The fifth Embraer aircraft to be operated on behalf of Air Serbia by Greece’s Marathon Airlines has arrived in Belgrade, with a sixth jet possible for the coming summer season. The sixteen-year-old E195, which sports Air Serbia’s full corporate livery, has been parked in Athens since mid-November. Although its delivery was initially expected late last year, the 118-seat jet touched down in the Serbian capital yesterday afternoon. It becomes the third to be operated on Air Serbia’s behalf, alongside the 100-seat E190 and the 88-seat E175. The latter was initially to be wet-leased to the Serbian carrier on a short-term basis but is now expected to remain part of the fleet throughout the coming summer.
Commenting on the growing number of Embraer aircraft operating on behalf of the carrier, Air Serbia’s CEO, Jiri Marek, recently said, “For us, it was a very natural choice to select the Embraer E1, which are mid-age and mature aircraft. The ownership cost is super low and the aircraft don’t face any significant issues like with new technology. At the same time, we didn’t want to deal with the complexity of adding a new aircraft type, which is why this pilot project with Marathon Airlines, which started as a wet-lease and will expand into a CPI model was a logical win-win solution”. He added, “We are working with Marathon Airlines to transform the Embraer wet-lease into a full damp-lease. That means our cabin crew and our uniforms, while cockpit crew will be from Marathon. We are also looking at some other synergies where the Embraer fleet can be deeply incorporated into Air Serbia, but it will not be operated by Air Serbia”.
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| Marathon Airlines Embraer cabins on aircraft operated for Air Serbia |
Marathon Airlines has said its relationship with Air Serbia is continuing to evolve. “Marathon Airlines‘ deepening partnership with Air Serbia signals a milestone towards operational excellence. Up to six Embraer jets are set to join Air Serbia’s fleet in summer 2024, showcasing the pivotal role Marathon plays in enhancing operational flexibility and meeting increased route demand”. It added, “The Embraer E170/E190 series strikes a balance between capacity and flexibility, allowing us to efficiently meet the diverse needs of our clientele, especially in markets with varying demand patterns and infrastructure constraints”. The Greek ACMI carrier has signalled it may acquire next-generation Embraer aircraft as well. “We are strategically planning to augment our fleet in the coming months. We are actively considering the introduction of Embraer E2s into our fleet. Additionally, we are exploring the acquisition of Airbus A320s to cater to contracts requiring higher capacity”, the carrier said.
This February, the Embraer jets will be deployed on around 19% of Air Serbia’s flights. The Serbian carrier is due to take delivery of three ATR72-600 and two A330-200 aircraft this year, all five of which will be dry-leased. Although it was initially said the turboprops would arrive during the first quarter, Mr Marek recently noted the delivery timeline was not determined yet and hinged on supply chain issues affecting maintenance, repainting, and deliveries.
