Athens-based Aegean Airlines, Greece’s largest carrier, has announced it has placed an order with Airbus for an additional eight A321neo narrowbody aircraft. According to a statement issued by the carrier, the aircraft will “enable Aegean to grow its networks further and support its expansion plans”.
With this latest aircraft order, the airline’s total direct orderbook with Airbus currently stands at 60 A320neo family planes, with 37 aircraft already delivered to the carrier. According to planespotters.net, Aegean operates an all-Airbus fleet of 66 Airbis narrowbodies, including 46 A320-200s and 20 A320neos. Additionally, the carrier operates 18 A321s, including four A321-200s and 14 A321neos.
“The expansion of our investment plan with the additional order of eight Airbus A321neo aircraft is essential for achieving our growth objectives and further enhancing the competitiveness of our operations,” said Dimitris Gerogiannis, Aegean’s Chief Executive Officer. “It is also clear that we have a strong preference for the larger-capacity and extended-range version offered by the A321neo type, which will soon represent two-thirds of our Airbus fleet.”
Benoit de Saint-Exupéry, Airbus EVP Sales of the Commercial Aircraft business, added, “We are delighted that Aegean has once again chosen the fuel-efficient A321neo. This decision underscores Aegean’s commitment to operational excellence and enhancing the passenger experience. We value our collaboration with the largest Greek airline and look forward to continuing our partnership, supporting their growth plans within Europe and beyond.”
The airline currently operates its fleet of A321neos in a single class configuration featuring 220 economy class seats. As with all Airbus aircraft, the A321neo aircraft is already able to operate with up to 50% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). Airbus is targeting to have its aircraft up to 100% SAF capable by 2030. To date more than 6,800 A321neo have been ordered by more than 85 customers across the globe.
The additional eight aircraft will add to Aegean’s growing fleet of aircraft as the carrier continues on a pathway to expansion across Europe and beyond. As of March 2025, the airline operates to 21 domestic and 91 international destinations across 46 countries.
In April 2024, the company announced it would invest in four new Airbus A321neos with extended range capabilities to serve yet-unconfirmed non-EU markets between 4 and 7.5 hours of flight time. The plan effectively creates a “special purpose” sub-fleet of these four A321 aircraft, which will be capable of reaching further non-EU markets, mostly to the South and southeast of Greece. The new upgraded “special purpose” aircraft will be delivered to Aegean between 2026 and 2027.
The four specially configured new A321neo aircraft will feature additional fuel tanks, providing operational capability for longer flights, while a new cabin configuration onboard these aircraft will be entirely different from the carrier’s existing A321 fleet with a higher level of comfort for both economy and business class passengers. The seat count will be reduced from 220 in the airline’s existing A321neos to less than 180 seats. Additional cabin features will also include satellite connectivity, in-flight entertainment (IFE screens) in every seat, and a premium lie-flat seat business class product.
