The new » life » of the British regional airline, Flybe Ltd., took delivery of its first De Havilland Canada Dash 8-400 aircraft (registration G-JECX) at Birmingham Airport last Thursday, prior to the start of commercial operations, estimated for the beginning of 2022.
In total Flybe has ordered twelve Dash 8-400s to be delivered through the leasing company Nordic Aviation Capital.
A little more than ten days ago, Flybe’s revival at its new base at Birmingham Airport was officially announced. Its predecessor collapsed in March 2020, and was the UK’s third major airline loss in recent years, after Monarch Airlines and Thomas Cook. Formerly one of the largest regional airlines in the UK market offering 210 routes in 15 countries on which it handled around 9 million passengers a year.
See also: Like the phoenix, Flybe prepares to return and announced Birmingham as its base.
«We are extremely happy to partner with Nordic Aviation Capital to take delivery of our first De Havilland Canada Dash 8-400. These are very exciting times for our team and our airline. We look forward to working with both NAC and De Havilland Canada as we launch and grow our fleet with more of these incredibly fast turboprop aircraft that are environmentally friendlier than regional jets,» commented Dave Pflieger, CEO of Flybe.
Norman Liu, chairman of Nordic Aviation Capital, said, «We are excited to help them create a strong new company that will build on a well-respected and well-known brand» and that they look forward to «seeing them grow and connect communities and regions across the UK and the European Union».
