boeing 737-700, Airbus A319 and Airbus A320-200, carry 149, 156 and up to 180 passengers respectively, depending on layout. A typical Airbus A319 carries approximately 140 passengers in a single class configuration, but as EasyJet do not serve meals on their shorter flights, the airline opted for smaller galleys and had a lavatory installed in unused space at the rear of the aircraft. The space saved by having smaller galleys allowed for the installation of 156 seats. Due to this seating arrangement, EasyJet's Airbus A319 aircraft have two pairs of overwing exits, instead of the standard one pair configuration found on most Airbus A319 aircraft, to satisfy safety requirements.
EasyJet does not provide complimentary meals or beverages on board its flights (apart for some occasional charter flights operated by the airline). Passengers may purchase items on board from the 'easyJet Bistro'
buy on boardIn commercial flight, buy on board is a system where food and/or beverages are paid for on board; often food and/or beverages are not included in the ticket price for certain fare classes....
programme. Products include sandwiches, toasted sandwiches, hot meals, chocolate, snacks, hot drinks, soft drinks and alcoholic drinks. Onboard sales are an important part of the airline's ancillary revenue. EasyJet also sells gifts such as fragrances, cosmetics and EasyJet branded items onboard, as well as tickets for airport transfer services or train tickets.
EasyJet provides in-flight entertainment on some flights operated by Airbus A320 and Airbus A321 aircraft. On shorter flights, silent comedy programmes are shown and on certain longer flights a movie is shown. EasyJet offers headsets for purchase on board. EasyJet provides an in-flight magazine, published monthly, containing articles of interest to its customers and destination guides.
EasyJetHotels and EasyJetHolidays
On 14 December 2004, EasyJet and Hotelopia, a subsidiary of
First Choice HolidaysFirst Choice is a brand name used by TUI Travel PLC to sell package holidays in the United Kingdom.The brand is also the name of a chain of travel agents that are part of the same group.- Pre-merger History:...
, launched the co-branded
EasyJetHotels accommodation booking service. EasyJetHotels offers accommodation products throughout the EasyJet network. Customers booking flights through the EasyJet website are provided with quotes for a number of hotels at their destination. Alternatively, customers can book accommodation separately at the EasyJetHotels website.
On 28 June 2007, EasyJet announced it would expand its relationship with Hotelopia by launching
EasyJetHolidays, which offers Travel Trust Association protected
package holidayA package holiday or package tour consists of transport and accommodation advertised and sold together by a vendor known as a tour operator. Other services may be provided like a rental car, activities or outings during the holiday. Transport can be via charter airline to a foreign country...
s made up of EasyJet flights and Hotelopia accommodation products.
Controversy
EasyJet's success arguably paved the way for the boom in cheap air travel in the late 1990s and early 2000s (though they were not the first low cost carrier, nor the first large one in Europe).
The airlines has been accused, amongst other no frills carriers, of contributing to
global warmingGlobal warming is the increase in the average temperature of the Earth's near-surface air and oceans since the mid-20th century and its projected continuation. Global surface temperature increased 0.74 ± 0.18 °C during the last century...
through the high carbon emissions of aircraft. Low-cost carriers (and their trade association, ELFAA) argue that they tend to operate newer, more fuel-efficient aircraft than many full-service network airlines, and also that their point-to-point services use less fuel than connecting flights through a hub. Apart from the initial pair of 737-200s leased from
GB AirwaysGB Airways was a UK airline; prior to its dissolution it was headquartered in "The Beehive," a former terminal building, at London Gatwick Airport in Crawley, West Sussex, England. It operated scheduled services as a British Airways franchise to 30 destinations in Europe and North Africa from...
, some aircraft inherited from
GOGo Fly was the name of an award-winning British airline, trading as "Go", which was purchased by EasyJet in May 2002 for the equivalent of $545 million.-History:...
and GB Airways - the airline has only ever operated new aircraft. The newer aircraft are advertised to produce lower emissions and be more environmentally friendly.
EasyJet has also come under criticism in Germany for not observing EU-law 261/2004. In the case of cancellation, passengers had the right to be reimbursed within one week. In 2006, EasyJet had experienced difficulties in refunding tickets in a timely fashion. Passengers occasionally had to wait longer for reimbursement of their expenses.
EasyJet is a major supporter of the plans to replace the
Air Passenger Duty (APD)Air Passenger Duty is an excise duty which is charged on the carriage of passengers flying from a United Kingdom airport on an aircraft that has an authorised take off weight of more than ten tonnes or more than twenty seats for passengers....
tax in the UK with a new tax that varies depending on distance travelled and aircraft type.
In May 2008 the (Italy) fined EasyJet for misleading publicity on fares
In July 2008, the
Advertising Standards AuthorityAdvertising Standards Authority may refer to:*Advertising Standards Bureau *Advertising Standards Authority *Advertising Standards Authority *Advertising Standards Authority...
criticised a press campaign by EasyJet for a misleading environmental claim that its aircraft made 22% less emissions than rival airlines. The figures used were not based on emissions produced by an EasyJet aircraft or emissions produced by EasyJet airline overall as the ad implied, and ASA declared that airline had broken advertising rules. The judgement follows the airline being reprimanded in April 2007 after it made comments that it aircraft created 30% less pollution per passenger than than some of its rivals.
Incidents and Accidents
EasyJet aircraft have been involved in the following non-fatal incidents:
- On 14 August 2003, EasyJet Flight 903, a Boeing 737
The Boeing 737 is a short to medium range, single aisle, narrow body jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from Boeing's 707 and 727, the 737 has nine variants with the -600, -700, -800 and -900 currently in production.Originally envisioned in...
travelling from GenevaGeneva, is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie...
to London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
, encountered severe hailHail is a form of solid precipitation which consists of balls or irregular lumps of ice, that are individually called hail stones. Hail stones on Earth consist mostly of water ice and measure between 5 and 150 millimeters in diameter, with the larger stones coming from severe and dangerous...
soon after taking off. The hail inflicted substantial damage upon the plane's nose, windshield, wings, tail, and engines. The plane managed to turn back and return safely to Geneva.
- On 12 January 2009, an EasyJet 737 on a test flight, carrying two crew and two passengers on board, plummeted 10,000 feet west of Norwich, England in a military flight training area. During an in-flight elevator power-off test, the aircraft suddenly pitched downwards. The captain managed to regain control of the aircraft at 5,600 feet. The dive had been caused by the elevator balance tabs, which had been adjusted in the opposite sense to that required following an earlier flight test. An AAIB
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch investigates air accidents in the United Kingdom. It is a branch of the Department for Transport and is based at Farnborough Airfield in Farnborough, Hampshire.-History:...
bulletin has also questioned the procedures being used, but still has to issue a final report.
External links