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Ansett's Surprise purchase of the 737 in 1979 was primarily spurred by the spectre of rival TA A capturing the greater share of the early eighties traffic base through its wide bodied A300s. The new Ansett livery and revitalised corporate image revolving around the concept of an all Boeing jet fleet. Due to their slower cruise speed, slightly greater drag, higher ownership costs and the depreciating Australian dollar, the new Boeing twinjets were actually more expensive to operate than the older DC-9-30s they replaced.
In Australian Service-Boeing 737 Pt II
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The Boeing 737 Part II
Part Thirty One in a Series Examining the Airliners That Established Civil Aviation in Australia
The economic conditions in the early 1980s produced a sharp downturn in airline traffic, the severity of which was completely unexpected by industry experts.
The drop in custom coincided with the beginning of deliveries of Ansett’s 737 fleet. In the tight conditions which prevailed, the availability of modern technology 100 seat airliners provided a major scheduling benefit for the Ansett planners. As outlined in the Airbus A300 In Australian Service story in January’s Australian Aviation, the efficient but much larger A300 was the wrong aircraft in those difficult times in the first half of the 1980s and Ansett’s J,7 fleet were the winners. It is interesting to observe that neither’Ansett nor Australian Airlines have placed orders in recent years for aircraft of Airbus 300 or Boeing 767 size. Based on their current equipment and future aircraft on order yet to be delivered, it would seem that small to medium airliners will be in vogue during at least the early part of this decade. There must be a message here for any new Australian domestic airlines establishing themselves in the climate of deregulation.
The enormous success of the Ansett 737-277 fleet paved the way for additional 737 orders in Australia. It was also helped in no small way by the abolition of the 18% investment allowance on 30 June 1985. On 27 May 1985 Trans Australia Airlines announced that it would seek Government approval for a $500m order for 12 Boeing 737-300s. The type was chosen from a field which included the McDonnell Douglas MD83 and MD87, the Boeing 737-200 and the Fokker 100. On 20 June the Government announced its approval and said that the 737s would replacefive DC-9s, three Boeing 727s and one Airbus A300. Deliveries were scheduled to commence in July 1986 and all aircraft were to be delivered within a one year period. The following day on 21 June, Ansett announced a similar order for 12 737-300s with the first aircraft to be received August 1986. The existing Ansett 737-200 fleet was to be sold to America West Airlines.
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