Vueling finished last year on a strong note, earning the title of Europe’s most punctual low-cost carrier in November. This success rounded off an impressive run for the Spanish carrier, which recorded an on-time performance rate of 80.85% during 2023.
The operator’s November on-time performance rate of 86.3% highlights its keenness to get 2024 off to a flying start. Ahead of the New Year, Simple Flying was invited to Vueling’s Barcelona headquarters to learn more about the airline’s operational efficiency.
Just a stone’s throw away from Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat Airport, Vueling’s office matches the carrier’s bright branding with plenty of yellow touches and friendly faces. The carrier also shares the space with other International Airlines Group (IAG) departments, including fellow low-cost outfit LEVEL.
There was plenty to cover during the site visit. However, on the back of Vueling’s busy year, we were eager to find out more about how the airline operates across its network so efficiently.
Focusing on the right areas
The airline’s 125 A320 family aircraft have been active across over 210 routes. Despite an expansive route map, Vueling recognizes focusing on its strengths. It holds 16 bases, 11 of which are within Spain. Another three can be found at London Gatwick, Paris Orly, and Amsterdam Schiphol, while two are at Italy’s Rome-Fiumicino and Florence Airport.Intra-European flights hold a third of the total market in Europe. Within this, the UK and Spain are the two largest markets. Keeping this in mind, Vueling understands its strongest catchment areas. Subsequently, the carrier can deploy its resources and concentrate on improving service in the departments in which it excels.
On-time pride
Since its founding in 2004, the airline has managed to grow from holding just 5% of the share in the market segment it serves to boasting 42% of the share of operations at Barcelona Airport.
Jordi Pla, Director of Network Strategy and Long-Term Planning at Vueling, explained to journalists during the press trip:
“One of the key differentiators of Vueling versus the other low-cost carriers is that we offer far more frequencies, which is by design. Vueling offers about twice as many frequencies as the rest of the LCCs. We’ve got an average frequency of just about seven or eight weekly. So, just over daily across our routes.”
Commenting on how Vueling complements its activity with punctuality, he added:
“Our on-time performance has been outstanding. We’ve been the second most punctual low-cost carrier in the whole of Europe in the peak of summer and the most punctual airline in Barcelona.”
Vueling noted that IAG counterpart Iberia Express was the most punctual European LCC throughout the year. Yet, it expressed that its industry colleague’s entire business model is different. Iberia Express operates just over 25 aircraft and feeds into the mainline’s hub of Madrid. Therefore, when it comes to a standard low-cost operation, Vueling manages to excel at balancing its high frequencies with reliability.
Company-wide initiative
Altogether, Vueling highlights that its cost-competitiveness and operational efficiency set it apart. It prides itself on its frequent operations and strong presence at Barcelona Airport, which allows it to seamlessly connect traffic both domestically and across Europe.
This efficiency transcends the business, especially when it comes to flight operations. In practice, it has four pillars within its flight efficiency program:
- Routes & planning: efficient planning of routes and aircraft.
- Aircraft weight and performance: The reduction of aircraft dry weight and the improvement of fleet performance.
- In-flight efficiency: Flying as efficiently as possible.
- Fuel weight: Optimizing fuel carried with operational fuel requirements.
Interview: How Vueling Is Expanding Throughout Europe & Beyond This Year
Simple Flying caught up with Carolyn Prowse, Chief Customer, Commercial, Strategy and Network Officer, Vueling.
Thus, Vueling has its angles covered concerning the running of an efficient but punctual operation. After all, it finished 2023 as the 6th most punctual European airline of the year, according to Cirium. Stay tuned as we dive deeper into the complexities of managing a low-cost carrier within an upcoming article ahead of Vueling’s 20th anniversary this summer.
What are your thoughts about Vueling’s services? Let us know what you think in the comment section.
