Flybe is in discussions to sell up to seven Bombardier Q400s to an undisclosed purchaser as it seeks to rebalance its fleet capacity.
The airline, which had previously indicated the possibility of withdrawing excess aircraft, said it is "at an advanced stage of negotiations" for disposal of the turboprops.
"We identified that European growth opportunities were more likely to come through acquisitions - with existing aircraft - and we adjusted our organic growth capacity accordingly," it said.
"The deal removed surplus capacity from the UK market for 2011-12 to reflect the lower level of passenger demand resulting from the recovery of the UK economy being slower and shallower than expected."
Flybe is shifting the balance of its fleet towards regional jets. It has agreed to purchase 35 Embraer 175s and has options and rights on another 105.
In 2016-17 the airline expects to have moved to a 50:50 split between regional jets and turboprops, based on its delivery and fleet retirement schedules.
Over the year to 31 March 2011 the company took delivery of a single Q400 and two more have been delivered since. Flybe's fleet, as a result, comprises 57 Q400s and 14 Embraer 195 jets.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news