Chilean low-fare airline JetSMART is to use Airbus subsidiary NAVBLUE’s Runway Overrun Protection System (ROPS).
Under the agreement, signed at the FIDAE Air Show in Santiago, Chile, 100 aircraft will be equipped with ROPS, including the retrofitting of three aircraft already in operation. JetSMART’s entire A320 fleet will be equipped with ROPS by the end of 2026, and it represents the largest ROPS agreement by an LCC in South America.
Estuardo Ortiz, JetSMART’s CEO, said: “As a modern airline, our strategy is to look for the best aircraft with the most up-to-date systems, and Airbus A320 Family aircraft with ROPS are clearly the best answer to our crews’ needs in terms of safety of operation.”
Fabrice Hamel, CEO of NAVBLUE, said: “We are proud that the ROPS system has been selected by JetSMART, this deal is a true vote of confidence in our overrun protection solution.”
The alerting system is an on-board cockpit technology pioneered by Airbus and NAVBLUE over the past several years. It reduces exposure to runway overrun risk, and if necessary, provides active protection. It compares remaining runway length to expected stopping distance in real time to prevent overrun. So far, ROPS has been installed on more than 900, single-aisle and widebody aircraft.
JetSMART is owned by US investment fund Indigo Partners, which also controls Frontier Airlines, Volaris and Wizz Air. Its primary base of operations is Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport in Santiago, Chile.
[Photo: JetSMART CEO, Estuardo Ortiz (left), and NAVBLUE’s Fabrice Hamel sign the ROPS deal.]
