AIR SEYCHELLES TO RETIRE TWO B767-200
Information has come to light that the arrival of the airlines new CEO Bram Steller in Mahe Bram is due to take up his new assignment by 01st of October will also be marked by the retirement of the two oldest Boeing 767-200 aircraft. According to a source in Mahe this decision was taken by the board of the airline which intends to return the two lease aircraft to ILFC in due course. This decision may have been prompted by Air Seychelles decision a few weeks ago to end the charter flight for the British Ministry of Defence between the UKs Brize Norton air force base and the Falklands, which rendered the B767 used for the operation, and the required back up aircraft surplus considering the other routes flown according to the present published schedule.
This will leave HM with three B 767-300, which were recently refurbished, to operate their scheduled services to Paris, London, Milan, Rome but also to Mauritius, Johannesburg and Singapore.
There is also intense speculation now over future plans to upgrade the B767 fleet to the B787 Dreamliner, which until not very long ago was firmly on the drawing board, although the extraordinary delays by Boeing to get this aircraft into commercial service have not helped much. Only this weekend has ANA finally taken delivery of the first B787 but other airlines, as frequently reported here, are still looking at long delays in getting their Dreamliners delivered.
With the arrival of the new CEO in Mahe it seems an open game once again which direction Air Seychelles may go for the planned, and necessary if not overdue fleet renewal, and Airbus will be knocking on the doors once again attempting to persuade HM to consider a switch to the more readily available A330 models which offer superior economics compared to the ageing B767. Whichever way Air Seychelles will eventually go, in terms of new routes and in terms of new aircraft, be sure you read it right here.
