UK’s Hans Airways signs LOI for maiden A330

UK's Hans Airways returns only aircraft

UK regulatory requirements hold up Hans Airways' debut

Financial requirements by the UK Civil Aviation Authority are delaying the start of commercial operations at Hans Airways (GKS, Birmingham, GB), which is now considering letting go of its first aircraft and approaching new investors, says Chief Executive Officer Nathan Burkitt.

This follows confirmation from the UK CAA that it has opened a case for the deregistration of Hans Airways' first aircraft, an A330-200, G-KJAS (msn 950), leased from Carlyle Aviation Partners, which is currently stored at Birmingham, GB, according to the ch-aviation fleets advanced module. A UK CAA spokesman confirmed, "We have a case open, but it does not mean it is de-registered yet." Asked what this meant for the airline, he referred ch-aviation back to Hans Airways.

Burkitt said the Birmingham-based startup remained solvent and had fulfilled all the technical requirements for starting long-haul operations to India. He was responding to a recent news report which suggested the impending deregistration of its aircraft indicated that Hans Airways' low-cost long-haul ambitions had been cut short.

"Fulfilling the rightly stringent financial...

UK’s Hans Airways restructures, secures new investment

Hans Airways (GKS, Birmingham, GB) has completed a new round of financing, which, it said in a statement issued on the evening of November 15, “will enable it to progress plans to commence scheduled air services between Birmingham, GB and Amritsar in India - and satisfy existing financial obligations.”

The British start-up “has satisfied the Civil Aviation Authority’s requirements for an Air Operator’s Certificate. The secured new investment will take the airline to the next stage toward satisfying the CAA of its financial viability and subsequent operating licence to provide revenue air services.”

Asked for more details about the new investors, the sums involved, and a possible date for the start of flight operations, Martin Dunn, Hans Airways’ chief commercial officer, told ch-aviation: “All that I can say for now is that we will hopefully be able to start services early next year and we’re still working closely with the CAA.”

Hans Airways’ statement divulged that Ali Legal Ltd, a London-based corporate law firm, was acting for the investors and that its...

UK’s Hans Airways takes delivery of first aircraft, an A330

Hans Airways (GKS, Birmingham, GB) has taken delivery of its first aircraft, an A330-200, ahead of formal technical handover and technical acceptance signing with the lessor, it revealed in a statement.

ch-aviation analysis of AirNav Radarbox data shows EC-KTG (msn 950) was ferried from Palma de Mallorca to Birmingham, GB on August 2. Owned and managed by Carlyle Aviation Partners, the 14-year-old twinjet was previously operated by a single carrier, Air Europa (UX, Palma de Mallorca), from September 2008, according to the ch-aviation fleets advanced module. It will be re-registered in the UK as G-KJAS.

Hans Airways signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) for its first aircraft in January and then firmed this with a committed contract in March. It had originally aimed at a commercial launch in early 2022.

Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) proving flights for the United Kingdom’s Civil Aviation Authority will take place in the coming weeks, it said. Once it has its AOC, and similar accreditation from India’s Directorate General of...