UK’s Jet2 to wet-lease B737s from Czechia’s Smartwings

Slovakia's AirExplore sold to Avia Solutions Group

Avia Solutions Group (ASG) has acquired Slovakian ACMI/charter carrier Air Explore (ED, Bratislava) for an undisclosed sum, the Dublin-headquartered aviation group has announced.

“Slovakia offers a dynamic business environment and having an AOC here presents a significant advantage, providing vast opportunities for extended geographic reach and new routes,” Jonas Janukenas, CEO, Avia Solutions Group, said in a statement.

“Becoming a part of the leading aviation services group and the world’s largest ACMI provider will not only provide our airline with valuable know-how and access to best industry practices but will also present new business opportunities, strengthening our positions in the market. We anticipate an exciting period for our airline’s growth and development,” Martin Stulajter, CEO, AirExplore, added.

Stulajter has since confirmed to ch-aviation that ASG has indeed bought 100% of AirExplore's shareholding, which had been owned by himself, several other executives, and an entity named Titan 77 sro.

"I can confirm that management remains the same dedicated to the level of service as our clients are used to from AirExplore," he clarified.

easyJet to open seasonal Alicante base from 2Q24

easyJet (London Luton) has announced that it will launch a seasonal, summer-only base at Alicante airport in spring 2024.

The low-cost carrier said easyJet Europe (EC, Vienna) would deploy three A320-200s to the southern Spanish airport. It will allow it to increase the capacity offered during the Summer 2024 season by around 16% compared to the current capacity, provided by aircraft based elsewhere.

easyJet has been serving Alicante since 1999 without having a base at the airport. The ch-aviation capacities module shows it currently has an 11.7% market share by scheduled weekly departure capacity out of the airport (operated mainly by easyJet UK), trailing behind Ryanair but ahead of base carriers Vueling Airlines and Jet2 (United Kingdom).

The airline did not disclose its network plans related to the base launch.

Alicante will be easyJet Europe's fourth base in Spain, following Barcelona El Prat, Malaga, and Palma de Mallorca. Only the Barcelona base is year-round.

UK's Jet2 bolsters wet-leased A330 capacity

easyJet to open Birmingham base in 2Q24, grows fleet

easyJet (London Luton) has announced it is expanding its UK network by opening a new three-A320-200 base at Birmingham, GB in March 2024, marking its first UK base opening since the Covid-19 pandemic.

The move follows easyJet's return to growth in the UK this summer, where it will operate its largest UK flying programme to date with around 8% more capacity than pre-pandemic, flying one million more seats and operating 57 new routes, including 23 from the UK, the airline said in a statement.

The budget carrier said the new base - its ninth in the UK - would strengthen its position in the UK market and enable it to launch more new routes to some of Europe's most popular leisure destinations next year. More details were not disclosed. easyJet already serves key domestic and international routes from Birmingham, including Amsterdam Schiphol (Netherlands), Geneva (Switzerland), Milan Malpensa and Naples Capodichino (Italy), Lisbon and Faro (Portugal), and Palma de Mallorca (Spain). easyJet's eight other bases...