EUROPEAN AIRLINE SCENE - WEEK ENDING 12-12-09
The information in this blog comes from a variety of sources, though particular credit must be given to the following sites, both of which are very highly recommended.
Chris Witt/Skyliner
http://www.skyliner-aviation.de/
Jethro/UK & Ireland Airline Fleet Listings
http://jethros.eu/
Aeroflot A333 VQ-BEK (1077) made its first flight from Toulouse on 8/12 as F-WWKN & in full Aeroflot scheme, while VQ-BCV (1072) was delivered to Moscow/Sheremetyevo on 10/12.
Afriqiyah ferried A320 TS-INA (1121) from Tripoli to Toulouse on 7/12 following its lease from Nouvelair.
Air Berlin B738 D-ABKG (37746) arrived at Berlin/Tegel as BER010 on delivery on 5/12. A320 D-ABDJ (2865) was ferried back from Cambridge to Munich as BER666P on 8/12 having been painted all white.
Air Comet. See under Bangladesh Biman.
Air Contractors. See under DHL.
Air Dolomiti B463 I-ADJJ (E3155) was restored to the UK register on 4/12 as G-BTNU.
Air France A320 F-GHQD (0108) left Paris/Orly as AFR381V on 7/12 bound for scrapping at Opa Locka, FL. F-HEPA (4139) was ferried from Finkenwerder to Toulouse on 5/12.
Air Transat A313 C-GTSI (595) has become EK-31095 with Vertir. It was ferried from Seville to Fujairah on 7/12 & is for an Iranian carrier.
Alitalia A320 EI-DTN (4143) was ferried from Finkenwerder to Toulouse on 8/12.
Astraeus B737 G-STRH (32737) was ferried from Bournemouth to Lasham as AEU006P on 2/12. It is still in Trawel fly scheme & it was then flown to Manchester on 11/12 for painting for Cimber Air. B733 G-STRJ (25119), recently returned from the defunct Seagle Air, has replaced it with Trawel fly (see Skyliner for a photo).
Athens A/W EMB145 SX-CMB (145167) was flown from Athens to Exeter via Ancona as ATW001 on 10/12 on return to the lessor. It is seemingly being replaced by an Astra A/L B463 due to better than expected passenger loads.
BA CityFlyer B463 G-BXAS (E3301) flew its last revenue service from Edinburgh to London City on 8/12 as CFE74D. It was then ferried to Kemble as CFE04P on return to the lessor.
Bangladesh Biman. Despite being close to receiving its first B772, the airline is about to take delivery of another A313. Former Air Comet example N301LF (642 ex HB-IPM, A4O-OD, N642KS, EC-IPT) was ferried from storage at Rio de Janeiro/Galeao to Miami, FL on 11/12 prior to delivery to the carrier later this month.
Bluewings A321 D-ANJA (4044) was delivered from Finkenwerder to Dusseldorf as BWG001P on 8/12, all white & devoid of titles.
British A/W B744 G-BNLV (25427) left Cardiff on 7/12 as BAW9150 en route to Victorville, CA for storage. B752 G-CPEN (28666) flew its last revenue service on 5/12 as BAW485 from Barcelona to LHR & has joined the others of this type in store at LHR awaiting ferrying the USA for FedEx.
China A/L Cargo B744F B-18712 (33729) is the latest large freighter to leave storage & it was ferried from Victorville, CA to Los Angeles, CA on 3/12.
Cimber Air. See under Astraeus.
Continental A/L B772s N76021 (39776) & N77022 (39777) were registered on 3/12 & 4/12 respectively. Both are due for delivery before year-end.
Denim Air Fk50 PH-FZH (20210) left Maastricht on 5/12 en route to Arik Air. It will be operated by Denim Air.
DHL A300F OO-DIH (184) has been restored to Air Contractors as EI-OZB. It was noted in service as such operating from Leipzig to Frankfurt as ABR6545 on 9/12, still in basic DHL scheme. OO-DIJ (189) had also reverted to EI-OZC by the following day. It appears that all the A300Fs are to move from the Belgian to the Irish register in order to operate under the Air Contractors AOC.
EasyJet B737 G-EZJT (32415) was cancelled from the UK register on 4/12 & left Southend early that evening as HK-4675 on delivery to Aires Colombia at Bogotá. A319 G-EZFS (4129) arrived at Gatwick on delivery as EZY1P on 8/12. Having being delivered to Belfast on 3/12, G-EZFR (4125) remained there for ground training until eventually entering revenue service on 10/12.
Etihad A333 A6-AFB (1081) made its first flight on 10/12 as F-WWYL, in primer scheme, but with Etihad tail colours.
Eurex Cargo is a new Georgian freight operator & its first B742F 4L-KMK (23139 ex JA8168, VP-BID, N106TZ) was noted untitled & in basic NCA scheme at Hong Kong on 10/12.
Eurowings B463 D-AEWM (E3125) was ferried from Exeter to Southend as DLH9920 on 8/12 for further storage.
Flyglobespan B738 G-CEJP (29646) left Lasham as ETH9201 on 8/12 on delivery to Ethiopian A/L as ET-AMZ. It was due to fly direct to Addis Ababa.
Hapag-Lloyd B738 D-AHFK (27991) left Hannover on 5/12 on lease to CanJet until 02/06/10. D-AHFA (27981) was reregistered C-GCQS on 4/12 & also left Hannover on 5/12 on lease to CanJet until 28/04/10. Following these was B738 D-ATUH (34689), which left Hannover for Canada on 11/12 on lease until 03/05/10.
KLM B733 PH-BDD (23540) was ferried from Amsterdam to Kemble as KLM7451 on 7/12 for scrapping. It was followed three days later by PH-BDC (23539), which used the same callsign & is due to meet the same fate. A brighter future is in store for PH-BDU (24857), which has become 5A-MAB for Buraq Air Transport & was ferried from Woensdrecht to Amsterdam on 9/12, in basic KLM scheme & for painting.
KLM Cityhopper Fk50 PH-LXP (20276) was ferried from Amsterdam to Norwich as KLM7331 on 5/12 prior to return to the lessor.
Lufthansa A320 D-AIZB (4120) was delivered to Munich as DLH9851 on 9/12. A306 D-AIAT (618) was ferried from Hamburg to Kiev/Borispol in basic scheme on 10/12 & may be destined for Mahan Air.
Neos B763 EI-DMJ (27958) has recently returned from Abu Dhabi sporting winglets. EI-DOF (27610) is to be similarly fitted.
New Axis A/W, formed earlier this year from the original Axis A/W, suspended operations on 2/12. B738 F-GZZA (28591) was ferried from Ostrava to Shannon on 8/12. B733QC F-GIXG (24364) & B738 F-GIRS (28612) remain stored at Ostrava.
Norwegian Air Shuttle B738 LN-NOI (36820) made its first flight on 9/12.
Nouvelair. See under Afriqiyah.
Qatar A/W B772LR A7-BBD (36016) left Paine Field, WA on 7/12 on delivery to Doha.
Ryanair B738 EI-EKA (35022) had made it onto the flightline at Renton, WA by 10/12. Mike O'Leary stated on 8/12 that Ryanair is unlikely to place a big order for 200 new B737s with Boeing. According to O'Leary, they had effectively reached agreement on the price for the aircraft, but that Boeing wanted to renegotiate delivery terms that were worse than those they already had. A final decision will be made at a board meeting on 17/12. If no deal is agreed by then, the airline will curb its expansion plans, defer deliveries of some 737s & cancel an option it holds for ten aircraft.
S7 A/L A320 VQ-BET (4150) was flown back from Finkenwerder to Toulouse on 10/12.
SAS B735 LN-BRS left storage at Shannon on 10/12 & was ferried all white to Bournemouth as SAS9150.
SmartLynx A320 YL-BBC (0142) was ferried from Shannon to Vilnius on 8/12 after painting all white.
TAP A320 CS-TNV (4145) was ferried from Finkenwerder back to Toulouse on 7/12.
Thomson A/W B752 G-BYAD (26963), which was ferried to Goodyear, AZ on 17/11, was cancelled from the UK register on 7/12 & has become N963BV for Wells Fargo Bank Northwest. G-CPEV (29943) was also cancelled from the UK register on 7/12 & has become C-GOEV again, leaving Luton on 8/12 as SSV9303 for winter lease to Skyservice. G-OOBH (29944) was cancelled from the UK register on 9/12. It has taken up the marks C-FOBH once again for winter lease to Skyservice & left Manchester for Saskatoon on 11/12.
TNT B462QT G-BNPJ (E2078) positioned from Norwich to Liege as TNT146E on 7/12 following storage.
Turkuaz Air will be adding a third A321 to its fleet this month. N361LF (1905 ex 6Y-JMR) was cancelled from the US register on 7/12 & has been noted at Miami, FL prior to delivery.
United A/L placed orders on 8/12 for twenty-five A350s & the same number of B787s. It is also taking out options on a further fifty of each type. These will be used to replace the carrier's B747s & B767s, with deliveries between 2013 & 2016. Good news also for Rolls Royce who have been selected as the engine supplier for the A350s. A decision concerning where it will place its order for a hundred narrow-body aircraft has been deferred until next year.
US A/W A332 N283AY (1076) left Toulouse on 8/12 as AWE9244 on delivery to Mobile, AL.
Viking B738 SE-RHR (30637) left Shannon on 7/12 en route to Toronto & winter lease to Sunwing A/L.
Wizz Air A320 HA-LPY (4109) was delivered from Finkenwerder to Katowice as WZZ8001 on 10/12.
XL A/W Germany B738 D-AXLD (35093) left Frankfurt as GXL040P on 8/12 en route to Toronto for winter lease to Sunwing A/L.