Azul to fly A330s, A350s to tackle long-haul US market

During a recent press conference, Brazilian airline Azul announced their intentions to start operating A330s and A350s to the US

Founded in 2008 by Brazilian-American David Neeleman, founder of Canadian WestJet and jetBlue in the US, Azul has grown their domestic market share to approximately 20 percent in only six years. However, what differentiates Azul from other carries is their focus on developing their Campinas hub (VCP) about 100km from São Paulo, as well as a dedication to connecting secondary and tertiary regional cities. Often this means that they are the first carrier to open a specific unserved market, allowing them to operate close to 70 percent of their routes without direct competition.

Today, Azul operates 220 routes with a fleet of 125 regional jets and turboprops to more than 100 domestic destinations, with nearly 900 daily flights. Despite operating as a hybrid low cost and regional operator, Azul maintains high inflight service levels by offering complimentary snacks and beverages, as well as broadcasting LiveTV on board their aircraft.

While this domestic strategy has served them well so far, there comes a time for many airlines when all points of the map are connected, and growth needs to be found elsewhere. For Azul, there was a clear desire to expand internationally and harness all the connecting and regional traffic to fill larger aircraft. Although Azul’s exact destination plan is yet to be announced, initial destination routes are expected to be MIA or FLL, JFK and MCO.

To implement this growth strategy Azul has committed to operating six A330-200 from early 2015, and then expand further with five A350-900 from early 2017. With a combination of strong performance, excellent economics and an industry-leading cabin, these aircraft are ideally suited for this market.

According to David Neeleman, CEO and Founder of Azul, “We are very confident about choosing Airbus. They have the most advanced commercial aircraft worldwide: the brand new Airbus A350, which brings the best in aerodynamics, design solutions and advanced technologies. Also, the A330 is known for its comfort, efficiency and versatility. Moreover, the model has unparalleled cost per seat in its category, keeping the distinction of being the most economical wide-body aircraft in its category.”

And according to the annual Airbus Global Market Forecast for North America, we see these markets growing at more than 6 percent over the coming years, signifying a good time for Azul to enter these routes for sustained future growth.

For more information contact:
David Forrester
Marketing Americas
david.forrester@airbus.com