Hi Fly Malta takes maiden A330-300

Malta's Airhub Airlines adds A330neo on Air Sénégal CMI

Airhub Airlines (AH, Malta Int'l) added its first A330-900 in mid-June 2022, taking over a CMI lease contract with Air Sénégal (HC, Dakar Blaise Diagne Int'l) from fellow Maltese ACMI/charter specialist Hi Fly Malta (HFM, Malta Int'l).

9H-SZN (msn 1910) was transferred from Hi Fly Malta, which had operated it on behalf of Air Sénégal since new in 2019, to Airhub Airlines in early June 2022. The aircraft flew for the first time with the new operator on June 17 from Dakar Blaise Diagne Int'l to Marseilles and has since been deployed mainly on transatlantic services to New York JFK and Baltimore Thurgood Marshall, Flightradar24 ADS-B data shows.

While initially, the aircraft was operated by Hi Fly Malta due to Air Sénégal's lack of EU Third Country Operator authorisation and a US Foreign Air Carrier Permit, the airline has since obtained both documents. It is not clear why it continues to contract out the A330neo's operations. It did not respond to ch-aviation's request for comment....

Editorial Comment: The article updates with ownership details. - 08.08.2022 - 13:16 UTC

UK's Jet2 bumps A321neo order to 60

Jet2 (United Kingdom) (LS, Leeds/Bradford) disclosed in its annual report for the financial year March 31, 2022, that it has increased its A321-200N order book by three aircraft to 60.

The British leisure-focused low-cost carrier ordered thirty-six A321-200Ns with options for a further 24 in August 2021. It has been gradually increasing the commitment since then, both through new orders and the conversion of options. It currently has 15 options remaining, which would potentially increase the A321neo fleet to 75.

The first A321neo is due to deliver to Jet2 in early 2023 with the remaining 59 due by the end of 2029.

The ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows that the carrier's current-generation fleet comprises three A321-200s, seven B737-300s, seventy-seven B737-800s, and eight B757-200s. During this current busy summer season, the airline is also wet-leasing a substantial number of additional aircraft - currently one A321 from Hi Fly Malta, two A321s each from SmartLynx Airlines and SmartLynx Airlines Malta, two A321s and two B757-200s from...

TAP Air Portugal wet-leases A340, hires extra crew

Latvia’s airBaltic still eyeing A321neo(XLR)s

airBaltic (BT, Riga) chief executive Martin Gauss has reiterated that longer-range Airbus jets, specifically the ACV!A321NXL, continue to be of interest to the airline at some point in the future as it considers more distant destinations rather than acquire widebody aircraft.

According to the ch-aviation fleets advanced module, airBaltic currently operates a single-type fleet of thirty-six A220-300s, with 14 more on order (and options for 30 more), and is wet-leasing in extra capacity - currently two A319-100s (from Carpatair and Hi Fly Malta) and a B737-400 (from Air Horizont) - to cope with resurgent summer demand while it wet-leases out some of its A220s during the summer 2022 season.

Telling Airways Magazine in an interview that the A220 has been “the right choice for airBaltic’s fleet renewal” because of its fuel efficiency and it being “an overall excellent flying experience” for customers, at the tail-end of the 2021-22 winter season it received its first A220-300 certified to operate up to 149 seats, as opposed to 145...