First of two A340 aircraft (operated by Brussels Airlines) leaves Eurowings fleet, which will be harmonised on A330 type

Eurowings has only one Airbus A340 left in its fleet and this one will soon be replaced by another A330. However, the harmonised A330 long-haul fleet should not grow soon.

The harmonisation of Eurowings long-haul fleet is proceeding as planned. The first A340-300 (OO-SCX) has now left the fleet and has been replaced by an Airbus A330-300 from its parent Lufthansa. Its last recorded flight was SN9901 from Dusseldorf to Manila, Philippines, on 24 June 2019 and its last revenue flight EW1141 from Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, to Dusseldorf on 22 June.

The Airbus A340 is owned by Lufthansa and has been returned to its owner, as a Eurowings spokesman confirmed to airliners.de. The replacement of the remaining A340 (OO-SCW) by a Lufthansa A330 should be completed in the course of the year.

The “new” A330 still needs a Eurowings livery and must also be internally converted to the standards of the Lufthansa low-cost subsidiary. These widebody jets are still operated by Brussels Airlines and outfitted with a “BizzClass”.

The Eurowings long-haul fleet

Lufthansa confirmed to Aviation24.be that the Eurowings long-haul network is there to stay and will not be taken over by the network airlines, as wrongly assumed after its 24 June communication. “There will be Eurowings long-haul flights in future – the current reorientation concerns only the internal organisation and commercial responsibility of their long-haul flights. It will be transferred to the Lufthansa Group’s network management.”

The Eurowings spokesman said to airliners.de that the airline will operate a fleet of eleven aircraft this winter. Four Brussels Airlines operated A330-300s (OO-SFB, OO-SFJ, OO-SFK and OO-SFL) will be based in Düsseldorf. The four A330-200s in Frankfurt and the three other similar aircraft in Munich are operated by SunExpress Deutschland (D-AXGA to D-AXGG).

“A uniform fleet makes it easier to replace in the event of a technical breakdown, which in turn ensures more stability in flight operations,” the group said in January. In addition, it facilitates the planning and execution of regular maintenance, with the need to stock only material for a uniform A330 fleet.

Eurowings gives up long-range responsibility

Due to the weak financial results of Eurowings, Lufthansa has already pushed the brake on future expansion. In June, Lufthansa announced that it would take over the commercial responsibility of the Eurowings long-haul flights and integrate them into the network management of Lufthansa.

For example, Lufthansa will take over the management of the Eurowings long-haul routes in Frankfurt and Munich for the 2019/20 winter timetable, and the long-haul flights in Düsseldorf will follow on 1 January 2020. This allows its low-cost airline to concentrate on its “bread and butter business”: short- and medium-haul flights.

Sources: Lufthansa, airliner.de and flightradar24.com