Airbus Updates No.2813

Avianca Cargo Airbus A330-200 Diverts To Madrid Over Electrical Degradation

An Avianca Cargo A330-200 freighter experienced ‘electrical degradation’ over Northern Ireland on August 29th, 2020, just outside of Belfast. The A330 was flying from Amsterdam to Miami when the crew reported a ‘minor technical problem’ as it was flying just over Northern Ireland. The flight initially diverted to its origin at Amsterdam but was subsequently directed to divert to Madrid instead.

Avianca Cargo, formerly known as TAMPA, has a fleet of six Airbus A330-200 freighters. Photo: Juan Carlos Medau via Wikimedia Commons

Incident details

According to The Aviation Herald, the Avianca Cargo Airbus A330-200 freighter was performing flight QT4046 from Amsterdam to Miami, having taken off at 19:35 local time. Flying at FL340 about 60nm west of the Northern Ireland capital of Belfast, the crew decided to return to Amsterdam, citing a minor technical problem as their reason.

The aircraft descended to FL180 for its return to Amsterdam. Nearing Amsterdam, the crew descended the aircraft to FL100, advising the airport that no assistance and no emergency services were needed. They further reported that they just had an electrical degradation in their plane, preventing the Oceanic crossing.

A short time later, the crew reported to Amsterdam that their company had requested that they divert to Madrid instead and climbed to FL230. Redirecting to Madrid, the aircraft performed a safe landing about five and a half hours after they decided to turn back to Amsterdam while over Northern Ireland.

The aircraft is still on the ground in Madrid at the time of this article’s publication. There are no future flights listed for the plane yet.

About the aircraft

The aircraft is an A330-200 freighter registered as N331QT. The aircraft, according to Airfleets, is just over seven and a half years old and first entered service with cargo airline TAMPA. This airline was subsequently renamed and merged to become Avianca Cargo, and the aircraft carried over to the new company in May of 2013.

Advertisement:

Airbus Updates No.2812

FAA Issues Airbus A320 Family Airworthiness Directive For Over 1200 Planes

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced that it is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Airbus A320 family aircraft. The group estimates that the notification affects 1,203 planes of United States registry.

The FAA is issuing this directive due to concerns over safety regarding specific aircraft. Photo: Getty Images

The concern

An AD is a notification to owners and operators that there is a safety deficiency with a specific model of aircraft or a system part of it. Moreover, the holder must address the issue. According to an FAA document, this directive impacts jets across A318, A319, A320, and A321 models.

The directive mentions the following planes:

• A318-111, -112, -121, and -122
• A319-111, -112, -113, -114, -115, -131, -132, and -133
• A320-211, -212, -214, -216, -231, -232, and -233
• A321-111, -112, -131, -211, -212, -213, -231, and -232

The FAA said that there were reports of fatigue cracks on continuity fittings at the lower framing of the front windshield on aircraft that had a certain production modification. Furthermore, following analysis, it is evident that specific certification requirements for damage tolerance and fatigue are not met on planes in a particular post-production modification configuration.

Altogether, this airworthiness directive impacts aircraft across the Airbus A320 family. Photo: Airbus

Fixing the issue

The FAA says that the AD requires repetitive high frequency eddy current (HFEC) inspections of the central node windshield area for cracking. Moreover, if operators do find cracking, they have to perform the necessary corrective measures.

These actions are specified in a European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD. The FAA incorporated these details into the document for reference. Overall, the government body is sharing this directive due to the unsafe condition on these units

“The FAA is issuing this AD to address fatigue cracks on continuity fittings at the lower framing of the front windshield on airplanes on which Airbus Production Modification 22058 (which is included in Airbus Modification 21999) has been embodied,” the FAA said in the document.

“Additional analysis showed that certain certification requirements for damage tolerance and fatigue are not met on airplanes in a post-production Modification 22058 configuration. The FAA is issuing this AD to address this condition, which could lead to failure of the continuity fittings at the lower node of the windshield central frame, possibly resulting in decompression of the airplane and injury to occupants.”

Inspections across the nation

Most major US carriers presently have several A320 family aircraft within their fleets. Therefore, across the country, there will be some busy workers addressing these concerns in the directive.

Earlier this month, the FAA shared a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) for an airworthiness directive on the Boeing 737 MAX. This release is just one of many steps in getting jet in the skies for passenger operations. The type has been on the ground since March 2019.

Nonetheless, airlines will be taking any of these airworthiness directives seriously. Undoubtedly, they will be ensuring that they exercise the right course of action as soon as possible.

Airbus Updates No.2811

JetBlue Raises $115 Million By Securing 25 Airbus A321s

JetBlue announced that on August 27th, it raised over $115 million by securing 25 Airbus A321s. The airline used pass-through certificates to raise the money with interest payable semiannually on May 15th and November 15th. Final payments will be due in 2027.

“Don’t Hate Me Because I’m Bluetiful” is one of the A321s JetBlue has pledged for this funding. Photo: Getty Images

Securing aircraft for funding

The total amount JetBlue raised was $115,584,000, secured by 25 Airbus A321s. The pass-through certificates are notes that JetBlue issues to creditors. In exchange, the notes are secured by certain assets, in this case, aircraft.

The 25 Airbus A321s that JetBlue has secured are:

1. N976JT “Mint to Soar” (with Mint)
2. N978JB “Menta Azul” (with Mint)
3. N979JT “Eeny Minty Miney Mo” (with Mint)
4. N981JT “The Royal TreatMint” (with Mint)
5. N980JT “Taking a Menta Health Day) (with Mint)
6. N982JB “One Mint, Two Mint, Blue Mint, You Mint” (with Mint)
7. N984JB “Suave Menta” (with Mint)
8. N983JT “M*I*N*T” (with Mint)
9. N986JB “Mike India November Tango” (with Mint)
10. N985JT “Minterial Girl” (with Mint)
11. N988JT “Menta-Licious” (with Mint)
12. N987JT “Sky’s the LiMint” (with Mint)
13. N990JL “Seize the MoMint” (with Mint)
14. N989JT “Freshly Minted” (with Mint)
15. N991JT “Catch Mint If You Can” (with Mint)
16. N993JE “Fly Like You Mint It” (with Mint)
17. N992JB “The EleMint of Surprise” (with Mint)
18. N994JL “P.S. I Love Blue”
19. N995JL “New Number, Blue Dis?”
20. N996JL “Don’t Hate Me Because I’m Bluetiful”
21. N997JL “Blues That Girl?”
22. N998JE “Blue If By Air”
23. N999JQ “Midnight Blue”
24. N973JT “Unforgettably Blue”
25. N977JE “The LiMint Does Not Exist” (with Mint)

N985JT, “Minterial Girl,” is one of the jets pledged. Photo: Tomás Del Coro via Flickr

All of these jets are from three to two years old, with the oldest delivered new to JetBlue in February 2017 and the last being delivered fresh to the airline in December 2018. The airline raised between $4.3 to $4.9 million from each aircraft.

No change for passengers

Passengers will not notice the difference. The 18 jets with the airline’s lie-flat Mint product will continue to offer that hard product and the airline’s standard onboard services. The remaining seven aircraft lack Mint and are in an all-economy configuration. JetBlue will continue to own the aircraft. The only issues that could arise are if JetBlue defaults on its payment, which is unlikely.

The service in JetBlue’s Mint class will not be affected. Photo: JetBlue

A common practice

It is quite common for airlines to raise financing by securing aircraft. Amidst the ongoing crisis, airlines have been finding ways to raise cash and bolster their liquidity position. Almost all major airlines took funding from the federal government for payroll support, and others took on separate loans. Many airlines have also turned to the private market for funding. For example, Alaska Airlines raised over $1.1 billion earlier this year by securing 61 aircraft. American Airlines raised funding by securing slots, gates, and routes.

Back in June, JetBlue pledged slots at airports in New York and Washington D.C. to raise some additional cash. In the second quarter, JetBlue lost nearly half a billion dollars. The goal for the airline now is to focus on building up its liquidity position and emerging from the crisis so it can enact a robust post-crisis network recovery plan.

Advertisement:

Airbus Updates No.2810

Airbus A320	-271N	10129		HA-LJD	Wizz Air	delivery 29aug20 TLS-BUD	ex F-WWDZ
Airbus A321	-231	1356		OE-IAI	Sapphire Leasing	regd 25aug20, parked at ICN	ex HL7594
Airbus A321	-211	6454		OE-LCN	Vueling Austria	ferried 26aug20 AMS-MAD for onward storage (+ 6719 OE-LCR 27aug20)	ex HB-JOU
Airbus A321	-251N	7945		N7945	Bank of Utah	regd 27aug20, parked at GYR	ex XA-NEO
Airbus A321	-251N	8008		N880AE	Bank of Utah	regd 28aug20, parked at GYR	ex XA-JIL
Airbus A321	-251N	8575		N575CG	ACG Acquisitions	regd 27aug20, parked at GYR	ex XA-PGA
Airbus A321	-251NXLR	9265		A6-ATE	Air Arabia	delivery 25aug20 XFW-SHJ	ex D-AZAI
Airbus A321	-211	9538		N103DY	Delta Air Lines	delivery 28aug20 BFM-MSP (+ 10009 N104DN ex F-WZMX)	ex F-WZMQ
Airbus A321	-271NX	10050		HA-LVN	Wizz Air	delivery 28aug20 XFW-BUD	ex D-AZAD
Airbus A321	-271NXLR	9080		P4-KGC	Air Astana	delivery 27aug20 XFW-ALA	ex D-AYAX
Airbus A330	-202	733		AP-BNE	Serene Air	delivery 27aug20 CHR-KHI	ex F-WTAX
Airbus A330	-343	776		B-LAD	Cathay Pacific	ferried 25-26aug20 HKG-SYD-ASP for onward storage (+ 423 B-HLS 26-27aug20)	ex F-WWKI
Airbus A330	-343(F)	781		B-LDQ	Air Hong Kong	delivery 22aug20 MLA-HKG, M-reg canx 23aug20	ex M-BELR
Airbus A330	-223	939		LZ-AWY	DAE Capital	ferried 28aug20 ISL-LETL	ex TC-LNB
Airbus A330	-343	1349		B-LAQ	Cathay Pacific	ferried 27-28aug20 HKG-SYD-ASP for onward storage	ex F-WWCO
Airbus A330	-343	1447		C-GOFV	Air Canada	seen regd at FNI 24aug20, all wh prior delivery	ex OE-IED
Airbus A330	-243	1657		N204SA	Synergy Aerospace	ferried 24aug20 BOD-CHR for paint, for Boliviana de Aviación	ex PR-OCX
Airbus A340	-642	606		EC-JBA	Iberia	ferried 26aug20 MAD-CQM, for part-out & scrap	ex F-WWCV
Airbus A340	-642	1079		EC-LEV	Iberia	ferried 29aug20 MAD-CQM	ex F-WWCE

Airbus Updates No.2809

Airbus A319	-111	1180		XY-AGU	Myanmar Airways International	ferried 22-23aug20 CRK-GUM-HNL-MZJ, basic cs on return to lessor	ex EI-FCP
Airbus A319	-112	1808		E7-FBA	FlyBosnia	ferried 28-29aug20 SJJ-KEF-BGR-MZJ on return to lessor	ex VP-BIS
Airbus A319	-132	1962		LY-BHF	Carlyle Aviation Partners	seen regd at DGX 24aug20	ex B-MAO
Airbus A319	-132	2579		N884UA	United Airlines	ferried 25aug20 SHE-NRT-XMN, regd 27aug20 prior delivery	ex B-6207
Airbus A319	-112	2593		VT-SCA	Air India	ferried 25aug20 DEL-TBS-DGX, for part-out & scrap	ex D-AVXL
Airbus A319	-111	4313		G-EZFU	easyJet	air-test at SXF 28aug20, OE-reg prior re-transfer	ex OE-LKG
Airbus A320	-232	930		B-HSI	Cathay Dragon	ferried 25aug20 HKG-DRW-ASP for onward storage	ex F-WWIE
Airbus A320	-232	2257		AP-BOA	Air Sial	OE-regd 24aug20 prior delivery ex CHC	ex OE-ILI
Airbus A320	-214	2930		N293CL	UMB Bank	regd 27aug20, parled at LCQ	ex XA-EBA
Airbus A320	-214	3374		OE-ILE	Marlborough ABC	regd 25aug20, parked at TUS	ex XA-BIC
Airbus A320	-214	4286		G-EZTX	easyJet	ferried 21/26aug20 MXP-LTN-SXF, regd 24aug20 on re-transfer	ex OE-IVH
Airbus A320	-232	4603		9H-LMG	Lauda Europe	seen regd at VIE 26aug20 after transfer	ex OE-LMG
Airbus A320	-232	6189		9H-SZF	?	South Arican Airways cs, seen regd at FNI 25aug20 (+ 6306 9H-SZH ex ZS-SZH)	ex ZS-SZF
Airbus A320	-251NCJ	8638		9H-NEW	Comlux Aviation Malta	re-delivery 26-28aug20 IND-ZRH-MLA-NQZ after ACJ config, for Berkut State Air Co	ex D-AUAN
Airbus A320	-251N	9380		A9C-TF	Gulf Air	delivery 26aug20 XFW-BAH	ex D-AVVM
Airbus A320	-251N	9480		B-30FK	Zheijiang Loong Air	delivery 26-27aug20 XFW-OVB-TSN, D-reg (+ 9527 B-320D ex D-AXAD)	ex D-AUBS
Airbus A320	-251N	9518		SE-RUB	SAS	for delivery 31aug20 XFW-CPH "Birger Viking"	ex D-AXAK
Airbus A320	-271N	9529		B-30F3	Shenzhen Airlines	delivery 28aug20 TSN-SZX	ex B-007C
Airbus A320	-251N	10065		EC-NJU	Iberia	delivery 28aug20 TLS-MAD "María Bernaldo de Quirós"	ex F-WWBG
Airbus A320	-251N	10082		9K-AKO	Kuwait Airways	delivery 28aug20 TLS-KWI	ex F-WWBJ

Airbus Updates No.2808

Brazilian Startup Ita Linhas Aereas To Launch With 10 Airbus A320s

Brazilian airline startup Ita Linhas Aereas plans to launch on March 2021 with a fleet of ten Airbus A320. According to Tiago Senna, the airlines’ CEO, it will also have three starting hubs in Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Brasilia. What else do we know about this new airline? Let’s investigate further.

A new player in Brazil

Itapemirim Group is a bus company in Brazil, launched in 1953. Currently, it is the largest road passenger transport business in all of Latin America. It invested US$500 million to set up its new airline.

Initially, the group was planning on acquiring a fleet of Bombardier airplanes. But now, according to Tiago Senna, there’s a letter of intent signed with leasing companies to receive ten Airbus A320.

Senna plans to grow the fleet of Ita Linhas Aereas to 50 A320 by 2022. However, those deals have not been secured as yet, according to Aviator.

Currently, the coronavirus pandemic has devastated the air industry, including the leasing companies. With many airlines returning leased planes (and some lessors repossessing them), there will be a surplus of aircraft shortly. Ita Linhas Aereas is betting on this scenario to lease its future fleet. In an interview, Senna said,

“The choice of the A320 was purely technical. Nowadays, we have a good number of available A320 pilots in the market, and it is easy to get the appropriate training for this aircraft. Also, there’s a large amount of A320 airplanes available.”

So, what else do we know about the future airline?

Rodrigo Vilaça, Itapemirim’s CEO, has posted a few interesting posts on its Linkedin account. For instance, three days ago, he showed a model of future planes. Tiago Senna also said, a month ago, that the airline had started recruiting crews and pilots.

The origins of the airline are in 2017. But it was until 2019’s last months when a group of Itapemirim executives traveled to the EAU and obtained funds to launch the new carrier. Now, with the coronavirus pandemic, “it is the ideal moment to enter the market,” said Senna.

While the routes have not been announced, Itapemirim plans to operate from Guarulhos International Airport in Sao Paulo, Galeao International Airport in Rio de Janeiro, and Brasilia International Airport.

Senna is not planning to establish a legacy carrier. He says there will be no first-class in its planes. The plan is to offer a quality service, different from the other airlines in Brazil, but without impacting its costs.

Ita Linhas Aereas also has an edge because of its presence as a bus and train company in Brazil. The company operates in over 2,700 municipalities in Brazil, that is, half of the whole country. It has a well-known brand across the country, and although it is in a current financial reorganization, it has big plans for the airline. Nevertheless, Ita Linhas Aereas is entering a market with three well-established airlines: LATAM Brazil, Azul, and GOL.

How tough is the competition in Brazil?

According to Senna, Brazil is a market big enough to have four airline competitors. He says that the exit of Avianca Brazil in 2019 left open a space for a new carrier. Now, with the coronavirus pandemic, that gap will be more significant. As we know, LATAM Brazil is in Chapter 11 reorganization, and GOL is shrinking its size by returning leased airplanes. Also, Azul and LATAM recently signed a codeshare agreement.

Nevertheless, Ita Linhas Aereas will not be a greedy airline. Instead, Tiago Senna plans to respect and collaborate with the other airlines in Brazil. There’s enough room for everybody, he repeated. “We are in a moment of crisis. We have to be thoughtful,” he said.

Airbus Updates No.2807

Vietnam Airlines Takes Delivery Of Its First A320neo

The newest addition to Vietnam Airlines’ fleet has arrived. The first of three A320neos due has landed in Vietnam. The plane, VN-A513, comes via ICBC Aviation Leasing. It is the first A320neo across the wider Vietnam Airlines fleet. The plane will slot in alongside the airlines’ narrowbody fleet of 70 Airbus A321s.

Vietnam Airlines has just received its first A320neo. Photo: Getty Images

A sudden shift in fortunes for Vietnam Airlines

The deal for the A320neos was signed in June 2019. At the time, Vietnam Airlines was flying high. Revenues and profits were higher than predicted on the back of an aviation boom in the country. Times were good, and Vietnam Airlines was eyeing expansion plans and further growth.

Vietnam Airlines stopped flying entirely in March and April. That caused revenues to dry up, and the airline struggled to meet outgoings. By May, some of its domestic flights were back in the air. But the schedules were a fraction of what they formerly were. On the Hanoi – Ho Chi Minh route, usually one of the world’s busiest, Vietnam Airlines was operating just 23 flights per day.

Meanwhile, Vietnam Airlines’ international flights were suspended back in March. 2020 was shaping as a serious challenge for an airline that was previously growing at a rapid clip.

After earning US$4.3 billion in the 2019 financial year, Vietnam Airlines is now flagging losses around US$655 million this year.

Vietnam Airlines in “really bad” trouble says chief accountant

Earlier this month, Airways Magazine had Vietnam Airlines’ chief accountant, Tran Thanh Hien saying the airline was in “really bad” financial trouble. The airline was having difficulty meeting day-to-day expenses such as salaries and ground handling fees.

The airline wants a loan from the Vietnamese Government. But Tran Thanh Hien says it’s not a loan – it’s an investment that will get paid back. Since you were asking, the airline would like at least half a billion US dollars to tide it over.

Vietnam Airlines is predominately a state-owned carrier. The Vietnamese Government has an 81.6% stake in the airline, and the Prime Minister personally oversees who gets appointed to the airline’s board. So, it’s a bit like swallowing your pride and going to have an uncomfortable chat with Dad.

Japanese airline, All Nippon Airways, also owns nearly 9% of Vietnam Airlines.

“Without the support, we will be in an extremely difficult situation at the end of August,” Vietnam Airlines CEO, Duong Tri Thanh, said earlier this month.

Vietnam Airlines is in serious financial strife and requires financial assistance from the Vietnamese Government. Photo: ASM-vwiki via Wikimedia Commons

Government funding will come at what cost?

In fairness, Vietnam Airlines isn’t the only airline asking their respective government for financial help. Multiple airlines around the world are doing so and most devoutly promise to square up down the track.

While the Vietnamese Government hasn’t said no, it has previously expressed a desire to scale down its stake in Vietnam Airlines. They want to reduce their stake to 51%. That’s enough to maintain a controlling interest but also enough to share the pain when that rolls around.

The Vietnamese Government also appears keen to slow down the pace of aviation growth in Vietnam. They’ve already put a halt on issuing licenses to prospective new airlines until 2022. No doubt, they’ll come up with something for Vietnam Airlines. The question is, at what cost to the airline?

Meanwhile, Vietnam Airlines’ shiny new A320neo is poised to begin flying around the country. But with over half the airline’s fleet grounded, it arrives at the worst possible time.

Airbus Updates No.2806

FlyBosnia Set To Retire Its Only Aircraft

FlyBosnia has responded to the current crisis in the aviation industry with some fairly drastic measures. The flag carrier of Bosnia and Herzegovina is reported to have fired 20 employees, and it is in the process of retiring its sole aircraft. The Airbus A319, carrying the registration E7-FBA, has been parked at Sarajevo International Airport for more than two months now. Meanwhile, FlyBosnia has been operating charter flights with a leased Airbus A320 from GetJet Airlines.

FlyBosnia has now become a virtual airline. Photo: FlyBosnia

FlyBosnia’s A319 will go

FlyBosnia, the flag carrier of Bosnia and Herzegovina and one of the youngest European airline startups, is said to be retiring its only aircraft. The news, reported by Klix, comes as no surprise. FlyBosnia’s Airbus A319 aircraft, registered as E7-FBA, has been parked in Sarajevo International Airport for two months.

FlyBosnia’s sole A319 aircraft has had virtually no scheduled services for the entire year. Its last flight was for the airline’s flagship route between London Luton and Sarajevo in February this year. Since then, the A319 aircraft has been carrying out cargo flights to China for various medical purposes in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the height of the COVID-19 health crisis. Simple Flying published an article with a series of photos from these cargo flights in May.

It is also reported that FlyBosnia’s management expects the current difficult situation in the aviation industry to last until next spring. As a result, and as a cost-cutting measure, FlyBosnia also reportedly fired 20 employees. This reasonably large cut in the airline’s headcount comes as no surprise since FlyBosnia will no longer have a fleet of its own. This effectively makes it a virtual airline, potentially for a long time.

Presumably, given that FlyBosnia expects the market conditions to improve next year, it will also be acquiring its own aircraft next spring. But, in the meantime, the airline will be operating charter flights this winter with wet-leased aircraft. It has been contracted to do so by a tourist agency based in Bosnia and Herzegovina, called Fibula

An Airbus A320 has already been operating flights for FlyBosnia under a wet lease agreement with GetJet Airlines, based in Lithuania. As can be seen from various flight tracking services, FlyBosnia is running charter flights from Sarajevo to Antalya, in Turkey, with this aircraft already, several times weekly.

The A319 will be scrapped

At almost 20 years of age, and at a time when there is surplus capacity in the aviation industry, FlyBosnia’s Airbus A319 aircraft is unsurprisingly going to be scraped. It was first delivered to Finnair in 2002, after which it was with Donavia and Rossiya before being taken by FlyBosnia. At all times, the aircraft was on lease to these airlines from various lessors.

Airbus Updates No.2805

Saudi Arabia's flyadeal takes first A320neo

Illustration of flyadeal Airbus A320-200N© flyadeal

25.08.2020 - 11:40 UTC

flyadeal (F3, Jeddah) took delivery of its first A320-200N, HZ-FAL (msn 9554), following a period of four months in storage at London Stansted, Skyliner-Aviation reported.

The Airbus narrowbody departed from Toulouse Blagnac on March 26, 2020, under its temporary registration OE-ILD, but was subsequently stored first in Shannon and then at Stansted. It was finally delivered to Jeddah on August 10 but has yet to operate any revenue flights in Saudi Arabia, Flightradar24 ADS-B data shows.

According to the ch-aviation fleets ownership module, the aircraft is leased from Avolon. The airline has yet to publish schedules for the new variant.

The low-cost carrier is wholly-owned by Saudia (SV, Jeddah) and currently operates a fleet of eleven A320-200s. In late 2018, it announced its intention to order thirty B737-8s only to drop the plan in July 2019, after the grounding of the B737 MAX. It then secured thirty A320neo from lessors with options for a further 20 transferred from Saudia.

Airbus Updates No.2804

European Aviation Airbus A340-600 G-VFIT seen at Bournemouth 21st August 2020 wearing the new colours of European Cargo....... nice to see what with the rash of A340 retirements

Airbus Updates No.2803

Delta Is Bringing The Airbus A330-900neo To New York-JFK

Delta Air Lines is bringing the Airbus A330-900neo to New York-JFK. The latest generation of the Airbus A330 series has traditionally flown out of Delta’s transpacific hub in Seattle. This winter, however, Delta will be bringing the A330neo to its key East Coast gateway in New York – JFK on two routes.

Delta Air Lines is bringing the Airbus A330-900neo to New York. Photo: Airbus

Where is the Airbus A330-900neo flying out of New York – JFK?

Delta Air Lines will be flying the Airbus A330-900neo on a daily flight to Amsterdam (AMS) and on one of two daily flights from JFK to Tel Aviv (TLV), according to scheduling data from Routesonline. Traditionally, Delta flew an Airbus A330-300 with a lie-flat Delta One cabin but no premium economy product. While one of two daily flights from JFK to TLV is moving to an A330-900neo, Delta will maintain a second daily flight on the route with an A330-300.

The A330neo will fly to Amsterdam starting on December 1st. The introduction of the aircraft on services to Tel Aviv will be on January 15th, 2021. These routes are part of Delta’s international long-haul buildup of operations.

Delta traditionally flies the Airbus A330-300s on these routes, especially to Amsterdam, where partner KLM has a major hub. Photo: Getty Images

Why Amsterdam and Tel Aviv?

Amsterdam is a very important international gateway for Delta. Fellow SkyTeam carrier and transatlantic joint venture partner KLM operates its largest hub out of Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport (AMS). In Amsterdam, passengers can connect onwards across Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia on KLM’s iconic blue aircraft.

Tel Aviv is also an important destination for Delta. While the airline does not have a lot of onward connecting traffic out of Tel Aviv, there is a lot of demand to fly between the US and Israel.

With El Al’s future currently in limbo, US airlines are seeing an opportunity to connect the two countries. There is, traditionally, a fair bit of travel demand between the US and Israel. Given the uncertainty around El Al, US airlines are jumping on the opportunity to launch flights and tap into that customer base.

Putting the Airbus A330-900neo on either route is not necessarily a capacity increase. But, instead, it is putting two new great products in service on key long-haul routes that will help drive Delta’s return to profitability on international routes.

The Airbus A330-900neo

Delta took its first Airbus A330-900neo last year. In fact, Delta was the launch customer of the A330-900neo and has a plan to operate a total of 37 of the type. Delta traditionally uses this aircraft on flights to Seoul, Tokyo, and Shanghai, among others, out of its transpacific hub in Seattle.