Austrian Airlines Streamlines its Fleet of Aircraft

• A total of seven Airbus A320s is planned instead of the fleet of Boeing 737s
• Letters of intent signed for five Airbus A320s – two of these aircraft are already in Vienna
• To be successively put into service starting in October 2012

2012-07-19 — /travelprnews.com/ — Austrian Airlines is streamlining its fleet of aircraft. Letters of intent for five of the planned seven Airbus A320s have been signed. Within the context of a technical contract two aircraft were flown to Vienna on July 10, 2012. The two aircraft have already been registered in Austria and have been given the OE-LBW and OE-LBX registrations respectively. Discussions on the incorporation of two further Airbus A320s are currently being held. A decision is expected within the next few weeks.

The measure constitutes a key component of the package of reforms being undertaken by Austrian Airlines. Having a homogenous fleet of mid-range aircraft in the future will lead to savings in operating costs (no costs resulting from redundant maintenance and spare parts, a single training program for pilots). This will enable the more productive deployment of aircraft in route planning.

Preparation for employment by Austrian
Prior to their initial flights for Austrian, the aircraft are to undergo a “transition check” by Austrian Technik. Once this has been completed, each of the airplanes will be outfitted with the same arrangement of 168 seats, and will be painted in Austrian’s typical design. Subsequent to that, the aircraft will be incorporated into regular flight operations. From today’s perspective, the first of these aircraft will take off for Austrian in October 2012.

A total of seven Airbus A320 will be incorporated into regular flight operations before summer flight schedule 2013. At the same time, the fleet of Boeing 737-800 will be removed from service.
The sale of four Boeing 737 has already been concluded together with transferring the aircraft to their new owner.

Austrian Airlines
Austrian Airlines is the country’s largest airline. It operates a worldwide network of flights and serves some 130 destinations. This network is especially tightly woven in Central and Eastern Europe. Its 44 destinations make Austrian Airlines the leader in this market. Austrian Airlines is based in Vienna. This airport profits from its location in the center of Europe. This location makes it the ideal hub for those traveling between East and West. Austrian Airlines is part of the Lufthansa Group, which is the largest carrier in Europe. AA is also member of the Star Alliance, the first world-spanning association of international carriers.

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