The Pan Am brand, a synonymous label in the world of aviation, looks to be relaunching in the years ahead, with the fruition of this slowly but surely coming together.
Such a re-launch has been made public in terms of developments over the last few months, and it looks pretty interesting so far.
This piece will look at what we know so far about this relaunch, and what it could mean for the airline industry moving forward.
The Pan Am Relaunch…
Back in October, it was revealed that plans for the relaunch of Pan Am were in full effect.
This included the completion of a business case review by AVi8 Air Capital, which is owned by the same person co-founding this relaunch, named Ed Wegel.
As mentioned in the press release back then, AVi8 Air Capital specialises in airline strategy, fleet financing and operational management, and has had a track record in airline start-ups, restructurings and large scale aviation investments.
In that very same release, the carrier has also confirmed it had formally initiated the certification process with the Federal Aviation Administration for the U.S Part 121 scheduled carrier license.
The last few weeks have also been telling in terms of feasibility and seriousness around this relaunch.
Wegel has revealed that they have partnered up with Trax to provide maintenance operations, with their VP of Business Development saying the following on this:
“We are excited to be part of Pan Am’s resurgence and warmly welcome them to the Trax community,”
“Trax’s eMRO and full suite of eMobility apps provide the real-time data access and automation needed to operate a connected and responsive modern maintenance operation.”
And just yesterday (December 9), Wegel revealed that Pan Am will have the Airbus A320neo in it’s fleet.
He didn’t indicate whether this would be the aircraft that the airline would start out with on launch, as he did note problems with new generation engines in his post:
“We are in a very interesting part of the aircraft cycle now- with problems with the new generation engines from both Pratt and GE resulting in 3 to 6 year old A320 NEOs being parted out to lease the engines to operators whose engines are in early overhaul/repair because of the problems.”
“The new Pan Am will operate the 320 NEO (subject to FAA and DOT approvals of course) at some point in the future when the supply chain issues and engine issues are resolved. Eventually the 320 NEO market will return to some form of “normalcy”.”
He even thanked the Airbus Graphics Team, which made the initial rendering you see in this post, showing some level of seriousness behind this.
However, in the October press release, it was mentioned that they would operate a fleet of Airbus aircraft, so that could also be quite telling.
And it’s important to mention the seriousness angle when talking about airlines either launching or relaunching, like Pan Am.
Over the years, globally, many have tried to launch operations, and it is a very challenging thing as a start-up, particularly with the amount of heavy competition and external volatility.
But the pace at which Wegel seems to be taking at the moment is one of cautiousness and “slow and steady wins the race”.
Once the airline is certified, they will base their headquarters in Miami.
What Will This Mean for the Industry?
Symbolically, this would be a big thing for Pan Am to relaunch, as the airline was a staple and arguably the enabler for commercial travel for all not just in the United States but globally.
However, for this to work, they are ultimately relying on a legendary brand having the same pull in terms of marketing exposure as they did back when they originally existed.
If the brand still has that pizzazz, then it could work, and the marketing could speak for itself.
However, as mentioned in this piece, the airline industry is a lot more different, and also a lot more competitive today than it was 40-50 years ago.
On the other hand, Wegel is a seasoned professional in airline investment and restructuring, with nearly 40 years of experience, so you would like to believe that he knows what it takes to get a brand into the skies.
When Pan Am relaunches, success is obviously key within the aviation industry.
If he can get the airline launched, but also competitive against other legacy or low-cost carriers (Whichever market he opts to go for), then he could be onto a significant winner in the years to come.
Furthermore, if he is successful with this, then it isn’t just bringing back a legendary brand to the skies: It will solidify that brand for further decades.
Referring back to the earlier point about utilising Airbus aircraft, the way the press release reads indicates that Pan Am may launch as a single-manufacturer carrier, similar to that of what easyJet in the UK do.
That will help in keeping the initial maintenance costs down, as opposed to going for a multi-variant fleet.
So, this has been thought about, in terms of what operations will look like.
Given the range of the Airbus A320neo, this would indicate that the U.S would be the markets to start in, naturally, of course.
Obviously, if things go very well, then we could potentially see some traversal into long-haul Airbus airframes maybe? Who knows?
Ultimately, it is clear how much this relaunch of Pan Am will be for the sector, with a lot of people taking a close eye to it.
Looking Ahead…
It remains clear that the official launch of Pan Am isn’t going to be for quite some time yet, particularly as there isn’t a timeline stated as of yet by Wegel.
This is ultimately an exciting time for a legendary brand to be revived from the dead, and seen in the skies once again.
However, there are challenges that the new Pan Am will have to face, particularly around competition and market volatility.
The question ultimately lies with how they will ensure that success. What are they going to do differently to other start-up carriers that have failed?
But one thing is for sure, all eyes will be on Ed Wegel and his team moving forward to see what this relaunch is going to look like, but more importantly, how successful it’s going to be.
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