The 'revolution' in Arctic skies: Icelandair orders Airbus planes for the first time

It's a small revolution of the (Arctic) skies. And proof (yet another) that Boeing has failed to date to find a 'replacement' equal to its venerable Boeing 757.

Icelandair, the national airline of Iceland, has in fact signed a purchase order for 13 Airbus A321XLR, the ultra-long-haul version of the A321neo. This is a 'revolution' because in its 86-year history never had Icelandair ordered aircraft from the European manufacturer. But its 15 Boeing 757-200s are starting to get old and need to be replaced.

In Reykjavik they tried first with the Boeing 737 MAX 8, then with the MAX 9, but eventually they had to surrender to the fact that in order to find a true replacement for the 757 the MAX 10 would not be enough (in terms of flight range) and they turned to Airbus.

Four A321LRs will arrive on lease in 2024, and then, from 2029, XLRs, with which Icelandair will be able to return to the attack on the American West Coast market. The Icelandic carrier flies to about fifteen destinations in Canada and the U.S. in addition to Europe. However, the only aircraft capable of reaching San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego or Las Vegas is the Boeing 767-300ER, of which it has 3 examples in its fleet. However, which, with their 262 seats, are still too large for the demand in those markets.

In the two-year period before the pandemic, the 767 had been used on San Francisco, but unsatisfactory load factor led the company not to reinstate the connection after the Covid. The 757s all the way to the Golden Gate Bridge and further south did not arrive. Here, then, are the A321LRs, which have a range of over 8 hours, and then the XLRs, which exceed 9 hours.

The glorious 757s (Icelandair is the only one in Europe still using them, along with Germany's Condor), which already have an average age of about 25 years, will be retired starting in 2026.