American's latest 737-800 delivery = 300 in service

American Airlines took delivery of it's latest Boeing 737-800 October 30th, bringing it's -800 fleet to 300 in service. The first was delivered 2/7/99, with the fleet initially topping out at 77 units in December 2001. Ironically, that particular aircraft, N977AN (delivered 12/20/01) was written off in a landing accident at Kingston, Jamaica 12/22/09. It was in March 2009, after an extended (post 9/11 downturn) break, that additional 737-800s started being delivered to American.

Boeing 737-823 MSN 29503 L/N 184 F/F 1/13/99
American Airlines N901AN 2/7/99 - present [original colors]

N901AN in current colors - at Orange County, CA August 2017

[We'll add a picture of the latest delivery - N335PU - when available]

AA 737-800 in service fleet (annually at November 1st from 2000)
2000: 47    2001: 73
2002 to 2008: 77
2009: 100  2010: 144
2011: 163  2012: 189
2013: 221  2014: 241
2015: 260  2016: 280
2017: 300

Nine airlines have 100 or more 737-800s in service, as follows:

Ryanair 405
American Airlines 300
Southwest Airlines 167
China Southern Airlines 151
Hainan Airlines 142
United Airlines 139
Xiamen Airlines 130
Air China 122
Shandong Airlines 107

VIM Airlines ceases operations

VIM Airlines (Russia) had it's AOC suspended, having recently ceased flight operations since October 16th. The airline has been technically bankrupt for some time, and has been parking or returning aircraft off lease in recent weeks, as well as having other aircraft seized by lessors. Nevertheless, a potential bailout has been proposed by Russian businessman Boris Karlov, and continues to be discussed. The airline was based at Moscow Domodedovo Airport providing international scheduled and charter services.

Ilyushin IL-62 VIM Airlines RA-86520

The airline was founded and commenced service in 2000 with a single IL-62

Boeing 757-230 MSN 25440 L/N 443 F/F 3/27/92
Condor D-ABNM 4/9/92 - 3/19/04
VIM Airlines RA-73012 8/1/04 - 11/29/16

The airline's profile changed significantly with the purchase of Condor's 757-200 fleet in 2004, with the aircraft (unusually) adopting Russian registrations. Western aircraft operated in Russia typically use Cayman Islands registration prefixes (VQ/VP) or Irish (EI) registrations.

Airbus A319-111 MSN 3364 F/F 1/9/08
Hamburg International D-AHIH 1/22/08 - 10/20/10
AirBlue AP-EDB 12/29/10 - 2/15/14
VIM Airlines VQ-BTL 4/6/14 - 10/24/17

The airline operated 757s only for the next ten years, until 2014, when it started adding a mix of different aircraft types. Four A319s were added in Spring 2014.

Boeing 767-31AER MSN 27619 L/N 595 F/F 9/26/95
Martinair Holland PH-MCV 11/6/95 - 11/19/02
African Safari Airways 5Y-QQQ 5/9/03 - 9/30/04
Holland Exel PH-MCV 10/13/04 - 5/1/05
Arkefly PH-MCV 5/1/05 - 10/30/07
Varig Airlines PR-VAE 1/22/08 - 7/31/08
Blue Panorama EI-EED 5/4/09 - 8/5/13
VIM Airlines VP-BFI 9/5/14 - 10/23/17

Also in 2014, the first wide body, a 767-300ER was inducted, one of two the airline would operate

Boeing 777-2H6ER MSN 28413 L/N 128 F/F 2/26/98
Malaysia Airlines 9M-MRF 3/18/98 - 8/31/15
VIM Airlines VP-BVA 4/27/16 - 10/28/17

The first of ten 777-200ERs arrived in 2016, the type becoming the airline's long haul flag ship.

Boeing 737-524 MSN 28915 L/N 2993 F/F 1/24/98
Continental Airlines N14654 2/11/98 - 9/21/08
Transaero EI-UNG 5/3/11 - 10/24/15
VIM Airlines VP-BVS 8/2/16 - 2/14/17 [Stored following accident damage]

Following the demise of fellow Russian airline Transaero, VIM added three of the former airline's 737-500s to it's short haul fleet in 2016.

Airbus A330-203 MSN 535 F/F 5/12/03
EVA Airways B-16302 7/4/03 - 5/5/15
VIM Airlines VP-BDV 12/23/16 - 9/22/17

Further fleet complexity was seen with the addition of two A330-200s in 2016 and 2017.

Boeing 777-31HER MSN 33501 L/N 516 F/F 5/3/05
Emirates A6-EBD 5/16/05 - 5/15/17
VIM Airlines VP-BIN 5/29/17 - 10/17

And finally...two ex-Emirates 777-300s were added to the fleet in May and July this year, the first being a -300ER and the second a standard -300 (both having different engines, GE and RR respectively!). Neither was liveried, and operated all-white during their brief VIM Airlines tenure.

Talking Points

Air Belgium expects to receive it's AOC before the end of 2017. The airline's first aircraft will be an ex-Finnair A340-400

AirAsia Japan made it's maiden flight from Nagoya to Sapporo October 29th

Brussels Airlines retired the Avro RJ with a final flight from Geneva to Brussels

LOT Polish Airlines to receive it's first (of six) 737 MAX 8s in December

American Airlines to close it's St. Louis, MO pilot base, inherited from it's December 2001 acquisition of TWA

Binter Canarias (Spain) leased a CRJ-1000 from Air Nostrum

American Airlines ordered ten E-175s for operation by subsidiary Envoy Air from 2018. AA has now ordered 74 E-175s

Talking Points

Meridiana (Italy) will end MD-80 scheduled services October 31st. Limited charter and 'single sector' operations will continue through the Spring

Korean Air considers adding additional 787 orders to replace it's older 777-200ERs

Air China is expected to receive it's first two 737 MAX 8s by October 31st

Southwest introduced live music concerts on selected flights, claiming passengers enjoy the experience (they don't). No website tool exists to determine whether your flight may be thus affected

Southwest plans flights to Hawaii in 2018, and possibly inter-island flights. Hawaiian's stock reacted negatively to this news

United launched Los Angeles to Singapore flights (787-9), the 8,700 mile segment becoming the longest non-stop flight to or from the US

EasyJet to acquire 25 Air Berlin A320s, and a sizable portion of the airline's Berlin Tegel operation for $46M

United retired three 747-400s October 26th-27th. Seven remain in service

China Airlines (Taiwan) retired one 747-400, with four now remaining in passenger service. The airline also operates 18 747-400F freighters

KLM CityHopper retired it's final Fokker F70s October 28th

Jetlines (Canada) plans to inaugurate ULCC service June 1st from Hamilton with 737-800s. Four are planned for 2018, with an additional four annually through 2023

Hawaiian takes delivery of first A321 NEO

Hawaiian Airlines has taken delivery of it's first Airbus A321 NEO, with another 17 on order. Inaugural service will be from Oakland to Kahului January 8th, followed by a variety of island non-stops to California (excluding it's Honolulu hub). The A321s will replace the remaining 767-300/300ERs in HAL's fleet.

Airbus A321-271N MSN 7917 F/F 10/16/17
Hawaiian Airlines N202HA Delivered 10/28/17

Hawaiian - Current Fleet
20 x 717-200
1 x 767-300
7 x 767-300ER
24 x A330-200
Total: 61

Cathay Pacific takes delivery of 20th A350

Cathay Pacific Airways (Hong Kong) has taken delivery of it's 20th Airbus A350-900 (the 121st A350 delivery overall to date). Cathay's first A350 was delivered in May 2016. The airline operates an all wide body fleet, while subsidiary Cathay Dragon operates a mixed Airbus narrow body and wide body fleet.

Airbus A350-941 MSN 148 F/F 9/6/17
Cathay Pacific Airways B-LRU Delivered 10/27/17

Cathay Pacific - Current Fleet
40 x A330-300
20 x A350-900
5 x 777-200
12 x 777-300
53 x 777-300ER
7 x 747-400F
14 x 747-8F
Total: 151

Air Berlin bows out

Air Berlin - no longer 'your airline' ceased branded operations October 27th with a final flight from Munich to Berlin October 27th, ending 38 years of operations (initially as Air Berlin USA in 1979).

Airbus A320-214 MSN 2627 F/F 11/28/05
Air Berlin D-ABNW 1/15/16 - 10/27/17 [LF GECAS]

The airline's recent woes and analysis of the airline's situation has been well documented by this blog and from links provided to other entities commentary and opinion. It is now known that (subject to regulatory approvals) the majority of the business, including 81 A320s, will be acquired by Lufthansa for integration into it's Eurowings low cost subsidiary, while EasyJet will acquire 25 A320s, plus a sizable portion of the airline's Berlin Tegel operation. Below illustrates examples of Air Berlin's modern jet fleet operated in the last 10-15 years.

Fokker 100 MSN 11278
Air Berlin D-AGBP 3/04 - 11/08
Currently with Alliance Airlines (Australia) as VH-XWN

Boeing 737-5L9 MSN 28996 L/N 2998
Air Berlin OY-APL 8/06 - 10/07 (the only 737-500 in Air Berlin's fleet)
Currently with Travira Air (Indonesia) PK-TVZ

Boeing 737-46J MSN 27826 L/N 2694
Air Berlin D-ABAH 2/95 - 1/07
Currently stored Kabul, damaged following a hard landing 12/10/16 Safi Airways JY-JAQ (probable write off)

Boeing 737-86J MSN 37741 L/N 2686
Air Berlin D-ABKC 7/08 - 6/13
Currently with S7 Airlines (Russia) VP-BUG

Airbus A319-112 MSN 3245
Air Berlin D-ABGH 9/07 - 3/17 (Interim colors)
Currently with Eurowings (Germany) D-ABGH

Airbus A320-214 MSN 4101
Air Berlin D-ABFA 11/09 - 10/17
Currently stored Ostrava

Airbus A321-211 MSN 3708
Air Berlin D-ABCA 11/08 - 12/16
Currently with Niki OE-LCA

Airbus A330-223 MSN 288
Air Berlin D-ABXA 8/11 - 10/17
Currently stored at Lourdes

Air Berlin...Danke und tschuss

Thomas Cook Airlines Belgium concludes operations

Thomas Cook Airlines Belgium ended operations October 27th, in a pre-coordinated closure that was announced earlier this year, when Lufthansa purchased the airline in March. The airline's services, operations and traffic rights will now be subsumed into Lufthansa's Brussels Airlines subsidiary, along with two aircraft. The remaining aircraft will be transferred to other Thomas Cook airline companies.

Airbus A320-214 MSN 1381 F/F 12/6/10
Condor Berlin D-AICI 1/25/01 - 5/3/13
Condor D-AICI 5/3/13 - 6/25/15
Thomas Cook Airlines Belgium OO-TCX 6/25/15 - 10/27/17
[Operated the last flight for the airline HAJ-BRU 10/27/17]

The airline was established in December 2001, with operations commencing in March 2002. Initially tickets could only be purchased as part of a package tour, although seat only purchases were later made possible from January 2004. Apart from the 2003-2004 sub-lease of a Dutchbird 757, the airline's fleet has always consisted of Airbus A320s. 24 have been operated (including a single A319 between 2012-2015) although typically about six on average at any one time at the peak of the summer season.

Thomas Cook Airlines Brussels - Fleet Total (at July 1st 2002-2017)
2002: 4   2010: 7
2003: 7   2011: 7
2004: 6   2012: 6
2005: 5   2013: 5
2006: 6   2014: 7
2007: 6   2015: 6
2008: 6   2016: 5
2009: 6   2017: 5

Weekend Reading

Air Berlin poised to say farewell
FlightGlobal

Primera Air names third transatlantic route
The Business Travel Mag

Opinion: How Airbus' C Series deal will change aerospace
Aviation Week

Boeing responds to revived interest in passenger carrying 767s
FlightGlobal

Crandall...to airlines and passengers - get real
Dallas News

A330 NEO assembly - time lapse
Business Insider

Photo Gallery: on board Air Mauritius first A350 delivery flight
ATWOnline / Air Transport World

Airlines praise C Series performance
Aviation Week

Airline industry a permanent hostage to national interests
Toronto Star

Airbus plans to make Bombardier's new aircraft a 'made in america' plane
Skift.com

An icon, a game changer...this is how to say goodbye to a plane
United Airlines...farewell to the 'Queen of the Skies', the 747

Ethiopian Airlines takes delivery of first 787-9

Ethiopian Airlines has taken delivery of it's first Boeing 787-9, leased from AerCap, adding to an existing 787-8 fleet of 19. Three additional 787-9s are on order. Ethiopia was the first country, after Japan, to receive 787s in may 2013, and now becomes the first African country to take delivery of the 787-9.

Boeing 787-9 MSN 38778 L/N 621 F/F 10/13/17
Ethiopian Airlines ET-AUO Delivered 10/26/17

Ethiopian Airlines - Current Fleet
19 x Dash 8
6 x ATR-42/72
4 x 737-700
15 x 737-800
2 x 757-200F
6 x 767-300ER
19 x 787-8
6 x A350-900
1 x 787-9
5 x 777-200LR
6 x 777F
4 x 777-300ER
Total: 93

Talking Points

Korean Air delays first CSeries deliveries to late 2017 to ensure engine issues are addressed. First delivery had been expected this week

Air Canada may buy more narrow bodies to assist it's growth plans. Carrier has options and purchase rights for both the 737 MAX and CSeries

Allegiant Air (US) brought forward by one year MD-80 retirement to end of 2018

Boliviana acquired a fourth leased 767-300ER. The airline's current fleet now comprises 20 737s (-300/-700/-800), 2 CRJ-200s and four 767-300ERs

Garuda Indonesia is in talks with manufacturers to defer the majority of it's scheduled deliveries by 2-3 years (including the 737 MAX) in order to stabilize it's financial position

Boeing has begun production of the first 777X

Talking Points

Lufthansa is to phase out the Niki (Austria) brand in favor of it's expanding low cost Eurowings division

AirAsia took delivery of the first A320 NEO assembled at Tianjin, China

Airbus to extend the range and fuel efficiency of the A350 with extended sharklets

China Airlines (Taiwan) to choose between the 737 MAX and A320 NEO by year end, for an order of up to 25 aircraft

Flyadeal (Saudi Arabia) issued an RFP for 50 narrow bodies. The start up currently operates three new A320s, with five expected in service by year end

Talking Points

United has no plans to re-evaluate the CSeries, following the Airbus-Bombardier collaboration, citing no present need for 100-seat category jets

Uzbekistan Airways plans expand it's fleet with aditional A320s and A320 NEOs. The carrier currently operates nine A320s delivered new between 2010 and 2011

Singapore Airlines formally signed a firm order for 20 777-9s and 19 787-10s

Air Mauritius to decide by year end on the A320 NEO or 737 MAX for replacing it's two A319s

Oman Air is evaluating adding a dedicated freight division, with the 777 and A330 under consideration

Talking Points

Hong Kong Airlines is considering ordering 787s as it expands it's international network

Air Berlin A320 D-ABDX (msn 3995) was impounded at Keflavik October 19th, due to unpaid airport charges

Air Canada retired 767-300ER C-FCAB msn 24082 l/n 213 at Marana, AZ

BOC Aviation delivered the first of eight new 737-800s to Pobeda (Russia)

Egyptair reported to have ordered (or plans to order) 12 CS300s, six 787s and 15 A320s

Flybondi (Argentina) to take delivery of it's first two used 737-800s imminently

Fly One (Moldova) leased it's first A319 from SMBC. The airline also operates five A320s

Interjet (Mexico) is interested in ordering Russia's MC-21

Malaysia Airlines to cease all A380 services March 4th, with the exception of Kuala Lumpur to London Heathrow service

Air Mauritius takes delivery of first A350

Air Mauritius has taken delivery of it's first of six Airbus A350s, the initial two being leased from AerCap. Initial operations are expected to be to Kuala Lumpur via Singapore, and to Paris from December. The A350s will replace six A340s operated by Air Mauritius.

Airbus A350-941 MSN 145 F/F 9/22/17
Air Mauritius (AerCap) 3B-NBP "Le Morne Brabant" Delivered 10/20/17

Air Mauritius - Current Fleet
3 x ATR-42/72
2 x A319
2 x A330-200
6 x A340-300
1 x A350
Total: 14

Talking Points

Singapore Airlines is expected to firm an LoI placed in February for 20 777-9s and 19 787-10s when Prime Minister Lee visits Washington, DC next week

China Southern ordered eight 777-300ERs and 30 737 MAX 8s

Air Mauritius took delivery of it's first A350-900, leased from Aercap

Azur Air (Russia) plans to acquire an ex-VIM Airlines 777

Boeing considers re-starting production of the 767-300ER passenger aircraft, as a bridge to the '797'

Hawaiian to take delivery of it's first A321 before the end of this month

JetSMART (Chile) plans to acquire a Peruvian AOC

TAP (Portugal) to offer A321 flights to the US and Canada from next Spring

Weekend Reading

He was asked to fix a bankrupt airline...instead, he changed the way we fly
Los Angeles Time (Interview with Bill Franke)

Air France plans a challenging mission to rescue stranded A380
FOX News

From 10 days to non-stop: How London to Australia flights have changed
CNN

Airbus acquires controlling stake in Bombardier CSeries
Airways Magazine

How the CSeries deal could end up changing the world's aerospace industry
financialpost.com

From War to partner: Airbus and the CSeries
Leehamnews (Scott Hamilton talks to John Leahy)

Airbus-CSeries deal raises new Bombardier questions
FlightGlobal

US 747s fly into the sunset
FlightGlobal

Boeing's Iran deal hangs in the balance...
Seattle Times

Is the A380 fleet overtaking the 747 a hollow victory?
FlightGlobal (Opinion)

A week in the life a plane...
The Daily Telegraph

The Soviet Union's flawed rival to Concorde
BBC

First Look: Delta's new A350
USA Today

What to expect of Delta's new Airbus A350-900
Airways Magazine

First Look: Qantas' new 787-9
USA Today

Seven bids for bankrupt Alitalia...
Airways Magazine

Talking Points

Airbus's new A330-900 NEO (MSN 1795) successfully conducted it's maiden flight

Bukovyna (Ukraine) leased a first 737-500 (MSN 28201), adding to an existing fleet of six MD-80s

Airbus forecast a 20 year demand for 6,000 jet aircraft in the 100-150 seat category, with the CSeries aimed squarely at this market segment

Chengdu Airlines (China) took delivery of the third COMAC ARJ21-700, MSN 103. The airline received one aircraft in each of 2015 and 2016

China Southern is to lease five 787-9s from Air Lease Corporation between 2018 and 2019

Qantas is considering the 737 MAX and A320 NEO to replace it's 67 737-800s

EasyJet is reported to be on the verge of announcing a deal with Air Berlin for the acquisition of up to 25 A320s

Thai International may restart flights to the United States in 2018, possibly to California and / or New York, after a two year absence

First Air unveils it's new livery

First Air (Canada) unveiled it's new livery on 737-400 C-FFNM, one of five currently in service, three of which are combi configured aircraft. The airline also operates 13 ATR42/72 turboprops and two Avro RJ regional jets.

Boeing 737-436 MSN 25839 L/N 2188 F/F 12/9/91
British Airways G-DOCI 1/8/92 - 4/1/04
CSA OK-WGY 7/1/04 - 2/29/12
AirExplore OM-CEX 4/19/12 - 10/31/15
First Air C-FFNM 12/2/15 - present

Talking Points

Iberia (Spain) to launch seasonal (3 times a week) San Francisco to Madrid service in the Spring, utilizing A330-200s

Air Berlin ended long haul service with a flight from Miami to Dusseldorf arriving October 16th (including a controversial go around / fly by now under investigation - for which the pilots have subsequently been suspended). All remaining services under the Air Berlin brand will cease October 28th.

Bombardier, prior to yesterday's Airbus deal, reportedly had prior discussions with China over the CSeries

Delta is considering the A320 NEO and 737 MAX to replace older narrow bodies

EasyJet has no plans to enter the long haul low cost market, excepting through any potential acquisition of other European airline's assets (such as Air Berlin or Alitalia)

Thomas Cook (UK) plans to launch a charter airline based at Palma de Mallorca, Spain with an initial three A320s, to commence operations from April

Wizz Air (Hungary) officially applied for a UK AOC to operate a division named Wizz Air UK from March

Talking Points

Airbus and Bombardier announced a CSeries partnership
Airbus, Bombardier forge industry-shaking CSeries partnership
Aviation Week

Fastjet (Tanzania) leased it's first E-190, joining one A319 in service

Lufthansa and Easyjet are now known to be among seven bidders for parts of Alitalia's business. The extended period to April for submissions and talks remains in place

Malaysia Airlines CEO Peter Bellew is to return to Ryanair as COO from December

Alaska Airlines retires the 737-400 Combi (a blog post detailing this will follow)

Air France plans to ferry it's engine damaged A380 on three engines back to Europe

Qantas takes delivery of first 787-9

Qantas has taken delivery of it's first Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. The aircraft, one of eight firm orders, with many options, will be replacing certain 747-400s, as well as opening new ultra long haul routes routes such as Perth to London. The aircraft's first route though will be Melbourne to Los Angeles in December.

Boeing 787-9 MSN 39038 L/N 615 F/F 9/28/17
Qantas VH-ZNA "Great Southern Land" 10/16/17 - present

Qantas - Current Fleet
67 x 737-800
18 x A330-200
10 x A330-300
1 x 787-9
10 x 747-400
12 x A380
Total: 118

Talking Points

Aircalin (New Caledonia) ordered two A320 NEOs and two A330-900 NEOs

SalamAir (Oman) plans to build it's A320 fleet from the current three to 20 within five years

PIA (Pakistan) to end US (New York) services later this month, after 55 years

Fly Baghdad leased a 737-700 from BBAM (ex Eastar Jet), adding to it's sole CRJ-200 currently in service. The airline has leased three different 737-400s previously

Alitalia received no siginificant bids (although some reports state Lufthansa has made an offer for parts of the business). The deadline for submissions was extended to April 30th

Malaysia Airlines is considering an order for either A330-900 NEOs or 787-9s

Northwest International Cargo Airlines (China) intends to launch service in 2018

Ryanair Sun (Poland) is to launch operations from Warsaw and other Polish cities in Spring 2018 with five 737-800s

TAME (Ecuador) plans to replace E-190s (of which it has three) with ATRs and A319s. The workforce will be reduced by 20%

Tianjin Cargo Airlines (China) will commence operations soon with 737 freighters transferred from sister HNA Group owned Suparna Airlines

Air Ukraine International plans to operate 777s to Bangkok, Tel Aviv, Beijing and New York from early 2018. The carrier's current wide body fleet consists of four 767-300ERs

VIM Airlines (Russia) will cease operations by or before the end of this month

Wizz Air (Hungary) seeks to obtain a UK AOC to protect it's UK business post brexit

Cambodia Airways intends to start operations in April with A320s. Fleet plans call for 10 A320s and two A330s within five years

China Air Cargo commenced operations with one 757-200F

Eurowings (Germany) to grow it's fleet to 210 aircraft, mostly by the addition of ex-Air Berlin aircraft

GetJet (Lithuania) adds a first 737-300 to it's existing fleet of four 737-400s

Enter Air retires the 737-400

Enter Air (Poland) retired it's last Boeing 737-400, the type it used to launch operations in April 2010. A total of eight were operated. Three were acquired in 2010, a further three in 2011, and the final two examples in 2012. The Warsaw based charter airline added it's first two 737-800s in 2011, and has since expanded that fleet to 17, all being used aircraft. 737 MAX 8s will be added from late 2018

Boeing 737-43Q MSN 28489 L/N 2827 F/F 10/29/96
China Airlines B-18671 11/22/96 - 11/20/98
Virgin Express Ireland EI-TVA 11/21/98 - 5/15/00
Virgin Express OO-VEP 5/15/00 - 3/31/06
Virgin Blue VH-VGA 5/29/00 - 5/15/02
SN Brussels Airlines OO-VEP 3/31/06 - 11/7/06
Brussels Airlines OO-VEP 11/7/06 - 3/21/12
Enter Air SP-ENI 8/17/12 - 10/13/17
Cargoair LZ-CGX 10/13/17 - present (for freight conversion)

Weekend Reading

The 747 loses it's Crown to the A380
FlightGlobal

Delta vows not to pay US duties on Bombardier's CSeries
Bloomberg

Hotel at iconic TWA terminal will evoke the glamour of the jet age
The State

Air Berlin to stop flights by late October
The Daily Telegraph

Garuda retires last 747-400
FlightGlobal

The 747...a pilot takes a flight down memory lane
The New York Times

The best beds in the sky
thepointsguy.com

Podcast: Protectionist threat to aviation?
Aviation Week (Check 6 Podcast) Discussion of Boeing / Bombardier issue and the US3 versus ME3

Monarch collapse: what's it like to fly on a CAA replacement plane?
The Independent

Airbus' John Leahy to retire at years-end after final sales push
Reuters

Finnair flight 666 to HEL to makes final Friday 13th departure
The Independent

Talking Points

Delta vows not to pay US imposed import duties for the CSeries

John Leahy, Airbus' chief salesman, to retire at the end of 2017

Jet Airways (India) to order 75 737 MAX 10s, plus 75 options

Lufthansa to acquire a substantial portion of Air Berlin's assets, including 81 aircraft and hiring some 3,000 staff

Aerodesierto (Chile) to restart operations soon with one 737-200

BB Airways (Nepal) to acquire a 757 from Nepal Airlines for service to Delhi

Fastjet Mozambique to commence operations November 3rd with one ERJ-145

Talking Points

Air Berlin will end it's remaining long haul services by October 15th, and all other flights by or before October 28th.

Garuda retired it's last 747-400 (see related blog post)

Aegean Airlines considers the A320 NEO and 737 MAX for the replacement of it's current A320 family aircraft fleet

Azerbaijan Airlines to sign for four 787s and two 747-8Fs (for subsidiary Silk Way Airlines) by year end

JetWest (Nigeria) to commence LCC operations with three A320s from December

Garuda retires the 747-400

Garuda Indonesia has retired it's last Boeing 747-400, ending it's association with the type, and it's classic predecessor. The airline's 747-200Bs were retired in late 2003, leaving three -400s. Two were acquired new by Garuda in 1994, while a third used aircraft (ex-Varig) was leased from ILFC between 1995 and 2012. The 777-300ER has replaced the 747-400 at Garuda.

Boeing 747-4U3 MSN 25705 L/N 1029 F/F 4/27/94
Garuda Indonesia PK-GSH 5/27/94 to 10/6/17

Garuda - Current Fleet
16 x ATR-42/72
18 x CRJ-1000
73 x 737-800
7 x A330-200
17 x A330-300
10 x 777-300ER
Total: 141

Talking Points

United retired two 747-400s October 6th. 11 remain in service, with the last commercial service scheduled for November 7th San Francisco to Honolulu

Aer Lingus to acquire eight A321LRs from 2018 for transatlantic expansion

AirAsia X considers swapping it's 66 A330 NEO orders to the A350, while also considering the 787

Travel Service (Czech Republic) buys out Korean Air and the Government's stake in CSA, and now owns 97.7% of the airline. A name change and rebrand is said to be in the works

The planned Chinese / Russian widebody airliner has been named the CR 929-600

Additional import duties have been applied by the US to Bombardier's CSeries, now approximately 300%

Ryanair's COO Michael Hickey has resigned from the airline, in the wake of the flight cancellations debacle

Weekend Reading

A look inside the New England Patriot's 767
boardingarea.com

Southwest's first 737 MAX breaks down on flight #2
thepointsguy.com

Onboard Southwest's last 737-300 flight
Airways Magazine

Qatar Airways expects Meridiana to be Italy's real national carrier
channelnewsasia.com

Flashback: Southwest's last 737-200 flight
Airways Magazine

Boeing...protecting what is not being threatened
seekingalpha.com

Inside United's secret, invite-only restaurant
robbreport.com

TWA lounge opens at One World Center
USA Today

Talking Points

Aeroflot resumed interim financing of VIM Airlines

Aerolineas Argentinas plans to replace E-190s with larger capacity aircraft, possibly E195-E2s

Hong Kong Aviation Capital is now fully integrated with Avolon, as is CIT Aerospace

The first A330-300 freight conversion has been completed at Dresden. The aircraft is destined for ASL Airlines Ireland


Virgin America flight codes (VX) will change to Alaska (AS) April 25th, while a single AOC is planned for January 11th

Emirates notes a need for 'more' A380s, and possibly orders for 787s or A350s

Hawaiian Airlines is reconsidering whether the A330-800 fits its needs, and also plan to evaluate the 787

Talking Points

Atlas Air (US) considers the A330-300 for passenger to freight conversions

Norwegian started London (LGW) to Singapore service, the world's longest route for a low cost carrier

Vallair Solutions (Luxembourg) to be the launch customer for an A321 freight conversion

Aeroflot's planned $31M interim funding for VIM Airlines has not been verified or concluded by Russian regulator Rosaviatsiya

Start up Air Sial (Pakistan) to launch A320 services from Sialkot

Airbus plans to increase A350 monthly production to 13 in 2018

Azman Air (Nigeria) to acquire an A330-200 for flights from Kano to the Middle East and China

Brussels Airlines to retire the Avro RJ with a final flight between Geneva and Brussels October 28th

Cathay Pacific ordered CFM engines for it's A321 NEO order, to be operated by Cathay Dragon

Emirates to be the first airline to take delivery of the 777X mid 2020

Talking Points

Monarch Airlines (UK) ceased operations. The UK Government launched a wide scale repatriation operation

Southwest Airlines (US) ended 737-300 classic operations, and started 737 MAX 8 service with an initial nine aircraft

Boeing rolled out the first 787-10 destined for Singapore Airlines

United launched San Francisco to Santa Rosa, with a flight time of just 16 minutes

Air France suffered a serious engine failure on board an A380 (msn 052) bound for Los Angeles

Avianca pilot strikes continue

Thomson Airways (UK) rebrands to TUI Airways

WestJet takes delivery of first 737 MAX 8

WestJet (Canada) has taken delivery of it's first Boeing 737 MAX 8, one of 25 on order. WestJet also has 15 737 MAX 7s and 10 MAX 9s on order.

Boeing 737 MAX 8 MSN 60510 L/N 6384 F/F 9/21/17 WestJet C-FRAX F/N 301 Delivered 9/29/17

Boeing has now delivered 26 737 MAX 8s.

WestJet - Current (mainline) Fleet
13 x 737-600
56 x 737-700
44 x 737-800
1 x 737 MAX 8
4 x 767-300ER
Total: 118

Monarch Airlines - ceases operations

Monarch Airlines (UK) ceases operations

October 2nd 2017: Monarch, the subject of much financial scrutiny this last week, as well as in recent years, finally succumbed to what most industry observers and even Monarch insiders deemed the inevitable.

My one time Monarch experience...

8/20/05: Monarch Airlines ZB534 MAN -> PMI [A320 G-OZBB]

My itinerary commenced from my home airport (at the time) Santa Ana [John Wayne Airport / Orange County - yeah the airport had / has three names!] to San Jose, California. I spent a few days there at our 'weekend' home in Moss Beach (near Half Moon Bay) before departing to London 8/17/05 [SFO -> LHR United 777-200ER N786UA]. The real purpose of our trip was [sure say hi to England] but more importantly to vacation at my most favorite place in the world: Palma de Mallorca (NO, not Magaluf!).

Airbus A320 G-OZBB (original colors, with website address added)
Delivered 3/94, Retired 11/13 Tupelo, MS

This turned out to be my only trip on Monarch, who were more southern UK oriented than the north, although Manchester was always a key base too. This flight cemented the impression I had that Monarch was a very good airline. The attention to detail, the great food, the fab flight attendants...the list goes on. A class act...but at a time when class no longer had any relevance (when traveling by air). And that was then...2005. The fact Monarch lasted another 12 years defies all laws of aviation gravity.

For the record, we returned by BMI Baby PMI -> EMA (737-500 G-BVZE), LHR -> SFO (United 777-200ER N788UA), SJC -> SNA (Southwest 737-700 N779SW)

Monarch's problems in recent years have been well documented, and a selection of opinions and editorials will be added as links to this article. Otherwise, this post will pictorially look back at Monarch's rich history.

Monarch commenced service with a Bristol Britannia on April 5th 1968, with a charter flight from Luton to Madrid. Further Britannias were acquired in 1969 for a total fleet of six.

The jet age arrived for Monarch in 1971 with the purchase of ex-Northwest Boeing 720s

BAC 1-11s were added in the mid-70s for short haul operations

By the early 1980s 737-200s were added to the fleet to replace the 1-11s

The late 80s saw 737-300s arrive to replace the 737-200s

An early adopter of the 757, Monarch received it's first in 1983, with the aircraft finally retired in 2015

A pair of A300-600Rs were operated on high capacity Mediterranean routes, as well as to the United States and Caribbean

Single examples of the DC-10 and 767-300ER were also operated

DC-10 G-DMCA

767-300ER G-DIMB

Two A330-200s were a key part of the long haul fleet between 1999 and 2015

Following the retirement of all long haul aircraft, in recent years the fleet has been solely focused on A320s and A321s

A320 G-OZBW

A321 G-MARA

A single Boeing 737-800 was acquired this year, a prelude to Monarch's planned purchase of up to 45 737 MAX 8s, which were designated to replace the A320 family fleet starting in 2018.

Monarch ceases trading, why did the airline go bust?
Routesonline

Monarch...why a lack of innovation led to gradual oblivion
IBT Times

Monarch...what went wrong?
The Independent

Monarch caves after years of uncertainty
FlightGlobal (registration required)