EUROPEAN AIRLINE SCENE - WEEK ENDING 16-10-10
The information in this blog comes from a variety of sources, though particular credit must be given to the following sites, which are very highly recommended.
Chris Witt/Skyliner
http://www.skyliner-aviation.de/
Jethro/UK & Ireland Airline Fleet Listings
http://jethros.eu/
Drewski/737NG Line Number list
http://drewski2112.livejournal.com/
ABX Air B763 N790AX (23140) arrived at Tel Aviv on 13/10 for cargo conversion. N784AX (23017) was ferried from Tel Aviv to Brussels on 15/10 following cargo conversion.
Aeroflot A320 VQ-BHK (4461) made its first flight on 4/10 in full scheme as D-AVZB. VQ-BHL (4453) was ferried back from Finkenwerder to Toulouse on 11/10 still as F-WWIX.
Air Algerie B738 7T-VKE (40859) had appeared on the flightline at Renton, WA by 13/10.
Air Arabia A320 A6-ANA (4468) made its first flight on 5/10 in full scheme as D-AXAD.
Air Asia X A333 9M-XAA (054) positioned from Kuala Lumpur to Hat Yai (Thailand) on 9/10 for Bahrain Air to operate Hajj charters on behalf of Al-Lama Group. 9M-XXH (1165) was ferried from Chateauroux to Toulouse as F-WWYG on 4/10 after painting into full scheme.
Air Berlin B738 D-ABKP (37758) made its first flight on 7/10. A320 D-ABFL (4463) was delivered from Finkenwerder to Berlin/Tegel on 12/10.
Air Finland B752 OH-AFJ (26269) was ferried from Norwich to Helsinki on 9/10 after painting from easyJet colours into the new Air Finland scheme.
Air Italy B752 EI-IGC (24747) arrived at Ras Al Khaimah on 5/10 for Hajj duties.
Air Italy Polska. See under Norwegian Air Shuttle.
Air Libya Tibesti B732 5A-DKY (22766) had re-entered service by 7/10 following a period of storage.
Air Sweden A320 SE-RJN (0169) was ferried from Prague to Lyon on 8/10 following wet-lease to Travel Service.
Air Transat A332 C-GITS (271) arrived at Hasanudin (Indonesia) on 10/10 on lease to Garuda for Hajj duties, with C-GPTS (480) following on 11/10.
Al Sayegh A/L is a new airline in the UAE & it is due to receive B743 N175SG (23224 ex VH-EBV), which was ferried from Marana, AZ to Stewart, NY via Tucson, AZ on 14/10.
Atlantic A/L L188CF G-FIJR (1138), which was retired at Coventry on 10/9 last year, was registered to Conair group as C-GYCG on 8/10.
Aurela. See under Thomas Cook.
Bahrain Air A320 A9C-BAZ (0645) positioned from Bahrain to Jeddah on 10/10 to operate Hajj charters on behalf of Al-Lama Group. Also see under Air Asia X.
BH Air A320 LZ-BHD (0211) was ferried from Sofia to Almaty on 9/10 on wet-lease to Asia Wings.
Blue1 B712 OH-BLG (55059) arrived at Helsinki on 4/10 on delivery from Miami, FL still as SE-REN. MD90 OH-BLC (53549) was ferried from Helsinki to Stockholm/Arlanda on 5/10 on return to SAS.
Blue Air B738 YR-BID (29641) had the marks G-CGPP applied at Lasham on 1/10 & was ferried to Norwich on 14/10. B734 YR-BAD (25429) was ferried from Luton to Stockholm/Arlanda by Volito Aviation on 5/10.
Bluebird A/W B734 SX-DAV (24704 ex 9M-MJB, N405KW, SX-BKI, N744VA) arrived at Athens via Kavala on 13/10 on delivery from Miami, FL.
Blue Line ceased operations on 7/10. A313 F-HBOS (674) was ferried from Paris/CDG to Lourdes for storage on 6/10. With thanks to ATDB, the fleet is now stored/parked at the following locations:
F-GMLI MD83 (53104) at Nimes
F-GMLK MD83 (49672) at Nimes
F-GMLU MD83 (49398) at Nimes
F-GMLX MD83 (49823) at Nimes
F-GNLG F100 (11363) at Vatry
F-GNLH F100 (11311) at Vatry
F-HBOS A313 (674) at Lourdes
F-HBOY A313 (650) at Frankfurt
British A/W A320 G-EUYJ (4464) made its first flight on 14/10 in full scheme as F-WWBQ & was ferried from Toulouse to Finkenwerder the same day.
EasyJet. In an incident eerily reminiscent of that involving A321 G-TTID (2462), A320 G-TTOI (2137) had its forward R1 door punctured by an ambilift while on the ground at Kos on 6/10. Rather spookily, it had been due to be retired the following day. G-EZTL (4012) was flown down from Liverpool to rescue the passengers & crew, arriving at Gatwick 15 hours late. G-TTOI was patched up & flown to Shannon the following day at 10,000 feet as EZY8005. The damage is less severe than that to G-TTID & only requires a new door & I am informed that the latter is still considered a write-off at present.
Egypt Air B738 SU-GDX (40757) arrived at Cairo on delivery on 2/10. SU-GDY (40758) had appeared on the Renton, WA flightline by 10/10 & made its first flight on 14/10. B773 SU-GDN (38288) arrived at Cairo on delivery on 14/10.
Ethiopian A/L B738 ET-ANZ (37933) made its first flight on 12/10. DH8D ET-ANX (4330) arrived at Addis Ababa on delivery on 10/10.
Eurowings CRJ7 D-ACSB (10028) was ferried from Exeter to Nuremberg all white on 7/10 on return to the lessor. B462 D-AEWQ (E3203) was ferried from Exeter to Bucharest via Nuremberg on 14/10. This was the carrier's last 146 movement. CRJ2 D-ACRN (7486) was transferred to FAI Rent-a-Jet on 7/10 & will be based to Nuremberg.
FedEx MD10F N365FE (46601) was ferried from storage at Victorville, CA to Mobile, AL on 13/10.
Finnair A333 OH-LTU (1173) was noted all white as F-WWKN at Toulouse on 8/10.
Flybe DH8D G-ECOY (4022) was cancelled by the CAA on 11/10 only to be restored on 14/10. It is understood that this aircraft plus G-ECOW (4021) have been handed back to Bombardier with both currently in short-term storage at Exeter. G-FLBD (4259) & G-FLBE (4261) are due to be returned to Flybe on 31/10 following lease to Olympic Air. The four CRJ2s formerly used by Flybe are returning home from JetLite India. VT-SAQ (7345 ex G-JECA) & VT-SAR (7393 ex G-JECB) arrived at Exeter on 7/10, with VT-SAS (7434 ex G-JECC) joining them on 9/10. The fourth aircraft, VT-SAU (7469 ex G-JECD), is expected before the end of the month, with at least three of them to be broken up & the fourth possibly going to a Russian customer.
FlyDubai B738 A6-FDK (40238) made its first flight on 7/10.
Gulf Air E190 A9C-MC (19000372) arrived at Bahrain on delivery on 9/10, with A9C-MD (19000373) following two days later. Also see under Petra A/L.
Iberworld A333s EC-JHP (670) & EC-KCP (833) were ferried from Madrid to Blang Bintang (Indonesia) on 7/10 on lease to Garuda for the Hajj. A320 EC-IMU (1130) has become VQ-BDR for Rossiya & was noted in full scheme at Madrid on 12/10 awaiting delivery.
Israir returned A320 4X-ABD (0384) to SmartLynx on 13/10 when it was ferried from Tel Aviv to Vilnius. Presumably, it will revert to its old marks of YL-LCB.
JAL B763 JA652J (40364) made its first flight on 9/10. B744 JA8086 (25308) was registered to AerSale as N238AS on 1/10 & left Tokyo/Narita on 8/10 bound for Roswell, NM. Also see under Non-airline.
Kalitta Air. Former Northwest Cargo B742F N631NW (23111) was delivered from storage at Marana, AZ to Oscoda, MS on 9/10 & was followed on 13/10 by N646NW (23737).
Libyan A/L has ordered a further three CRJ9s to add to its existing fleet of five. A320 5A-LAI was flown back from Finkenwerder to Toulouse on 11/10 still as F-WWIO.
Livingston ceased operations on 9/10. A321 EI-LVD (0792) was ferried from Milan/Malpensa to Malta on 5/10 prior to return to the lessor, while EI-LVB (1970) was ferried from Milan/Malpensa to Shannon on 13/10 also on return to the lessor.
Lufthansa A319 D-AIBD (4455) was delivered from Finkenwerder to Frankfurt on 8/10. A343 D-AIGR (274) is to become 16+01 with the Luftwaffe & is presently at Hamburg in partial scheme (see Skyliner for photo).
Lufthansa Cityline CRJ2 D-ACHC (7394) was ferried from Hamburg to Cologne on 8/10 after painting into UT Air scheme. It will then be ferried to Toronto for refurbishment prior to delivery.
Luxair has ordered a second B738.
Luzair. See under Omni Air.
Mexicana B762s XA-MXN (24733) & XA-MXO (24734) were registered to ACG Acquisitions as N473AG & N734AG respectively on 1/10. Both left Mexico City on 7/10 routing via Tucson, AZ to Victorville, CA, where they arrived the following day.
Monarch A332 G-SMAN (261) left Manchester on 8/10 bound for Padang (Indonesia) & Hajj duties with Garuda.
Non-airline
EI-COD B734 (27256 ex SP-LLD) of Celestial Aviation was ferried from Warsaw to Novosibirsk on 11/10, possibly on delivery to Nok Air.
G-CGMT B462 (E2285) left Southend on 7/10 on delivery to South African Airlink.
N139MN B735 (24649 ex LN-BRS) is to become N55AZ & left Bournemouth on 11/10 on delivery to Dubai for the Azizi Group.
N344AS B744 (24423) formerly with JAL as JA8071 & now registered to AerSale was ferried from Victorville, CA to Marana, AZ on 8/10.
N787ZA B788 (40695) made its first flight on 4/10.
Nordwind A/L B763 VQ-BRA (27310 ex OO-SBY, VN-A768, N310AN, EC-IQA, 5Y-KQQ, N310AN) was delivered from Miami, FL to Moscow/Sheremetyevo on 7/10.
Northwest Cargo. See under Kalitta Air.
Norwegian Air Shuttle B738 LN-KHD (33022) has become EI-EOJ & was ferried from Lasham to Bournemouth on 13/10 prior to lease to Air Italy Polska. LN-DYI (40866) arrived at Oslo on delivery on 14/10.
Olympic Air. See under Flybe.
Omni Air has added B763 N396AX (26264 ex ZK-NCH, G-CEFG, N411LF) to its fleet. This had been expected to go to Luzair as CS-TQQ.
Petra A/L. Former Gulf Air A320 JY-PTA (0459 ex A9C-EI) was registered on 7/10.
Phuket Air. See under United A/L
Pullmantur Air has leased out all four of its B744s for the Hajj as follows:
EC-KQC (26549) ferried from Madrid to Jakarta on 9/10 for Garuda
EC-KSM (27178) ferried from Madrid to Dacca on 5/10 for Bangladesh Biman
EC-KXN (25703) ferried from Madrid to Surabaya on 8/10 for Garuda
EC-LGL (26555) ferried from Madrid to Dacca on 3/10 for Bangladesh Biman
Qantas A332 VH-EBO (1169) made its first flight on 11/10 in primer but with Qantas tail markings as F-WWKJ.
Rossiya. See under Iberworld.
Ryanair B738 EI-ENE (34976) made its first flight on 3/10 & arrived at Dublin on delivery on 14/10, while EI-ENF (30534) was rolled out at Renton, WA on 12/10. Recent retirements have been:
EI-DAT (33554) on 8/10 at Prestwick
EI-DAV (33555) on 18/9 & parked at Dublin
EI-DAW (33556) on 24/9 at Prestwick & then ferried to Dublin 9/10
EI-DAX (33557) on 1/10 & stored at Prestwick
SAS. See under Blue1.
Saudi Arabian A320 HZ-AS40 (4419) was delivered from Toulouse to Jeddah on 5/10. HZ-AS41 (4454) made its first flight on 6/10 in full scheme as F-WWBE & was ferried from Toulouse to Finkenwerder the same day. HZ-AS39 (4442) was delivered from Toulouse to Jeddah on 13/10. HZ-ASH (4467) made its first flight on 7/10 in full scheme as D-AVZD & is due to be delivered from Finkenwerder to Jeddah on 16/10. A333 HZ-AQF (1153) made its first flight on 7/10 as F-WWYT.
Singapore A/L A333 9V-STR (1156) was delivered from Toulouse to Singapore on 8/10, with 9V-STS following on 13/10. B772 9V-SRE (28523) was registered to Transaero as EI-UNR on 12/10 & delivered from Singapore to Moscow/Domodedovo the same day.
Small Planet A/L Poland is operating B733 SP-HAA (24664 ex N389UA, N403TZ, LY-AQX, ES-LBC, LY-FLD) on lease from the parent company (see Skyliner for photo).
SmartLynx A320 YL-BCB (0726) has returned from lease to Wind Rose & was ferried from Riga to Tallinn on 10/10 for Avies. YL-LCE (0311) was ferried from Ostrava to Riga on 10/10 following lease to Travel Service. Also see under Israir.
Swiftair AT72 EC-KKQ (763) left Praia (Cape Verde) on 5/10 bound for Madrid in LAMIA scheme following that carrier's failure to obtain an AOC.
Thai A/W is to lease eight B773s from BOC Aviation.
Thomas Cook returned B733 LY-SKA (23972) to Aurela on 7/10 at the end of lease. Also see under Thomas Cook Scandinavia.
Thomas Cook Scandinavia has leased three A333s to Garuda for the Hajj as follows:
OY-VKG (349) ferried from Stockholm/Arlanda to Solo City on 10/10
OY-VKH (356) ferried from Oslo to Bahrain on 10/10
OY-VKI (357) ferried from Manchester to Bahrain on 8/10.
A332s G-OJMB (427) & G-OJMC (456) have been leased from the UK company as replacements.
Thomson A/W B752 G-OOBP (30394) was ferried from Manchester to Abu Dhabi on 11/10 for painting & winglet fitting. B763 G-OBYE (28979) left Luton on 9/10 for Blang Bintang (Indonesia) for Hajj duties with Garuda. G-OBYI (29138) was cancelled from the UK register on 6/10 & delivered from Luton to Amsterdam the same day as PH-OYI for Arkefly.
THY B773 TC-JJF (40708) made its first flight on 7/10 & TC-JJE (40707) arrived at Istanbul on delivery on 14/10. A333 TC-JNI (1160) was delivered from Toulouse to Istanbul on 13/10.
TNT took delivery of B734SF N132MN (29109 ex G-OGBC, PK-GHR) at Liege on 13/10 when it arrived from Tel Aviv following cargo conversion.
Transaero. See under Singapore A/L.
Travel Service. See under Air Sweden & SmartLynx.
Turkuaz A/L A321 TC-TCF (0775) was ferried from Istanbul to Jeddah on 10/10 for Hajj duties.
United A/L B744 N106UA (26474) left Marana, AZ on 7/10 on delivery to Don Muang for Phuket Air & it had been reregistered as HS-AGN by 11/10.
United A/W of Bangladesh A313 S2-AFF (672) left Maastricht on 5/10 still as M-ABCX on its delayed delivery flight to Dacca.
UT Air CRJ2 VQ-BGV (7378 ex D-ACHA, C-GFMQ) left Montreal on delivery on 12/10. Also see under Lufthansa Cityline
Viking A/L seems to have ceased operations with its four remaining aircraft returned to the lessor over the last few days. Whether this is a temporary or permanent cessation remains to be seen. The Canadian registered B738s were returned to Sunwing A/L on 29/8, while the situation regarding the Swedish registered machines, including two disposed of earlier, is as follows:
SE-RHR B738 (30637) ferried from Stockholm/Arlanda to Shannon 14/10
SE-RHS B738 (28617) rolled out at East Midlands 11/10 in Yakutia scheme & ferried to Lasham 12/10
SE-RHT B733 (24962) ferried from Glasgow to Ostrava 9/10
SE-RHU B733 (28560) to GECAS as N559MS & for WebJet as PR-WJU
SE-RHV B733 (28567) to GECAS as N558MS & for WebJet as PR-WJV
SE-RHX B738 (28592) ferried from Paris/CDG to Ostrava 14/10 after lease to XL A/W France
Viking Hellas seems unaffected at the moment.
Wind Rose. See under SmartLynx.
Yakutia A/L. See under Viking A/L.