Austrian Airlines has entered into a wet lease agreement with Braathens Regional Airlines to operate aircraft on its behalf from the summer of 2024.
Braathens will take over certain routes currently operated by Austrian’s Embraer 195 aircraft through wet lease. This partnership primarily enhances efficiency and cost-effectiveness on the selected routes, thereby ensuring a sustainable connection to the Vienna hub.
Due to the fact that demand for air travel has not fully recovered on certain regional routes after the pandemic, Austrian Airlines faces new challenges. Particularly, the slow recovery of business travel demand results in a lower demand level, necessitating adjusted capacity structures for economically viable operations. Routes such as Vienna to Klagenfurt or Košice are neither economically nor operationally ideal for Austrian Airlines’ current fleet. These routes will now be served by Braathens Regional Airlines (BRA).
Which Routes Will BRA Fly?
Michèle Pauty
From the summer 2024 schedule, Braathens’ ATR 72 aircraft are set to fly on the following routes:
- Vienna – Belgrade (1x daily)
- Vienna – Bologna (Saturday only)
- Vienna – Graz (1x daily)
- Vienna – Klagenfurt (entire schedule)
- Vienna – Kosice (entire schedule)
- Vienna – Leipzig (entire schedule)
- Vienna – Warsaw (Saturday only)
- Vienna – Zagreb (Mon, Sat, Sun)
The flights will be operated with two ATR propeller aircraft, which, due to their lower capacity, are more efficient for the respective routes, emit less CO2, and provide the appropriate seat volume for the markets served, with 72 seats.
