If you’re flying LOT Polish Airlines across the Atlantic in the coming months, you might find yourself on a plane you weren’t expecting. Frankly it’s not necessarily bad news…
EuroAtlantic operating Warsaw to New York & Toronto flights
LOT Polish Airlines’ long haul fleet consists exclusively of Boeing 787s. However, the airline has historically leased jets from other airlines in winter to operate select frequencies, during a period when many of LOT’s own aircraft undergo maintenance. That’s exactly what’s happening again this year.
As flagged by AeroRoutes, LOT Polish Airlines will be using a leased Boeing 777-200ER from EuroAtlantic Airways to operate two of its routes over the coming months:
- The Warsaw (WAW) to Toronto (YYZ) route — LO45/46 — will be operated by a EuroAtlantic 777 5x weekly between September 10 and October 27, 2024
- The Warsaw (WAW) to New York (JFK) route — LO27/26 — will be operated by a EuroAtlantic 777 6x weekly between October 29, 2024, and March 29, 2025
LOT Polish Airlines is leasing the 20-year-old 777-200ER with the registration code CS-TSW, which has 293 seats. For those not familiar with EuroAtlantic, it’s a Portuguese charter airline, which specifically operates flights on behalf of other airlines.
This is a wet lease arrangement, meaning that the aircraft and crew will be from EuroAtlantic, while you can expect the standard LOT food, drinks, and amenities.
In past years, LOT Polish Airlines has sometimes used Air Belgium for its wet lease needs. However, with Air Belgium (once again) being on the brink of liquidation, I suppose LOT chose to go with a more reliable operator.
What does this EuroAtlantic swap mean for passengers?
Should passengers booked on this EuroAtlantic service be looking forward to this change, or does it represent a downgrade? Well, it’s a mixed bag, I’d say.
For context, LOT operates Boeing 787-8s and 787-9s across the Atlantic, which have the following capacity:
- LOT 787-8s have 252 seats, including 18 business class seats, 21 premium economy seats, and 213 economy class seats
- LOT 787-9s have 294 seats, including 24 business class seats, 21 premium economy seats, and 249 economy class seats
EuroAtlantic’s Boeing 777-200ER features 293 seats, including:
- 30 business class seats
- 24 premium economy seats
- 239 economy seats
This is a former Alitalia jet, and the interiors very much still reflect that. Business class consists of fully flat staggered seats in a 1-2-1 configuration, so at least each passenger has direct aisle access.
Premium economy is in a 2-4-2 configuration, and is pretty standard.
Economy is also in the typical 3-4-3 configuration.
If flying business class, I might just prefer EuroAtlantic to LOT Polish Airlines, which has rather outdated cabins (though they should be refreshed starting in 2026). Meanwhile in the rest of the cabin, I might prefer the general benefits of the Dreamliner.
Bottom line
Over the coming months, EuroAtlantic will be operating select transatlantic frequencies on behalf of LOT Polish Airlines, from Warsaw to both New York and Toronto. EuroAtlantic is flying a former Alitalia Boeing 777. While the plane might be a bit on the tired side, the hard product isn’t necessarily worse than you’ll find on LOT Polish Airlines.
What do you make of EuroAtlantic operating LOT’s New York service?
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