Darwin Airline (Lugano) will operate Saab 2000s on behalf of Air Berlin (1991) (Berlin Tegel), Austrian Aviation Net reports citing internal sources. So far, Air Berlin has neither confirmed nor denied the possible wet-lease.

According to the report, Air Berlin will deploy the aircraft on flights from Berlin Tegel to Billund, Gdansk and Prague Václav Havel. The Gdansk route is already part of the Air Berlin network and is currently operated with Dash 8-400s from LGW - Luftfahrtgesellschaft Walter (Dortmund). Links from Berlin to Billund and Prague are not presently served by any airline with CSA Czech Airlines (OK, Prague Václav Havel) the last to ply the Prague route back in June 2014.

Darwin Airline recently grew very fast and developed a remarkable regional network as Etihad Regional but, due to limited success, has been forced to drastically curtail its network leaving it with excess capacity.

The carrier's fleet currently consists of four ATR 72-500s with an average age of 13.9 years and eight Saab 2000s with an average age of 18.8 years. Two ATRs have recently started to operate on behalf of Alitalia (AZA, Rome Fiumicino).