Surinam Airways will once again operate an Airbus A340-300. The Paramaribo-based airline recently confirmed the signing of an aircraft lease agreement with V2 Aviation, a global aviation consultancy firm specialising in such services.
According to the information, the stipulated duration of the lease will be eight months. “All stakeholders continue to work towards a smooth introduction process and the aircraft is scheduled to arrive in Suriname shortly”, Suriname Airways explained.
Frequent changes to the Surinam Airways fleet
As a result of the agreement, the South American state-owned airline will once again operate an aircraft of the first commercial four-engine aircraft developed by the European manufacturer.
It previously operated a total of two Airbus A340-300s (registration numbers PZ-TCP and PZ-TCR) between 2009, when it took delivery of the first, and 2019, when it deprogrammed the last due to a breach of the corresponding lease agreement.
This was not the only such setback for the company. Surinam Airways has been embroiled in management controversies, frequent staff changes and problems arising from aircraft seizures. The company has struggled for years with internal problems, partly stemming from its management.
Currently, the Surinamese airline leases an Airbus A330-200, registration 9H-PAX, from the Maltese company Airhub to cover its only long-haul route, between Paramaribo (PBM) and Amsterdam (AMS). It also leases its entire crew.
According to information provided by the company, the new A340-300 would cover this transatlantic route. The aircraft is currently in Jordan, where it is being prepared to fly to Suriname. However, it has not yet communicated which aircraft it would be.
Surinam Airways also leases Airhub an Airbus A320, registration 9H-EMU, which is used on regional routes. In addition, it recently commenced operations of its first Boeing 737-800. The airplane will serve routes between Suriname and destinations in the Netherlands Antilles, as well as to and from Belém (BEL), Brazil, Georgetown (GEO), Guyana, and Port of Spain (POS), Trinidad and Tobago.
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