Belavia Belarussian Airlines is planning to retire Boeing 737s and continue the fleet renewal program adding the recently ungrounded 737 MAX.
Newly appointed General Director of Belavia Belarusian Airlines Igor Cherginets plans to continue renewing the airline’s fleet with the help of the new generation Embraer 195-E2 jets and the Boeing 737MAX. Cherginets said this would “contribute to the expansion of the route network, the opening of new directions and an increase in passenger traffic.
Belavia’s fleet currently consists of 27 aircraft: nine Boeing 737-800, two Boeing 737-500, three Boeing 737-300, five Embraer 175, seven Embraer 195, one Embraer 195-E2. By the end of 2021, the national carrier of Belarus plans to retire five of its Boeing 737s: three B737-300s and two B737-500s, operated since 2008 and 2003 respectively.
“We are planning to update the fleet with the aircraft of the latest generation Embraer 195-E2, and at present, we are preparing to purchase the up-dated Boeing 737-8. By the end of the current year, we plan to terminate the operation of Boeing Classic,” read Cherginets statement on the airline’s website.
On July 17, 2018, Belavia signed a commitment lease with American leasing company Air Lease Corporation (ALC) for four Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. The first planned delivery would have been in 2020, however, the date was pushed back due to the 737 MAX grounding.
On December 23, 2020, Belavia received the new Embraer E195-E2 jet, expecting to receive another two in 2021. From February 19, 2021, Belavia will use the E195-E2 aircraft for a newly opened Minsk-Dubai-Minsk route.
“The Embraer E195-E2 delivery is an important step towards the modernization of the Belavia fleet, which allows improving the level of the service, and the economy of this type of the aircraft – to reduce the cost of air tickets,” said the air carrier’s previous CEO Anatoly Gisarov.