Austrian Airlines will retire its remaining 14 Dash-8-400s, which was previously announced, while also retiring all seven of its A319s and half of its six B767-300ERs by 2022.  Like many other airlines around the world, Austrian will emerge from this crisis smaller than previously. But hopefully with a stronger foundation, including appropriate equipment with better economics, to build on going forward.

Austrian Airlines: eighth-largest operator of the Dash-8-400

Austrian was the world’s eighth-largest operator of the Dash-8-400 last year, with 2.3 million seats. It was just behind LOT Polish (2.4 million) and ahead of airBaltic (2 million).  In W19, Austrian used the 76-seat aircraft on multiple routes, as below, with some one-offs.  Frankfurt (FRA) – Innsbruck (INN) was its top route (86,400 seats), followed by Klagenfurt (KLU) – Vienna (60,500), Prague – Vienna (60,000), Graz (GRZ) – Vienna (55,400), and Budapest (BUD) – Vienna (44,500).

Austrian Airlines’ network by the Dash-8-400 in W19.

Nine airlines have stopped Dash-8-400 service this year versus last year

So far this year, 48 million seats are available by this aircraft, down 18 million YOY and barely more than in 2010.  This is from short-term cuts from the coronavirus, but fundamentally also from the end of flybe – the world’s largest operator of this ‘prop – which ended operations in March.

OAG Schedules Analyser shows that various other airlines – either small operators or temporary users of the type – aren’t operating the type this year but did last year: Air Cote d’Ivoire, Air Tanzania, Aurora (Russia), CemAir (South Africa), Congo Airways, Icelandair (using Air Iceland aircraft), Swiss (operated by Austrian),  and Ulendo Airlink (Malawi). Icelandair, for example, operated the aircraft from May to October 2019 on overwater sectors from Keflavik to Bergen (1,495 kilometres), Dublin (1,501), and Manchester (1,657), mainly to increase peak summer capacity given on-going MAX problems.

Source: OAG Schedules Analyser.

Air Niugini bucks trend by restarting Dash-8-400s operations

One new operator – Air Niugini – began operating the aircraft this year after an absence of three years. Interestingly, the carrier, which operated the -400 until 2017, previously said that the speed and range of its Fokker 70s gave the type a significant advantage over turboprops.  Last month, the carrier operated the Dash-8-400 on multiple domestic routes, with the 139-kilometre Port Morseby – Popondetta route its number-one by seats.

The Dash-8-400 comes home to Canada

In S20 – with the following data clearly able to change given the ongoing crisis – there are 32 operators of the Dash-8-400.  WestJet and Air Canada are now the top operators, with fellow Canadian airline Porter in fifth.  The type has come home to Canada.  Of the -400’s routes, its top routes fully outside Canada are Canberra – Sydney (225,800), Seattle – Spokane (218,500), Portland – Seattle (214,300), Mombasa – Nairobi (208,900), and Athens – Paros (170,800).