Airbus has delivered easyJet’s first Leap-1A powered A320neo.

The plane is also the airline’s 300th A320 Family aircraft delivery, with the handover made at a ceremony in Toulouse earlier.

On hand were Carolyn McCall, easyJet chief executive, Fabrice Bregier, president of Airbus Commercial Aircraft, and Gaël Méheust, CFM international chief executive.

To mark the milestone delivery, a special livery has been designed with an A320neo motif on the fuselage.

Compared to previous aircraft, the NEO brings significant environmental and operational benefits – up to 15 per cent saving in fuel burn and CO2 emissions, and a reduced noise footprint of 50 per cent on take-off and landing phase providing a benefit to airport neighbourhood communities.

The aircraft is powered by CFM Leap-1A engines and configured in a 186 seat layout.

The first easyJet A320neo will be based at London Luton Airport and start operating commercial flights June 16th to Amsterdam, Madrid and Edinburgh.

McCall said: “The A320neo is a major step change for our fleet efficiency and will provide a cost per seat saving of up to seven per cent over the current A320, which itself has a cost saving benefit of up to eight per cent over the A319 and this benefit will enable easyJet to continue to offer our famous low fares helping to connect people across Europe for work and play.

“We strive to do this in the right way by reducing our carbon and noise impact on the environment and local communities.

“By using modern Airbus aircraft and flying them efficiently we have reduced the carbon impact of our flights by a third since 2000.

“With the addition of the A320neo and A321neo to the future easyJet fleet and with further planned efficiency improvements easyJet has now set itself a new, tougher carbon emissions target of 72 grams by 2022.”

In May 2017, easyJet announced it will convert 30 current A320neo orders to A321neo aircraft with a 235 seat configuration, with the first delivery expected in July 2018. 

This is part of the existing easyJet Airbus framework agreement signed in 2013.