A HiFly Malta Airbus A330-300 widebody registered 9H-HFE has landed at Ostend-Bruges Airport, which is exceptional as a passenger aircraft.
The all-white aircraft was only recently acquired by Portuguese ACMI operator HiFly and flown to Frankfurt for a retrofit into a cabin including 30 business seats and 255 economy seats
Airlines expect that many aircraft will remain on the ground for months and Ostend will become a parking space to store them in perfect condition. A joint venture between the North Sea Aviation Center and Sabena Aerospace is providing this new service at the coastal airport.
Erik Vermeersch, North Sea Aviation Center, said: “It is now clear from the COVID-19 crisis that a large number of aircraft will not be flying for a year. As a result, leases are terminated early. The owners are looking for a nice location in a favourable airport for the long-term parking of the aircraft.”
And perhaps this can also yield a welcome extra income for the airport, as the passenger flow has hardly restarted in Ostend after the lockdown.
Said the Portuguese pilot George Sleiman after leaving his parked aircraft: “All those planes that can’t fly, it’s sad. But there’s nothing we can do about that. It’ll have to rest for a while.”
Source of the quotes: Focus WTV
This post was published on 17 June 2020 23:22
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced an investigation into an incident at Ronald Reagan…
On 18 April, a stored and former Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 (last known registration B-HLF)…
The Left Bloc in Portugal is urging the government to eliminate domestic flights between Porto,…
The UK Ministry of Defence has placed an order for six Airbus H145 helicopters to…
Cathay Pacific has released its traffic figures for March 2024, showcasing strong demand for travel…
Ryanair has announced the launch of five new routes from Katowice Wojciech Korfanty International Airport…