Details: Air Greenland Airbus A330-800neo

In 2020, Air Greenland placed an order for a single Airbus A330-800neo. It’s a big day for the airline, as Air Greenland has today taken delivery of this new jet, and I can’t wait to fly it (not because there’s anything remarkable about the interior, but rather because the airline as such has fascinated me for years).

Basics of Air Greenland

Air Greenland is such a cool airline that I’m looking forward to flying, hopefully once this plane enters service. Air Greenland currently has a single wide body plane in service, which is an Airbus A330-200, and it’s used for flights to Copenhagen. On top of that, the airline operates a fleet of turboprops, which are used for flights within Greenland, as well as for flights to Iceland.

Air Greenland’s Airbus A330-800neo

In 2020, Air Greenland placed an order for an Airbus A330-800neo, intended to replace the company’s current A330-200. The airline has today taken delivery of this plane, and it’s expected to fly to Greenland tomorrow (December 7). The airplane is named Tuukkaq, which translates to “harpoon head.” Below is a video that covers the details of everything that went into this plane joining Air Greenland’s fleet.

The list price of the A330-800neo is 260 million USD, though I imagine the airline got a significant discount.

For context, the A330-200 that the airline currently operates is about 24 years old, as the plane has been flying since 1998. It initially flew for Sabena, and then has been flying with Air Greenland since 2002.

Air Greenland has tentatively scheduled the A330-800neo to enter service as of March 27, 2023. As of then, the plane is scheduled to fly between Kangerlussuaq (SFJ) and Copenhagen (CPH).

I would imagine the schedule has the potential to move forward, as it shouldn’t take more than three months for a plane to enter service (even with crew training). Then again, the airline might just not be in a rush, since presumably the A330-200 will remain in the carrier’s fleet for some amount of time.

Why the Airbus A330-800neo is unpopular

In a way, Air Greenland’s decision to order an A330-800neo is surprising, because this has been an incredibly unpopular plane. While the A330-900neo has been popular (with over 260 of the planes having been ordered by airlines), there haven’t even been a dozen orders for the A330-800neo.

Aside from Air Greenland, the A330-800neo is flown by Kuwait Airways and Uganda Airlines, and has also been ordered by Garuda Indonesia, but that’s it.

Just to compare the specs of the A330-800neo and A330-900neo:

• The A330-800neo has a standard capacity of 257, while the A330-900neo has a standard capacity of 287
• The A330-800neo has a range of 8,150nm, while the A330-900neo has a range of 7,200nm

The reason it’s surprising that Air Greenland chose the A330-800neo is because the airline certainly doesn’t need the additional range. I can understand how Air Greenland maybe doesn’t need the extra capacity of the A330-900neo, but the reality is that the incremental operating cost is truly marginal for the extra capacity.

Then again, perhaps the airline can take advantage of the additional weight limit for cargo, as the Air Greenland flight to Copenhagen is one of the primary ways that supplies are shipped to Greenland. Furthermore, I believe the A330-800neo has better takeoff performance, if the airline is looking to expand to other airports in Greenland (which I’ll discuss below). Lastly, I also imagine Air Greenland probably got a better deal on the jet.

Air Greenland Airbus A330-800neo configuration

I was curious to see what kind of cabins Air Greenland would install on its A330-800neos. Given that the airline exclusively flies short flights, I wasn’t expecting anything too exciting, but I was hopeful that maybe we’d see something cool. Well, unfortunately I’m pretty disappointed, and it looks like these jets may represent a downgrade for the passenger experience.

For what it’s worth, Air Greeland’s A330-200 features 278 seats, including 30 business class seats and 248 economy seats.

Business class seats are only slightly more spacious than you’d find in domestic first class in the United States, so it’s not much to get excited about. That’s ultimately logical, given that Air Greenland’s longest flight is under five hours, and the airline doesn’t operate any redeyes.

Air Greenland’s A330-800neo will be really dense, as the plane will feature a total of 305 seats, including 42 business class seats and 263 economy class seats. Looking at the seatmap, business class will be in a 2-3-2 configuration, so it’ll be even tighter than what’s available now.

Below is a rendering of Air Greenland’s new business class seats. Is it just me, or does that look like a lot of recline for a seat with very little room? Something must be wrong here, right? Like, you couldn’t even watch your seatback TV if the person in front of you reclined.

Meanwhile economy looks pretty standard for an A330, with the cabin being in a 2-4-2 configuration, and seatback entertainment at every seat.

Some real pictures have also been released of the cabin. One cool update is that the plane will feature Wi-Fi, though it will only be installed in 2023.

Greenland is expanding two airports

Bigger picture when it comes to aviation in Greenland, it’s interesting to note how routes in the country may be changing. Currently Air Greenland’s A330 exclusively operates between Kangerlussuaq and Copenhagen. Kangerlussuaq isn’t a major destination in Greenland, but rather it’s just the only airport with a runway capable of handling the A330.

That will be changing over time. The two biggest tourist destinations in Greenland are Ilulissat and Nuuk, though currently their airports are only capable of handling smaller planes.

In 2020 it was announced that new airports are expected to open in Ilulissat and Nuuk. Last I heard the plan was for this to happen in late 2023, though only time will tell if that timeline sticks. Once that happens, the plan is to operate direct flights from Copenhagen to those destinations.

The hope is that tourism to Greenland will increase by double digits, between the opening of these new airports, along with the increase in capacity from the new plane.

Could Air Greenland ever fly to New York?

I know I’m totally dreaming here and this will almost certainly never happen, especially since Air Greenland only has a single long haul plane. But it sure would be nice to see a nonstop flight from the United States to Greenland.

Currently if you want to go to Greenland you can either:

• Fly to Copenhagen and then backtrack to Greenland
• Fly to Iceland, and then backtrack to Greenland on a three hour turboprop flight

New York to Nuuk is only about ~1,850 miles, so it’s shorter than any flight from Copenhagen. It would be so cool to eventually see a seasonal, twice weekly flights between the markets, though unfortunately I doubt we’ll ever see that.

Fortunately service between Canada and Greenland is at least on the horizon, as Canadian North is considering flying to Greenland. The airline is planning a strategic partnership with Air Greenland, which could see the airline launch several routes, including:

• Ottawa to Iqaluit to Ilulissat
• Ottawa to Iqaluit to Nuuk
• Toronto to Ilulissat and/or Nuuk in the summer months during the tourist season

It’s incredible to think that the flights from Iqaluit to Ilulissat and Nuuk are just 500-600 miles.

Bottom line

Air Greenland has just taken delivery of its Airbus A330-800neo, which was ordered a couple of years back. The plane is expected to fly to Greenland tomorrow, following today’s delivery festivities. The plan is for the plane to enter service as of March 2023.

While I’m excited to see Air Greenland take delivery of this unique jet, unfortunately don’t expect much when it comes to the onboard product. Air Greenland is introducing a worse business class product on this plane, as there will be seven seats per row.

It’s an exciting time for aviation in Greenland, between Air Greenland’s A330-800neo order, Canadian North considering flights to Greenland, and airports in the country being expanded.

What do you make of Air Greenland’s A330-800neo?