European Air Charter Completes Retirement of MD-82, Ending Era in Bulgaria

European Air Charter, the Bulgarian ACMI/charter specialist, marked the end of an era by retiring its last MD-82 on October 21, 2023. This event solidifies European Air Charter as the final European operator of the McDonnell Douglas narrowbody type.

The retired aircraft, LZ-LDP (msn 49973), is a 33.2-year-old MD-82 that was originally delivered to ATI – Aero Trasporti Italiani. Its final revenue flight took it from Hurghada to Varna, concluding a chapter in European Air Charter’s fleet history. The airline had already retired two MD-82s in 2022, followed by the remaining seven in 2023. With this retirement, the airline’s fleet will now exclusively comprise ten A320-200s.

While European Air Charter completes its transition to a modernized fleet, fellow Bulgarian ACMI/charter carrier ALK Airlines still has two MD-82s, according to the ch-aviation fleets advanced module. However, both ALK Airlines’ MD-82s have been mothballed since January 2023.

The retirement of the MD-82 by European Air Charter follows a trend in the aviation industry, with various McDonnell Douglas models being phased out over the years. The last European MD-81 was retired by Air Sweden in 2011, the last MD-83 by DAT (Denmark) in 2021, the last MD-87 by AMAC Corporate Jet in 2022, and the last MD-88 by Bukovyna Airlines in 2013, as reported by the ch-aviation fleets history module.

As European Air Charter bids farewell to its MD-82s, the airline enters a new era with a modern and efficient A320 fleet. Stay tuned for further updates on the airline’s operations and fleet developments.