Maldivian (Q2, Malé) returned its only A321-200 when its lease expired at the end of October and remains with just a single jet aircraft, an A320-200, in its fleet.
8Q-IAI (msn 2599) operated its last revenue flight for the Maldivian on October 31, flying as Q2707 from Kochi International to Malé. ADS-B data shows that the 17-year-old, 200-seater jet was subsequently ferried on return to Hyderabad International on November 2. The ch-aviation fleets ownership module shows that the aircraft, which had been in Maldivian's fleet since 2015, is owned by Thunderbolt Aircraft Lease.
The A321-200 will be replaced by a new A321-200NX(LR), which the airline is currently sourcing from the dry-lease market.
Besides the A320, Maldivian also operates a sizeable fleet of regional turboprops for domestic connectivity - eleven DHC-6-300s, one DHC-8-200, one DHC-8-Q200, and seven DHC-8-Q300s - with it looking to dispose of the Q200s/300s.
