As travel demand slowly picks up, Asiana Airlines (OZ, Seoul Incheon) will join the ranks of airlines reactivating their A380-800s when it deploys the type on two routes out of Seoul Incheon starting on March 27, 2022.
The ch-aviation schedules module indicates the South Korean carrier plans to use the A380 to operate one of its two daily rotations to Los Angeles Int'l (the other one will continue to be served with A350-900s) and its daily rotation to Frankfurt Int'l (currently also served with an A350-900).
Asiana Airlines operates six A380-800s, which have remained grounded since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.Four are owned while the other two are leased from Minsheng Financial Leasing, the ch-aviation fleets ownership module indicates. The aircraft are 6.8 years old on average.
9H-TQY (msn 190), formerly CS-TQY, operated its last flight under the Portuguese AOC on December 15, 2021, from Pittsburgh Int'l to Berau. Following brief maintenance and re-registration, the 24.3-year-old ex-Singapore Airlines and Emirates jet was moved to the Maltese register and flew to Ho Chi Minh City on December 21. It has since been in near daily operation on long-haul cargo-only services, Flightradar24 ADS-B data shows.
Following the transfer, Hi Fly's Portuguese-registered fleet comprises one A321-200, one A330-200, and one A330-900, the ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows. In turn, the Maltese carrier operates one A319-100, one A321-200, three A330-300s, one A330-900, and six A340-300s. Hi Fly Malta is now the world's second-largest operator of the A340-300, behind only Lufthansa (LH, Frankfurt Int'l).
British Airways A350 Damaged In Heathrow Tail Strike
A British Airways A350 scored a trip to the London Heathrow Maintenance hangar after landing at the airport on Sunday afternoon. G-XWBC had to go around after attempting to land on runway 27L. A tailstrike prompted the go-around and led to the temporary closure of the runway.
A British Airways A350 (exact registration not pictured) was damaged during a tail strike at the weekend. Photo: Vincenzo Pace – Simple Flying
While best avoided, tail strikes do happen from time to time. When this does happen, it could mean anything from a little bit of scratched paintwork to structural damage. While some aircraft had inbuilt measures to defend against tail strikes, this isn’t the case for many newer jets once they leave the testing phase.
Airbus A350 damaged in London
On Sunday, G-XWBC was landing in London following flight BA 104 from Dubai. While the flight appears to have largely taken place without incident, it was noticeable that the aircraft went around at Heathrow and then landed on the airport’s other runway. We now know that the plane experienced a tail strike landing on Heathrow’s Runway 27L, which prompted the go-around.
Following the tailstrike, the aircraft landed safely on Runway 27R a short while later. The incident led to 27L being closed to landing aircraft a short while later while an inspection was carried out. G-XWBC landed at around 14:43. At roughly the same time, the Heathrow Noise Twitter account confirmed that a runway change would be taking place due to “circumstances beyond our control”.
Commenting on the incident, a British Airways spokesperson told Simple Flying,
“The aircraft landed safely and customers and crew have all disembarked.”
Not the first BA A350 incident
This isn’t the first time a British Airways Airbus A350 has been involved in an incident. G-XWBD was damaged in an Airbus hangar before it was even delivered. In January 2020, the aircraft experienced a hard landing in Tel Aviv. Some worried that G-XWBD might be cursed after it experienced a third incident just a month later. While landing in Toronto, the aircraft reported a hydraulic failure. Thankfully, it seems that the plane isn’t cursed after all, as all flights with it since have been completed without incident.
G-XWBD isn’t the only British Airways A350 to have suffered an incident. Like G-XWBC on Sunday, G-XWBA has also experienced an incident during a Dubai rotation. In April 2020, G-XWBA was being pushed back when its vertical stabilizer cut into that of an Emirates Boeing 777. The aircraft remained on the ground in Dubai until the damage had been repaired.
Iran Eyes Legal Action Against Airbus And ATR Over Spare Parts Supply
Iran’s aircraft fleet has been suffering from a lack of parts, with an estimated 50% of its passenger planes reportedly grounded due to technical problems. Now, the civil aviation chief of Iran has said that the country intends to pursue legal action against both Airbus and ATR regarding their lack of parts supply. Mohammad Mohammadi Bakhsh said at the weekend that the contracts to supply these parts were signed before the US sanctions were imposed, and therefore should be fulfilled.
Iran is ready to take Airbus and ATR to court over a lack of spare parts supply. Photo: Getty Images
Legal action considered
Iran’s civil aviation chief has stated this week that the country intends to take legal action against Airbus and ATR regarding the lack of supply of parts for its aircraft. Mohammad Mohammadi Bakhsh claims that both planemakers refuse to honor their contractual obligations to deliver the parts, telling PressTV that,
“Airbus and ATR have cited the US sanctions whenever the issue was raised. Hence, we are protesting this decision and will be pursuing legal actions against them.”
Bakhsh notes that the parts supply contract was signed before the US reimposed sanctions on the country, and says that the two manufacturers should stick by their agreements. He further warns that the failure to supply these parts could cause a major incident. He said that Iran would pursue the legal case against the companies regardless of the outcome of talks with world powers regarding Iran’s nuclear deal.
In December last year, it was estimated that more than 170 aircraft were grounded in Iran, representing over half of its passenger fleet. Alireza Barkhordar, vice president of Iranian Airlines Association’s board of directors, told the Financial Tribune that,
“If the status quo persists, we will see more planes grounded in the near future.”
More than half of Iran’s passenger planes are grounded
Iranian airlines are notorious for flying older and less common aircraft, with examples of the A300/A310 and F100 still actively in use in the country. Much of this was a hangover from the sanctions against Iran, which have been in place, on and off, since 1995. Sanctions prevented aircraft manufacturers from supplying new planes or parts, leaving Iranian airlines to manage with their older airframes.
But the sanctions were lifted in 2015, which saw Iranian airlines signing a flurry of orders to renew their aging fleets. By 2016, deals had been signed relating to 100 Airbus jets, 80 Boeing aircraft, and 40 ATR turboprops. But only 11 aircraft were delivered to the airlines before 2018 saw sanctions reapplied as the US withdrew from the nuclear deal. Arriving in the country so far has been one Airbus A321, two Airbus A330s, and eight ATR 72-600s.
While Iranian airlines would love to have their new aircraft delivered, the immediate requirement is for spare parts to reactivate their grounded planes. Operating these older aircraft means a constant need for parts and equipment to keep them flying, but neither ATR nor Airbus have been delivering the parts for fear of breaching the US sanctions.
In time, it is expected that President Biden will rescind the sanctions. However, in the meantime, the only way Iranian airlines can secure parts for their grounded aircraft is by using intermediaries to sneak them into the country. The airline ends up paying a significant markup on the part, which comes with no documentation or historical records, risking the safety of operations.
The A340-500 is virtually extinct in scheduled airline use. In 2021, Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) used one aircraft between Baku and Moscow and the Turkish resort of Bodrum before the type was grounded in early September. It marked the end of the A340-500 commercially, but it was only temporary. One aircraft has returned to service, but for how long?
There is only one active A340-500 in airline service, but for how long? Photo: Dmitry Terekhov via Flickr.
AZAL is again using the A340-500
While there are still government and VIP A340-500s, there is currently only one scheduled airline route anywhere globally. Since December 28th, AZAL has been using 4K-AZ85 – the last A340-500 in commercial use – between Baku, the Azerbaijan capital, and Dubai. It has operated flights J211 and J212, leaving Baku at 10:00 and returning at 17:10.
AZAL has scheduled the quadjet to operate a few flights to Dubai. It has supplemented multiple other types. Since December 28th, AZAL has used the A340-500, A320, B757-200, and B767-300ER to the UAE’s largest city, with the A319 due to operate soon.
According to OAG, the four-engine aircraft will operate no scheduled flights after January 5th. Of course, this may be temporary. It’ll likely to be recalled to service as and when needed. Although there is no firm indication that it’ll be used later this year, it’s reasonable to assume that it will be.
The A340-500 last operated from Dubai back to Baku on December 30th. It is next down to fly to the UAE on January 5th. Image: RadarBox.com.
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A look at the carrier’s A340-500s
AZAL has a relatively small but diverse fleet. It has two A340-500s (4K-AZ85 and 4K-AZ86) with an average age of 13.8 years, according to ch-aviation.com. Both aircraft are company-owned and delivered in 2013. While 4K-AZ86 is believed to have last flown in November 2020, sistership 4K-AZ85 has been used in a limited way. It is unlikely that 4K-AZ86 will fly again in commercial service.
The A340-500: a quick summary
The A340-500 entered service in 2003 and had the longest flight envelope of any widebody commercial aircraft. Its four engines were vital. They meant it was exempt from restrictive extended-range twin-engine operational performance standards (ETOPS) legislation.
This meant that brand-new ultra-long-haul routes could be operated non-stop, then a revolutionary concept. In 2004, Singapore Airlines launched Singapore to Los Angeles and Newark, with the latter the world’s longest route at 9,534 miles (15,344km).
Despite pushing the range boundary, the A340-500 has always been unpopular. It was designed for a very limited role, which meant that very few airlines used it. Then came the B777-200LR, a more cost-efficient twin, which effectively ended the A340-500 program.
On 23 December, Tunisair welcomed its first A320neo. The aircraft, TS-IMX (10575) is the first of five A320neos the airline is leasing from SMBC Aviation Capital. The next ones are expected to arrive in Tunisia in April 2022, July 2022, September 2022 and April 2023.
Last October, we already reported that Tunisair was reorganising its fleet and standardise it around five A320neos, ten A320s and two A330-200s.
Aviation Capital Group Buys 20 Airbus A220s & 40 Airbus A320s
Airbus has notched one more order in the last hours of 2021. Lessor Aviation Capital Group has signed a deal for 40 A320neo family aircraft and 20 A220s, growing its fleet in the coming years. The order includes five A321XLRs, the plane set to reshape the long-haul market. Here’s a look at what could be the last order of the year.
ACG operates a diverse portfolio of Airbus aircraft, including the A320 and A330 families. Photo: Airbus
Last minute
Airbus announced a new order on 30th December, just before the books for the year close. This one came from Aviation Capital Group (ACG), a lessor owned by the Tokyo Century Corporation. The latest order will see ACG increase its Airbus commitments from 39 to nearly 100.
The order consists of two aircraft families. ACG has placed a firm order for 40 A320neo jets, of which five will be A321XLRs. The remaining 35 will be a mix of the standard A320 and A321neo jets, which the group already owns. ACG has also signed an MoU for 20 A220s, expanding its fleet size for the versatile regional jet.
Prior to the deal, ACG listed 39 firm commitments with Airbus and 17 with Boeing. The latest order means the European giant’s backlog is set to grow to 99, leaving the US-based firm far behind.
Riding the wave
For Airbus, the final hour deal wraps up an already strong year. The European aerospace firm has signed a series of deals since November. In a statement, CCO Christian Scherer said,
“The order is another gratifying endorsement of our single aisle products by one of the world’s premier aircraft asset managers, ACG and the Tokyo Century Group. It also forcefully confirms the A220 as a growingly desirable aircraft and investment in the commercial aviation landscape. We congratulate and thank ACG for its decision to select both the A220 and A320neo Families.”
ACG owns over 400 aircraft, 96% of which are narrowbodies, and have an average age of only 5.6 years. Photo: Airbus
The ACG deal comes two days after another major lessor deal. Air Lease Corporation added 116 planes to its order book, including 25 A220s, 79 A321neos (incl. 20 XLRs), and 12 widebodies. It’s been a good week for Airbus, to say the least.
Growing orders
After two years of uncertainty, aircraft manufacturers have bounced back in 2021. Airbus has certainly led the charge, with well over 500 deliveries in the first 11 months of the year and a series of important orders.
This includes the newly-launched A350F, which has attracted orders from carriers like Air France, Singapore Airlines, and lessors such as ALC and CMA CGM. The new aircraft type will help Airbus break into the freighter market and challenge Boeing’s long-standing supremacy thanks to the 747 and 777F programs.
The A350F is Airbus’ response to the 777F and future cargo competitors from the dominant Boeing. Photo: Airbus
While the sun is setting on 2021 (depending on where you are in the world), 2022 is looking like a strong year for aviation, with more orders and deliveries hopefully on the way!
