Colombia’s Avianca Airlines returns last A321neo

Avianca Airlines (AV, Bogotá) returned its last two A321-200Ns to lessor SMBC Aviation Capital having kept the aircraft in storage since March 2020.

ch-aviation research shows N759AV (msn 7770) and N761AV (msn 7847) were ferried from Bogotá and Medellín José Maria Córdova to Orlando Sanford on August 21, 2021. The former had been in storage at the Colombian capital uninterruptedly since the initial COVID-19 lockdown in March 2020. The latter had initially been stored in Medellin but was ferried to Fortaleza for maintenance on August 2 and returned to Colombia for one day on August 20, Flightradar24 ADS-B data shows.

Avianca Holdings, the Colombian carrier’s Panama-based parent, is a major A320neo Family customer. During two separate deals in 2012 and 2015, the holding ordered a total of 133 aircraft. However, facing financial hardship even before the pandemic, it gradually trimmed its outstanding commitment to 88 in January 2020. At that time, the group had already taken delivery of three A320-200Ns from its direct order with Airbus and a further seven via SMBC, as well as the pair of A321neo ordered directly by Avianca but subsequently sold and leased back from SMBC, according to the ch-aviation fleets history module. Since then, it has not added any more A320neo and said that no deliveries would happen before the end of 2024. The ten A320neo already delivered are split between the AOC of Avianca Airlines in Colombia (seven units) and Avianca Airlines El Salvador (three).

According to the ch-aviation fleets advanced module, besides the eighty-eight A320neo on direct order from Airbus, Avianca Airlines plans to add two second-hand ex-Interjet units of the type on lease from Aviation Capital Group, two ordered by Avianca Holdings but due to come on lease from Aviation Capital Group, and ten on lease from BOC Aviation. It does not have any A321neo on order either directly or from lessors.