Speaking at the conference in the Algarve on Wednesday (16 November), Heapy told delegates the airline and operator was constantly reviewing its shortlist, with people on the ground assessing hotels and infrastructure.
"There are new deals we are looking at," he said during a wide-ranging interview with Jet2holidays head of trade Alan Cross. Heapy said announcements could follow "in the next few weeks", adding Jet2 would continue to base its expansion on the strength of the resort or destination as a whole not just its hotels.
He ruled out any imminent expansion into long-haul owing to Jet2’s lack of any suitable aircraft, its A321neos capable – Heapy said – of making it about as far as Bermuda. "Never say never," he continued. "But there’s a lot more we can do in our existing destinations. We want to grow them before we do anything else."
Priorities, said Heapy, include continuing to capture a share of the 2.5 million Thomas Cook passengers released into the market in October 2019, many of whom may not yet have been converted owing to the pandemic.
Heapy said Jet2 decided early in the pandemic to invest to secure a pipeline of new aircraft, with around 10-12 deliveries due a year in the period through 2033. "If you were to try to get and aircraft from one of the big manufacturers now, it would be 2019," he said.
Jet2.com currently has 98 Airbus A320neo family aircraft on firm order, with options to extend this to 146 – a total potential outlay of some $18.1 billion. The airline operated 105 aircraft this year, and will have 115 next year.
"OTAs invest zero in flights and destinations," said Heapy. "There’s going to be a big squeeze on supply in the next few years. Being in charge of your own product is a huge competitive advantage."
Heapy said it was this investment that allowed Jet2 offer resort flight check-in, which will return next year in several destinations. Cross added it was also allowing Jet2 to reserve whole flights – often at preferential times – for package customers rather than seat-only customers.
"We want people to go on package holidays," said Heapy. "Many flights are now package only," he added, stressing this meant more guaranteed supply for clients of travel agents.
Opening up the discussion to questions from the floor, Heapy was asked whether Jet2 would look at recently closed Doncaster Sheffield airport as a potential new base.
Heapy said he didn’t think the airport’s owner, Peel Group, would be able to get a sufficient number of other airlines in to make it viable for Jet2. "I think it’s one we’ll have to discount for the foreseeable future," he said.
A more pressing focus will be ramping up the airline’s 10 existing bases, with Jet2 ready to deploy eight aircraft at its newest base – Bristol – next year, up from three when it launched the base last year.
