Wizz Air announced earlier today that plans to buy 20 Airbus A321XLRs have been voted through by its shareholders. The new A321XLRs will be delivered to Wizz Air from 2023 through to 2026.

A Wizz Air Airbus A320-232
Wizz Air will be adding 20 Airbus A321XLRs to its fleet. Photo: Sony SLT-A57 via Flickr

Wizz Air’s shareholders have voted in favor of plans to buy 20 Airbus A321XLRs. According to reports by Flight Global, the move was approved during an “extraordinary” general meeting in Geneva today.

Wizz Air’s largest investor, Indigo Partners, signed a commitment to buy 50 Airbus A321XLRs at the 2019 Paris Air Show back in June. Specifically, this included 32 new orders for the Airbus A321XLR and 18 converted from its existing list of Airbus A320 orders.

Alongside being a shareholder in Wizz Air, Indigo Partners is the controlling shareholder of Frontier Airlines and JetSmart. These two airlines will also receive some of the 50 Airbus A321XLRs Indigo Partners agreed to buy earlier in the year.

Wizz Air won’t take delivery of the first of its new Airbus A321XLRs until 2023, when it will receive a total of four aircraft. It will then receive six more in both of 2024 and 2025, followed by an additional four in 2026.

What options will Wizz Air choose for its new Airbus A321XLRs?

The addition of 20 brand new Airbus A321XLRs is exciting news for Wizz Air as it looks to expand its medium- to long-range offering. Reports suggest that the airline’s new Airbus A321XLRs will arrive with a total of 239 seats.

A Wizz Air Airbus A320
The Airbus A321XLR offers outstanding range for an aircraft of its size. Photo: Curimedia via Wikimedia Commons

Under the wings, Wizz Air has opted for Pratt & Whitney’s PW1100G turbofan engines for maximum fuel efficiency. These are the same engines that many Airbus A320neo operators have been experiencing issues with, however, it seems to be limited to this type only.

In total, Wizz Air has given a rough estimate of the value of its order for 20 Airbus A321XLRs, which comes in at $2.59 billion. However, it has also said that the real price it will end up paying will see a “very substantial discount”.

Wizz Air’s outlook

Looking ahead over the next six or seven years, Wizz Air is set for a massive fleet expansion. In total, the airline is set to receive 269 aircraft from the Airbus A320neo family before 2026.

Specifically, it currently has orders for 70 Airbus A320neos and 179 Airbus A321neos, not to mention the 20 Airbus A321XLRs which were confirmed earlier today.

This massive influx of new aircraft is a sign of Wizz Air’s recent successes. It has proven itself a real competitor for other European low-cost carriers.

A Wizz Air Airbus A320
Wizz Air is set to more than triple the size of its fleet by the end of 2026. Photo: Anna Zvereva via Flickr

Wizz Air certainly doesn’t seem to be finished when it comes to expanding its current route network out of its main hubs in Eastern Europe.

Discussing the benefits the Airbus A321XLR will offer the airline back in June, Wizz Air's Chief Executive Officer, József Váradi, said:

"The A321XLR is the most cost efficient aircraft of its type and represents a significant opportunity for Wizz Air to further expand its network and connect points on the WIZZ map that are currently out of reach, given the enhanced range capability of the aircraft.”