SWISS finishes first phase of long haul fleet transition. New 777s driving growth, but yield suffers

In 2016 SWISS has rapidly added capacity to Southeast Asia and some of its other long haul markets as it has replaced A340-300s with 777-300ERs. The new 777s have 55% more seats than the A340s, pressuring yields as SWISS pursues more sixth freedom traffic in a highly competitive marketplace.

SWISS has taken delivery of six 777-300ERs in 2016, enabling it to increase capacity on four of its long haul routes - Bangkok, Hong Kong, Los Angeles and Singapore. It has three more 777-300ERs on order, which will be delivered in 2017 and drive further capacity increases in Singapore and San Francisco.

SWISS is now assessing whether it should acquire another six 777s to replace its last six A340s, with a decision expected by the end of 2016. Six additional 777s would result in another round of significant capacity increases, impacting Beijing, Johannesburg, Sao Paulo, Shanghai and Tokyo.