Adria Airways has signed a letter of intent to lease 15 Sukhoi Superjet 100s which will be maintained through a proposed joint venture MRO operation based in Ljubljana.
The Slovenian airline says the jets will be delivered from the beginning of 2019 under a long-term lease agreement.
Adria chief executive Holger Kowarsch states that the Superjet’s introduction will "totally support" the airline’s development strategy. He says that the carrier has evaluated the Superjet since 2016 and concluding that all the technical and operational characteristics of the aircraft would "suit best for our strategic goals".
Introduction of the type will enable Adria to use more of its Airbus A319s and Bombardier CRJ jets for wet-lease operations, Kowarsch adds.
Sukhoi and Adria have also agreed to establish an MRO joint venture at Ljubljana airport to "secure the operational reliability" of the Superjet. Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company president Alexander Rubtsov, adds that this will allow after-sales support for the SSJ100 in the European market to be organized "profoundly and professionally."
Flight Fleets Analyzer data indicates that Adria has a fleet of 14 aircraft consisting of one ATR 72 600, two CRJ 700s, eight CRJ 900s and three Saab 2000s.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
