UTAir Removes Nine Boeing 737NGs from Service Due To The Ukraine Crisis

The Image Above: UTAir Boeing 737-800NG. Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons

UTAir has removed nine of its Boeing 737 aircraft from service, as it becomes the first carrier to comply with leasing companies.

The report mentions that the carrier has placed up to 50 aircraft on the domestic Russian registry, with that number growing since the last AviationSource report on the airline.

UTAir said the following in a statement:

"Previously, the airline decommissioned its entire fleet, which was under the operating lease - nine Boeing 737NG aircraft - in accordance with the requirements of the owners - lessors, concluded contracts, Russian and international legislation".

Based on data from RadarBox.com, it appears that the following nine Boeing 737NG aircraft on lease are:

• VQ-BDD
• VQ-BDG
• VQ-BDH
• VQ-BDP
• VQ-BDR
• VQ-BDY
• VQ-BLP
• VQ-BLT
• VQ-BPT

UTAir Had A Strong Start to the Year

The Image Above: UTAir flight statistics - Most recent being February 5-12, 2022

UTAir had a strong start to the year, averaging anywhere between a 30-40% increase in flights compared to the start of last year.

For February 5-12, the carrier recorded 91 flights in a week, which was 33.82% better than the same period in 2021, but still fell short of the 126-strong figure in 2021 and 133 in 2020 respectively. 

The airline was forecasted to make some considerable gains in terms of recovery, but the Ukraine crisis will no doubt show less progress due to airspace closures. 

UTAir also believes that the fleet changes won't affect the carrier too much, as they said they have enough aircraft to "provide enough uninterrupted aviation services".

It will be interesting to see how the situation continues to pan out and where the carrier can go next.