Taiwan’s Mandarin Airlines set to end E190 operations

Mandarin Airlines (AE, Taichung Ching Chuan Kang) has accelerated the planned retirement of its E190 fleet and will conclude the type’s operations on December 31, 2021, the United Daily News newspaper has reported.

The regional subsidiary of China Airlines (CI, Taipei Taoyuan) will operate the last flight of the type from Penghu to Taipei Sung Shan. Following the necessary maintenance, the remaining aircraft will be returned to their lessors in early 2022. Mandarin Airlines originally planned to continue operating the Embraer regional jets through 2023.

The ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows Mandarin Airlines currently operates three ERJ 190-100ARs, down from a peak of eight between 2009 and 2016. The first two units were returned at the end of their initial eight-year leases in 2016 and 2017, the ch-aviation fleets history module highlights. The carrier extended the leases of the other six units for another five years, due to end between 2020 and 2023. The first three of the sextet were retired on schedule during the course of 2021. Out of the remaining three, two remain active, while the third, B-16829 (msn 19000302), has been stored at Taichung Ching Chuan Kang and Taipei Taoyuan since late July 2021. The two active units are dry-leased, one each from TrueAero and GECAS (managed by AerCap).

Mandarin Airlines is the sole operator of Embraer regional jets in Taiwan.

Following the retirement of the E190s, Mandarin Airlines’ in-house fleet will shrink to nine ATR72-600s. The airline also wet-leases a substantial number of narrowbody jets (currently seven B737-800s) from its parent.