airBaltic announced on August 13, 2024, that it is exercising its option to purchase 10 additional Airbus A220-300 aircraft.
These 10 aircraft are part of an order for 30 A220-300 aircraft plus 20 options, which the Riga-based airline placed during the Dubai Air Show 2023. This brings the total of firm orders for this type of aircraft on airBaltic books to 90, with 10 options left to be potentially exercised at some point in the future. If fully exercised, airBaltic will end up operating a fleet of 100 A220-200s.
airBaltic, is already the largest A220-300 operator in the world, with 48 of the type currently in service and two more expected to arrive soon. The Riga-based airline is also the largest operator of A220 family aircraft in Europe ahead of Air France, which has the type’s second largest fleet. Worldwide only US carrier Delta Airlines operates more aircraft of this type if both the –100 and –300 versions are counted.
Deliveries corresponding to the order placed in November 2023 will start in 2026.
In a press release announcing the additional order, airBaltic’s CEO, Martin Gauss, hinted at further fleet growth after the current standing order is fully delivered.
“By exercising these options, we are strengthening our unwavering support and trust in the A220 Programme and are looking forward to our fleet expansion over the upcoming years,” he said.
This move is also a signal of confidence in the future of airBaltic, which, in the May 2024, managed to refinance, albeit at a relatively high interest rate, some of its most pressing short-term financial liabilities, paving the way for a potential and much-anticipated IPO.