LOT to acquire additional Boeing 737 MAX aircraft originally to be owned by Blue Air
The Romanian airline has postponed its operation indefinitely because it has not resolved its financial problems yet.
LOT Polish Airlines will add six new Boeing 737 MAX 8s to its fleet. Five of these will be the aircraft of Romanian carrier Blue Air, whose operations are currently suspended. The Romanian airline is facing major financial problems and its survival is in question. The five aircraft leased by Blue Air are currently at Prague Airport. The sixth aircraft will be delivered directly from the manufacturer’s factory in Seattle. All aircraft will join the LOT fleet later in October.
The MAXs will be provided to LOT under an operating lease from Air Lease Corporation, from which the airline will also lease a Dreamliner widebody. Following this acquisition, the Polish national airline will have eleven Boeing 737 MAX 8s in service. The acquired aircraft, along with some temporarily acquired Embraer E175s and E190s, are to remain with the airline until it decides on a new type of aircraft for short- and medium-haul routes. The expert community considers the Airbus A220 the most likely choice.
Blue Air’s Boeing 737 MAX 8s are from an order for ten aircraft of this type. The airline took delivery of them between April and December 2021. It is not yet clear what will happen to the remaining aircraft. Blue Air has been fighting for a month with the Romanian National Authority for Consumer Protection, which accused the airline of intentionally deceiving customers. The airline’s accounts have been frozen and it can no longer pay its operating costs. It was originally scheduled to return to the skies on October 10, but the closure has been extended indefinitely. The announced massive expansion of low-cost carriers, especially in Romania, has not improved Blue Air’s chances.
Edited and translated by Lucie Trávníčková