Aeroflot-Nord is to complement its fleet of Boeing 737 classic models with at least 10 leased 737 new generation aircraft and up to 10 Embraer 145 regional jets.
The management will submit a report to substantiate the aircraft type acquisition for approval by the company board of directors on 24 May.
“We’ve chosen the -700 model as most viable from the standpoint of our fleet handling arrangement with the parent company,” says director general Vladimir Korotyaev, adding that exploratory talks with lessors have been conducted during the New York Airfinance conference.
Aeroflot has authorised its two regional subsidiaries, Aeroflot-Nord and Aeroflot-Don, to lease collectively 15 Boeing 737s that it would subsequently take from them on wet sub-lease to cut direct operating costs.
“Our share of that quota is 10 with the remainder to be provided by Aeroflot-Don,” explains Korotyaev. “In addition, we plan to acquire another eight 737s over the next two years for our own operations.”
Including the two deliveries pending in the pipeline, Aeroflot-Nord has 10 Boeing 737-500s. It has not decided yet how many more of them it will take to operate under its own flag. “But we’re increasingly convinced of the need to move on to using 737 new generation models, especially given the lack of available classic versions,” says its director.
Separately, Aeroflot-Nord has received approval in principle from the governing board to operate 50-seat Embraer 145 jets to replace Tupolev Tu-134s and Antonov An-24s on regional routes within North Russia. The other feasible application is to use them for providing cross-border links from major local cities, such as St Petersburg, Murmansk, Arkhangelsk and Petrozavodsk to hubs in neighbouring European countries.
“For instance, flights to Helsinki and Stockholm appear as a viable offering for travelers wanting to avoid the hassle of transfer at Moscow airports while travelling to Europe,” suggests Korotyaev.
Tentatively, the first tranche of EMB-145s will include three models, with five to seven more aircraft to be acquired over the next year.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
Source: FlightGlobal.com
