Envoy Air (MQ, Dallas/Fort Worth) is set to scale back its Miami International-based E145 fleet operations as parent American Airlines (AA, Dallas/Fort Worth) pushes ahead with plans to further outsource the subsidiary's operations to partner carriers.
In a letter to employees seen by the Dallas News, Envoy President and CEO Pedro Fábregas said Envoy will reduce its Miami-based operations to 37 daily departures from the current 60 beginning December 18. Envoy's fleet of ERJ-145s based out of Miami will be reduced from 23 aircraft to 12 as American moves to contract out more routes to regional partner Republic Airlines (Indianapolis International) and its fleet of E175s.
The resulting 11 surplus ERJ-145 aircraft and crews will then be reassigned to other locations so as to take up capacity slack left by the retirement of Envoy's E140 fleet.
In addition to the closure of the carrier's pilot and flight attendant base during the first trimester of 2015, Envoy will also cease using a maintenance hangar there as American plans to move some maintenance for its wide-body fleet to Miami.
The scale-back is the latest knock to Envoy's operations after its pilots voted in March to reject a new labour contract that would have seen the the carrier being refleeted with newer, larger Embraer EMB-175 jets in return for a wage freeze and increased healthcare costs.
