Solution to Jat’s Airbus saga on the horizon?
A high ranking delegation from Airbus will begin talks with the Serbian government today in an attempt to sell twelve of its jets to the Serbian national carrier Jat Airways. According to media reports the deal is too good to be refused by the Serbian government. The European plane manufacturer is offering twelve jets from the A320 family. The potential purchase of the aircraft would end Jat’s aircraft shortage and substantially modernise its fleet.
In 1998, the Yugoslav government ordered eight Airbus A319s for its national carrier, a highly unfavourable and politically motivated deal worth 560 million dollars at the time. Despite a deposit of 23.5 million dollars, the aircraft were never delivered. Airbus is now offering Jat to pay up another 20 million dollars, after which it will begin delivering the aircraft. The Serbian government is then expected to give state guarantees for Jat to take out a 140 million euro loan with which it will finance its new Airbus fleet. The deal includes the training of at least five groups of cabin crew lasting up to 41 days, engine selection as well as spare parts. Earlier this year, Jat’s maintenance division, Tehnika, and Airbus announced the creation of a joint regional training centre in Belgrade. Jat Tehnika is expected to be granted necessary permits next month to maintain Airbus jets.
Jat Airways currently has a fleet of ten Boeing 737-300s and four ATR72s. The oldest aircraft in its fleet is Europe’s first passenger 737-300, which arrived in Belgrade on August 8, 1985. However, its fleet’s flying time is still relatively low compared to its age, since most of Jat’s aircraft were grounded during the 1990s. Officially, Jat has operated Airbus jets in its long history. In 2005, during the airline’s biggest industrial action in history, the carrier scrambled to lease aircraft, flight crew and aircraft mechanics. Through the one month strike, several Airbus aircraft operated on behalf of Jat Airways.
Well the current government has been doing a fine job so far. If there is such a meeting then I am sure they will make the best of it.
ReplyDeleteSo 12 Airbus series aircraft could mean 2 A320s and 10 A319s.
I hope that this deal materializes and that they also introduce a new livery.
Yeah but maintance is going to kill JAT because they have 3 plane famillies
Delete1-ATR (4)
2-Boeing 733 (10)
3-Airbus 319/320 (in order)
Thats just bad...They will now have to train new crew + additional maintance cost and much more....Bad news.
HEAVENS!
ReplyDeleteAnd the big rainbow will start shining above BEG and bunnies will hop around....oh...and pigs will fly too...
"Zivi bili pa videli" as one could say...
With such passenger growth at BEG I do not see why there isn't a rainbow shining already.
DeleteI am very dissapointed. I was hoping Boeing will get something from JAt. Serbia got nothing from two faced EU. Lets pray for my american brothers.
ReplyDeleteIf Serbia wants to join EU. There is more deals they need to make
DeleteAny new aircraft is far better than first in Europe 733.
ReplyDeletetake the deal...scrap Jat...start new airline
ReplyDeletestill better than nothing...even i favourize boeing...
ReplyDeletehope really that this "saga" comes to a positive end, what means that jat is able to modernize the fleet and restructure the company (get rid off at least 800 people).
there is potential but first of all WE must change our behaviour / i mean all of us / stop hating and work together for a brighter future for JU OU
My american brothers will win. There is a reason why jat put new interiours.. fly those 733 and make europe suffer. Bang vatikan and germany.
ReplyDeleteGo boeing or go home. Lets hope nothing happens
The right deal for Jat would be 2 A321, 5 A320 and 5 A319 (have in mind that they're not going to retire the 733 immediately). A rename and rebranding is also badly needed.
ReplyDeleteFor narrow-body a/c i do prefer Russian or Airbus jets than Boeing.
DeleteAnd which one exactly? Tu-154?
DeleteActually even the Tu-154 which is a great aircraft, but given its fuel consumption and operating expenses it falls out of favor. I am more thinking of the Superjet which would suit Jat's need on certain routes perfectly, and which is far cheaper than its Western counterpart and other competitors.
DeleteSuperjet has terrible reliability. I'd rather pay more and use something safe.
DeleteWould you be kind enoigh to support your claim with any solid arguments?
DeleteSimply look it up on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sukhoi_Superjet_100
DeleteFirst customer Amravia returned the one superjet it had due to operational problems and Aeroflot is using their superjets less than 4 hours per day due to frequent breakdowns and delayed part deliveries.
First, Armavia had to return the jet due to their own financial difficulties since they had no money to pay for the lease. Now they've paid the jet has be returned into their fleet. If you want to be so smart, i would ask you to inquire a bit into the technical problems and breakdowns the A380 is facing (engine explosions, wing cracks...) which are all quite natural for an all-new recently introduced aircraft. You are just showing a very shallow knowledge and understanding of aviation based on nothing more than prejudices. Sukhoi has a backlog of 246 frames on order and more than a hundred options, so you'll excuse me to think that the executives of those both Western and non-Western airlines who ordered them had less brain and insight than you do.
DeleteThey need new planes, this seems the most favourable situation we have seen in this on-going saga.
ReplyDeleteYet again we are scant on details. What size planes? 319s seem natural replacements for 733s capacity wise (OU has 144 seats in theirs, an 8% increase), could any routes could sustain a 320 year-round... or even a ~200-seat 321?
How many are bought/leased in this deal? Is this like the situation at AR where they 'acquired' 12 planes in a deal, but really only bought 2 and leased other 10 on 'favourable rates'? Thats actually less favourable than if they can buy all 12...
Too many questions still unanswered, but definitely a step in the right direction for the airline
To lease 12 A320 is around 50million euros a year
DeleteStill seems like a pretty good deal. List price for a319 is 70 million euros and Jat is not really in a position to complain too much - Airbus has sizable backlog of all a320 family a/c, so they don't desperately need this order.
DeleteOh, it would be great to be able to fly to Dubai non-stop with Jat :)
As for the routes, I'm sure LHR, CDG, ZRH, FRA, VIE could fill at least daily a320. I'm pretty excited at the possibility to fly new Jat next year :) even if it's not Boeing metal...
There is a plan of selling only four A320 to Jat Airways. The rest will be operationally leased, probably A319's. Altogether not more than 8 Airbuses. This news is completely misleading the public.
ReplyDeleteI will believe it when I see it
ReplyDeleteBuy the aircraft and those you not use lease them to other airlines (Tarom/Adria).
ReplyDeleteFor Jat buying the ac will be better then leasing them for themselves.
Leasing is only good for temporary and as an addition!
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-11-06/serbia-to-step-up-talks-with-airbus-on-aircraft-deal
ReplyDeleteit is just a bedside story. never materialize
ReplyDeleteThis is a deal, that they can not refuse, they better not mess it up.
ReplyDeleteI hope that they will finally come to a compromise.
ReplyDeleteJAT would really need to benchmark what would be a gain for them if they still finish the deal with airbus where they deposited nearly 24 million euros back since 1998.
Airbus was never willing to cut the deal and reimburse the deposit. I don't understand what would be so far great with the new deal that JAT wouldn't refuse.
First of all they kept millions of euros deposited never willing to pay back and cancel the deal and now for 20 millions more they would deliver 4 more airplanes just in a bigger size.
I think Airbus should be happy with the fact that the Serbian governmnent never raised interests for the fact they were keeping the deposit that long.
For JAT the arrival of 12 Airbus A 320 would be more than great but still there should happen much more in order to turn JAT in to a regional leader.
First of all management is selected based on political backgrounds, CEO's that served JAT non of them were capable to return JAT in to a profitable airline which means that JAT should actually be partly government owned and partly by shares.
JAT would need to be re-branded, and a new firm and brand strategy should be realized as well.
The national airlines of Serbia? Or a regional leader on the Balkans or ex- Yugoslavia?
Serbia could be the first country in Europe with direct connections towars USA , MEA and Australia. Slovenia is to small for creating such a hub, Croatia and Montenegro focus nearly only on tourism and seasonal flights branding it's own tourism and country, Bosnia & Herzegovina is unfavorable as the airline wnet bankrupt already 2 times and facing new threats to stay without a national carrier while Macedonia i still without a National carrier.
JAT really got the options for something more than just being the national carrier of Serbia.
A321 on Zagreb-Munich, Sunday 4th November. LF 100%
ReplyDeleteSo what?
DeleteTo Munich, of course, where else.
DeleteWhat's actually really interesting that's seeing TK sending their 739 yesterday and 321 today on their morning flight to Belgrade, besides the additional 320 for the evening flight. Looks like they've got huge demand. Let's see how that changes with the arrival of QR.
DeleteMaybe to FRA, MUC/FRA is their speciality.
Deletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDnwLoVJNy4
DeleteBeing a Student pilot and hoping one day to fly for Jat as a boeing Pilot makes me a bit sad seeing jat potentially convert to an airbus fleet.... But in saying that the offer is probably the best they will get i dont see Boeing offering similar but who knows now with 737Max order being firm they might make an offer to jat for the 738 and 739s in order to steal order away then again it leaves Jat wit a lawsuit over the initial order.
ReplyDelete