Avion Express Brasil, the new subsidiary of the Avia Solutions Group, from Ireland, already has its first aircraft in Brazil after registering an Airbus A320 leased from Azorra on January 6.
The aircraft, registered PR-MLD, is 16 years old and was originally delivered to East Star Airlines, from China, in 2008. Since then, it was operated by Air China until 2020 when it returned to Avolon.
The jet equipped with CFM56 engines is configured with 180 seats and will be used in ACMI (Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance and Insurance) services by the new subsidiary.
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In May 2023, Avion Express announced plans to launch services in Brazil, the largest commercial aviation market in Latin America.
The goal is to offer chartered passenger and cargo services, including an A321F aircraft, but the launch was postponed by at least a year.
Plans to reach 25 aircraft by 2028
In an interview in June 2024, Avion Express CEO Darius Kajokas celebrated the opening of the market in the region to the ACMI modality, which until then practically did not exist.
In Argentina, low-cost carrier Flybondi began to rely on the support of Avion Express aircraft through a wet lease to reinforce operations during the summer season in the southern hemisphere.
Kajokas, however, highlighted the importance of the Brazilian market, which has around 300 aircraft, but does not yet use ACMI.
According to him, the plan is to have a fleet of up to 25 aircraft by around 2028, all of them single-aisle jets.
The launch in Brazil depends on obtaining the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) from ANAC. Seven months ago, the process was in stage 3 and was expected to be approved by the end of last year.
