CS-TQP (msn 211) was re-registered as 9H-TQP on January 7 and operated a test flight around Beja under its new registration on January 8, 2022, Flightradar24 ADS-B data shows. It has yet, however, to begin operating revenue flights under the Maltese AOC.
The A330's transfer follows the recent re-registration of Hi Fly's last A340-300 in Malta and further reduces the Portuguese carrier's already diminished fleet. While before the COVID-19 pandemic, Hi Fly tended to have a roughly balanced number of aircraft registered on both of its AOCs, currently, the distribution is heavily skewed towards the Maltese unit, which now operates one A319-100, one A321-200, the A330-200, three A330-300s, one A330-900, and six A340-300s. In turn, its Portuguese sister carrier operates just one A321 and one A330-900, the ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows.
Peach Aviation (MM, Osaka Kansai) took delivery of its first A321-200NX(LR) on December 9, 2021, which was then ferried to Japan on December 19, and inducted into it revenue service out of Osaka Kansai on December 28, 2021.
JA902P (msn 10628) is the first of four A321-200NX(LR)s due for delivery to the budget airline. Two of the four units will be owned by Air Lease Corporation and two by the airline. All will be outfitted with 218 seats in a single-class configuration.
The ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows that Peach Aviation, a subsidiary of ANA Holdings, currently operates twenty-eight A320-200s and six A320-200Ns. Besides the other A321-200NX(LR)s on order, the LCC has another unit of the same type and five more A320-200Ns on order from Airbus.
GLOBALX (GXA, Miami Int'l) has announced in an investor update that it has signed a Letter of Intent for a single A319-100 due for delivery by mid-February 2022. The A319 will be 9H-TLS (msn 2662), an ex-Hi Fly Malta aircraft, the carrier confirmed in a follow-up briefing.
Currently, GLOBALX operates five A320-200s and a single A321-200, the ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows. It plans to wet-lease a single A320-200 from minority shareholder SmartLynx Airlines (6Y, Riga) starting next month, and will add a further two in-house units of the type by the end of May. The first of these will be an ex-Alaska Airlines jet due for delivery in March 2022. GLOBALX said it would be N628VA (msn 2993), a sistership of N626VA (msn 2830) and N627VA (msn 2851), both of which are also ex-Alaska Airlines (AS, Seattle Tacoma Int'l) inventory.
The airline underlined that it is planning to add more aircraft to benefit from low lease rates. It said earlier that it planned to add at least five passenger aircraft throughout 2022, including at least one A321-200.
"Our growth continues, and we are being offered additional aircraft at very advantageous lease rates and terms. Our business case remains strong, and we will start our cargo certification with the FAA this quarter with converted A321 freighters being delivered in the third quarter of 2022," Chairman and Chief Executive Ed Wegel said.
The airline plans to take its first three A321-200(P2F)s in 2022. It said it signed an LOI for another two for delivery in 2023, increasing the total confirmed number of converted A321-200s it will take by the end of next year to 11.
South Korean carrier T'Way Air has released pictures of its first widebody aircraft in the hangar at Xiamen. In December 2020, the airline announced it planned to lease three A330-300s. The aircraft will be leased from AerCap and the first is A330-300 VQ-BCQ (1058), which is the former HS-XTK of Thai AirAsia X and will now become HL8501.
According to CH-Aviation, T'Way Air is planning to launch flights with its new widebody on 11 March, operating the type between Seoul-Gimpo and Jeju. Later, when borders are reopening, it will deploy the widebodies on new longhaul routes to Bishkek, Honolulu, Singapore, Sydney and Zagreb.
As a result of the planned Asiana/Korean Air merger, T'Way Air expects it will be granted more international traffic rights and therefore plans to add additional A330s which it then wants to use on new routes to London, Los Angeles (CA), New York (NY), Paris and Spain.
UK-India Startup Hans Airways Signs LOI For Its First A330-200
UK-based startup Hans Airways has taken a step closer to realizing its ambitions with a letter of intent (LOI) for its first aircraft. The airline has today announced the agreement for an A330-200, and has applied to the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) for its Air Operators Certificate. It hopes to launch services as soon as this summer.
Hans Airways has signed up for its first aircraft. Photo: Hans Airways
First A330 for Hans
Hans Airways, a brand new UK airline, has today revealed that it has signed a letter of intent (LOI) for its first aircraft. The airline is looking forward to receiving an A330-200 later this year, with high hopes to begin operations before the summer is out.
The A330 in question carries MSN 950, and is a 13.5-year-old A330-200 that has been in service with Air Europa since its construction. It was delivered new to Air Europa as EC-KTG in September 2008, and is on lease from Carlyle Aviation Partners. According to data from RadarBox.com, the aircraft left Spain at the end of December, and is currently in maintenance at Abu Dhabi.
Hans Airways shares that the A330 will be re-registered G-KJAS – a nod to one of the airline’s principal early investors, Kirpal Singh Jass. It will retain its current Air Europa cabin layout, which features 275 economy and 24 premium economy seats. In a statement, the airline’s CEO Satnam Saini commented,
“We are delighted to have achieved this very important milestone in our two-year journey. Our scheduled operations centre on the Airbus A330, a popular and spacious long-haul widebody, excellent for cargo too, and we are grateful to everyone who has helped us to ratify this agreement at the start of the new year.”
EC-KTG in its current livery for Air Europa. Photo: Victor via Flickr
The airline applied for its AOC in March 2020 and is hopeful of approval in the coming weeks. Dependent on the timescales for this, and the situation with global travel restrictions, it hopes to launch services before the end of the summer.
Moving ahead
Hans Airways began recruiting crew back in August last year. The airline says that the first set of flight crew, comprised of four pilots and cabin crew, began training on January 3rd with its training partner IAGO Flight Training.
Looking to connect the UK to secondary cities in India, the airline is working to set up a base in Birmingham (BHX). Although it hasn’t named any Indian cities specifically yet, its website showcases Amritsar, which could be a lucrative destination for a direct Birmingham flight.
The A330s will be in two classes – premium economy and economy. Photo: Hans Airways
While this market is going to be relatively price sensitive, Hans Airways isn’t going all out to be a low-cost airline for these routes. It states that it intends to operate a hybrid model, combining great value for money with some of the more in-demand frills such as inflight entertainment and catering.
The airline has put together a board of directors with some pretty impressive CVs. Non-executive director Dr Barry Humphreys is a former regulator with the UK CAA and a former director of Virgin Atlantic. Fellow non-executive director Dr Peter Malanik is the former CEO of Austrian Airlines. And the Chairman, Ruchir Verma, has worked with Microsoft, Zurich Insurance and various other corporate projects. Similarly, the leadership team has officers formerly employed by the likes of easyJet, BA CityFlyer, TUI, Virgin, and more.
While the jury is still out on whether the UK to India market needs another player, Hans Airways clearly believes in its strategy. It has already planned a frequent flyer program and is keenly eyeing the start of operations later in the year.
Airbus releases December orders and year-end tally
Airbus has released its monthly figures regarding orders and deliveries for December 2021, which also rounds up the year for the European manufacturer. In December, Airbus was able to note down 161 orders, 22 cancellations and delivered 93 aircraft.
Ordered were:
25 A220-300s by Air Lease Corporation
79 A321neos by Air Lease Corporation
5 A330-900s by Air Lease Corporation
7 A350Fs by Air Lease Corporation
15 A320neos by Aviation Capital Group
25 A321neos by Aviation Capital Group
1 A220-300 by Carlyle Aviation Partners
4 A350Fs by CMA CGM
In 2021, Airbus was able to note down a total of 771 orders, which breaks down as:
14 A220-100s
50 A220-300s
2 A319neos
78 A320neos
581 A321neos
3 A330-200s
5 A330-300s
22 A330-900s
11 A350Fs
5 A350-900s
Cancelled were:
2 A350-900s by Air Lease Corporation
2 A350-1000s by Air Lease Corporation
8 A220-300s by Air Senegal
3 A350-900s by Turkish Airlines
7 A320s by Ural Airlines
During 2021, a total of 264 aircraft were cancelled, which breaks down as:
10 A220-100s
16 A220-300s
7 A320s
162 A320neos
55 A321neos
10 A350-900s
4 A350-1000s
And delivered were:
2 A350-900s to Aeroflot
1 A321neo to Air Astana (leased via Air Lease Corporation)
1 A320neo to Air Cairo (leased via ICBC)
1 A220-300 to Air Canada
1 A350-1000 to Air Caraibes (leased via Air Lease Corporation)
1 A320neo to Air China (leased via BOCOMM Leasing)
2 A321neo to Air China (1 leased via NAS Aviation Services)
1 A350-900 to Air China
2 A220-300s to Air France
2 A350-900s to Air France
1 A321neo to All Nippon Airways
2 A321neos to American Airlines
1 A321neo to Asiana Airlines
2 A321neos to Azul (leased via BOC Aviation)
1 A220-300 to Breeze Airways
1 A321neo to China Airlines (leased via Air Lease Corporation)
3 A320neos to China Eastern Airlines (1 leased via CALC, 1 via CMB Financial Leasing)
2 A350-900s to China Southern Airlines
1 A330-900 to Cebu Pacific
1 A320neo to Colorful Guizhou Airlines (leased via NAS Aviation Services)
1 A220-300 to Delta Air Lines
1 A320neo to easyJet
2 A380s to Emirates
2 A350-900s to Ethiopian Airlines
1 A350-900 to Finnair
2 A320neos to flyadeal
1 A350-1000 to French Bee (leased via Air Lease Corporation)
3 A320neos to Indigo
3 A321neos to Indigo
1 A220-300 to Iraqi Airways
1 A350-900 to Japan Airlines
2 A320neos to Juneyao Airlines (1 leased via SMBC Aviation Capital)
1 ACJ330-300 to K5-Aviation
1 A321neo to Loong Air (leased via AerCap)
2 A321neos to Lufthansa Technik (for Luftwaffe)
1 A321neo to Peach (leased via Air Lease Corporation)
2 A320neos to Pegasus Airlines
1 ACJ320neo to a Private customer
1 A320neo to Qingdao Airlines
1 A321neo to Qingdao Airlines
2 A320neos to S7 Airlines (1 leased via AerCap)
2 A321neos to Scoot (leased via SMBC Aviation Capital)
1 A220-300 to Senegal Airlines (leased via Carlyle Aviation)
2 A320neos to Shenzhen Airlines
3 A321neos to Sichuan Airlines (2 leased via Air Lease Corporation)
1 A350-900 to Sichuan Airlines
1 A350-900 to Singapore Airlines
1 A321neo to SKY Airline (leased via Air Lease Corporation)
1 A320neo to Sky Express
3 A320neos to Spirit Airlines (1 leased via AerCap)
2 A320neos to Spring Airlines
1 A321neo to Starlux Airlines (leased via Aviation Capital Group)
2 A320neos to Swiss
1 A320neo to Tunisair
1 A321neo to Ural Airlines (leased via SMBC Aviation Capital)
1 A350-1000 to Virgin Atlantic (leased via Air Lease Corporation)
1 A321neo to Viva Aerobus
1 A320neo to Viva Air
1 A320neo to Volaris (leased via Aviation Capital Group)
5 A321neos to WizzAir
Throughout 2021, Airbus managed to deliver 611 aircraft, which break down as:
