Ultra low cost carrier Flair Airlines, which is also Canada’s third largest airline, seems to be having some financial issues, as four of its aircraft were seized yesterday. The carrier’s communication surrounding this isn’t doing much to reassure consumers either.
Continue reading: Canada’s Flair Airlines Has Four 737 MAXs Seized Over Missed Lease Payments
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
I have to wonder whether the ULCC are headed towards a tough future. They are dependent upon consumers looking for dirt cheap fares. As their costs rise (with inflation), their customers feeling the impact of rising inflation and be forced to cut discretionary spending, rising credit card defaults and more maxed credit cards what's the future. Not to mention what this will do to their partner cc income-the real driver of profits.
Ultimately the legacy carriers will be crushed but I think it will start with the ULCC first.
When you stop paying your mortgage, it usually takes the bank 6 months to act of seizing your house.
Same thing here. This wasn't something that popped up in the past week. Flair has been on thin ice for a long while now, and unfortunately the writing was on the wall.
When creditors seize assests, no one else wants to extend credit. Expect to see fuel companies, Maintenence, training , etc all asking for money up front to supply Flair from now on.
They're done.
This doesn't surprise me. The aviation industry in Canada is too crowded and we don't have the population to support that many airlines.
One can speculate all they want but more details are coming. It seems ominous.
I've recently seen Flair with $33ow fares from Orlando-Sanford to Toronto. No one can operate at a profit with fares that low.
Ben, could you write an article on what happens when a plane is seized? How is this technically done?
I do logistics for living, so that’s the angle I am most interested in.
Does a lessor send a flight crew to the airport to wait for plane to arrive, so as to fly it away right away? Is this a contract crew, or someone who actually works for the lessor? Or does the lessor go to Air Canada or West Jet, or some other airline that has the same type, and go “Listen, we want to contract a crew to fly planes from this airport tomorrow, do you have someone who is available and willing?” Does this mean that, say, Air Canada would know in advance, and, oh by the miracle have an extra plane in hand that is flying the same routes that seized plane was about to fly, full fare undiscounted tickets only… ?
My understanding is that planes don’t have keys, like cars do, but are there codes that need to be changed? What about refueling, do they just pay commercial rate at the airport once they take possession of the plane? Do the leasing companies have their own call signs (if they contract another airline to fly these planes out, I guess they can use this airline’s call sign?)? Where do the planes end up, while they are waiting for a new lease? Is there a C-check or similar before a plane is leased out again? Is there police on hand and a lawyer with a heap of papers saying “You’ve been served?”
Everyone in the news is saying that planes were seized, but it’s so far rather thin on actual details. Are the seized planes still in Toronto/Edmonton, etc?
I’m booked on Flair Flight F8 523 from Ft Lauderdale Fl to Waterloo ON this afternoon at 1:05. Haven’t heard from Flair by email regarding the status of this flight, cannot check in for some reason and cannot reach them by phone. Does anyone know if this flight is going or not? So frustrating!
It looks like this is by design by scum AC, who is trying to disrupt Flair on the busiest weekend of the year in Ontario travel.
https://globalnews.ca/news/9548294/flair-airlines-ceo-seized-planes-lease-rival/