Canada’s Flair Airlines to lease 14 more 737 MAX

Flair Airlines (F8, Kelowna) has announced a significant fleet expansion that will see the Canadian ultra-low-cost carrier lease fourteen additional B737-8s and grow its fleet to 30 aircraft by mid-2023.

The carrier currently has 12 aircraft in service and will have 20 in service by Summer 2022.

Additional aircraft will arrive in 2023 as Flair Airlines more than doubles its current fleet size as part of its vision to have a fleet of 50 aircraft by 2025.

The new aircraft will support the airline’s ambitious growth plans, Chief Executive Officer Stephen Jones said in a statement.

Flair Airlines currently operates to 32 destinations in Canada and the USA, with a new service to Mexico beginning in February 2022.

According to the ch-aviation fleets advanced module, the carrier’s current fleet comprises nine B737-8s, of which six are leased from its shareholder, Miami-based investment firm 777 Partners and three from Castlelake. It has four more B737-8s on order from 777 Partners. The current fleet is completed with three B737-800s leased from CMB Financial Leasing and Zephyrus Aviation Capital respectively.

The announcement comes after 777 Partners earlier this month announced it would nearly double its MAX order book from Boeing with the purchase of 30 additional jets, expanding its commercial aircraft portfolio to a total of 68 of the type.

The US venture company’s Australian startup subsidiary, Bonza, earlier this month announced it would lease up to eight B737-8s from 777 Partners.