LOT Polish Airlines (LO, Warsaw Chopin) will wet-lease four A320-200s from Lithuania's Avion Express (X9, Vilnius), the ACMI/charter specialist's parent Avia Solutions Group said in a press release.
The first two Airbus narrowbodies will start operating for the Polish flag carrier on January 14, 2020, with the other two to follow on February 1. The contract has been signed through the end of May 2020.
All four aircraft will be based out of Warsaw Chopin, although LOT has yet to file specific schedules for the A320s. It is the first-ever wet-lease agreement between Avion Express and LOT.
The Polish flag carrier is particularly affected by the ongoing grounding of the B737 MAX as it has five B737-8 in storage and a further seven awaiting delivery. According to the ch-aviation fleets advanced module, LOT's narrowbody fleet also includes three B737-400s, one B737-700, and seven B737-800s. The carrier is also wet-leasing an A320-200 from GetJet Airlines (GW, Vilnius). According to the ch-aviation schedules module, this wet-lease will conclude on January 13, 2020.
Avion Express operates eight A320-200s and seven A321-200s.