Air Austral was forced to make last-minute changes to its flight schedule after a 7 September incident involving an Airbus A380 that the Indian Ocean carrier is wet-leasing from Hi Fly.
One of the A380's engines struck an airbridge at Paris Charles de Gaulle, causing the jet to be "immobilised immediately", says Air Austral.
The A380 was to have operated flight UU978, to Reuinion, but instead had to go for a repair requiring a part that could not be delivered until 10 September.
In the meantime, Air Austral's schedule was revised to reroute affected passengers, says the airline. Its Boeing 777-300ER and 787-8 were used to conduct flights between Paris and Reunion.
The airline also "urgently" chartered a Boeing 767-300 from Spanish wet-lease provider Privilege Style, which is today operating a Reunion-Paris service.
"A return to normal" is scheduled for 11 September, adds Air Austral.
Hi Fly's single A380 (MSN6) is an ex-Singapore Airlines example placed with the Portuguese carrier by Doric. The jet was displayed at the Farnborough air show following handover to the wet-leasing specialist's Maltese unit, and has since been used to operate flights for Thomas Cook and Norwegian.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
