Alliance Airlines has delivered the first of three aircraft due to be handed over to QantasLink between now and December.
The first aircraft, a Fokker 100 registration VH-NHA, landed in Perth on Thursday July 7, having been ferried from Bratislava via Trabzon, Al Ain, Hyderabad and Jakarta.
“This delivery is the first of three aircraft that Alliance is contracted to provide to Qantas Airways Limited subsidiary, QantasLink, which was announced by that airline in February 2016,” Alliance said in a statement to the Australian Securities Exchange on Wednesday.
“The remaining two aircraft will be delivered in H1FY17.”
Alliance managing director Scott McMillan said the Fokker 100 was fully certified for operations in Australia.
“Alliance has again proven that it is able to manage and complete complex aircraft projects including the full refurbishment and Australian certification of European sources aircraft,” McMillan said in a statement.
According to a photo of VH-NHA taken in Bratislava published on the SlovakAviation.sk website, the Fokker 100 was painted in QantasLink livery in Europe before making the trip to Perth. The photo can be seen here.
At its 2015/16 half year results in February, Qantas said it would replace some Boeing 737-800 aircraft with three Fokker 100s for intra-WA services in response to the downturn in mining and resources activity in the state.
Fokker 100 VH-NHA previously operated with Austrian Airlines subsidiary and was part of the deal announced in November 2015 where Alliance acquired the European carrier’s fleet of 15 Fokker 100s and six Fokker 70s. The aircraft were due to be transferred over to Alliance over a 26-month period.
The transaction comprised a US$9.5 million cash payment and the issuing of new shares to Austrian worth US$5.5 million, giving it a 12 per cent stake in Alliance.
The company said on Wednesday five aircraft have been delivered to Alliance, with two contracted for sale, a further two joining Alliance’s local fleet and one placed in storage in Bratislava.
Alliance currently has three employees based in Europe.
“The long term strategy for this operation remains a combination of aircraft sales, wet and dry leasing, engine sales and leasing and spare parts,” Alliance said.
