Austrian Airlines and Braathens Regional Airlines team up

Tuesday, February 6, 2024

Commencing in the summer of 2024, a fresh collaboration will commence between Austrian Airlines and Braathens Regional Airlines (BRA):

• BRA, the regional carrier, will take on operational responsibilities for specific routes on behalf of Austrian Airlines.
• This partnership aims to enhance the accessibility and connectivity of particular regional routes to the Vienna hub.
• CCO Michael Trestl: “On certain regional routes, the demand has not fully returned after the pandemic. To continue connecting these routes to our Vienna hub in the future, we need adjusted capacity structures. I am pleased to have found a proven partner in Braathens Regional Airlines for this challenging segment.”

Starting from the summer flight program of 2024, Braathens Regional Airlines (BRA), Austrian Airlines’ newly established partner, will assume control of specific routes currently operated by Embraer 195 aircraft through a wet lease agreement. This collaboration primarily aims to enhance operational efficiency and cost-effectiveness on these chosen routes, thereby ensuring the sustainability of connections to the Vienna hub.

Austrian Airlines is confronted with new challenges due to the incomplete recovery of air travel demand on some regional routes following the pandemic. Particularly, the sluggish resurgence of business travel demand has led to reduced overall demand, necessitating adjustments to capacity structures for economically sustainable operations. Routes such as Vienna to Klagenfurt or Košice are suboptimal for Austrian Airlines’ current fleet in both economic and operational terms. As a result, Braathens Regional Airlines (BRA) will now operate these routes. This entails the provision of aircraft and crews by the partner airline.

Passengers onboard can expect to enjoy the familiar Austrian Airlines catering service, and both Business and Economy Class seating options will be available. The flights will be operated using two ATR propeller aircraft, which, owing to their smaller capacity, offer greater efficiency for these specific routes, emit fewer CO2 emissions, and provide the appropriate seating capacity for the markets they serve, featuring a total of 72 seats.

Starting from the summer flight program of 2024, Braathens Regional Airlines (BRA), Austrian Airlines’ newly established partner, will assume control of specific routes currently operated by Embraer 195 aircraft through a wet lease agreement. This collaboration primarily aims to enhance operational efficiency and cost-effectiveness on these chosen routes, thereby ensuring the sustainability of connections to the Vienna hub.

Austrian Airlines is confronted with new challenges due to the incomplete recovery of air travel demand on some regional routes following the pandemic. Particularly, the sluggish resurgence of business travel demand has led to reduced overall demand, necessitating adjustments to capacity structures for economically sustainable operations. Routes such as Vienna to Klagenfurt or Košice are suboptimal for Austrian Airlines’ current fleet in both economic and operational terms. As a result, Braathens Regional Airlines (BRA) will now operate these routes. This entails the provision of aircraft and crews by the partner airline.

Passengers onboard can expect to enjoy the familiar Austrian Airlines catering service, and both Business and Economy Class seating options will be available. The flights will be operated using two ATR propeller aircraft, which, owing to their smaller capacity, offer greater efficiency for these specific routes, emit fewer CO2 emissions, and provide the appropriate seating capacity for the markets they serve, featuring a total of 72 seats.

Here’s a summary of the flight details for various destinations:

Belgrade (BEG):

• Partial program with flights OS737 and OS738
• Daily flights on ATR, while the rest continue to operate on E95.

Bologna (BLQ):

• Partial program with flights OS549 and OS550
• Flights on Saturdays operate on ATR, while the rest continue to fly on E95.

Graz (GRZ):

• Partial program with flights OS977 and OS978
• Daily flights on ATR, while the rest continue to operate on E95.

Klagenfurt (KLU):

• Full program with flights OS393, OS940, OS943, and OS944
• Complete switch from E95 to ATR
• Introduction of Nightstop.

Košice (KSC):

• Full program with flights OS741, OS742, OS743, and OS744
• Complete switch from E95 to ATR.

Leipzig (LEJ):

• Full program with flights OS251, OS252, OS253, and OS254
• Complete switch from E95 to ATR.

Warsaw (WAW):

• Partial program with flights OS631 and OS632
• Flights on Saturdays operate on ATR, while the rest continue to fly on E95.

Zagreb (ZAG):

• Partial program with flights OS681, OS682, OS683, and OS684
• Traffic days: Monday (OS681/682), Saturday, and Sunday (OS683/8849) on ATR
• The rest continue to fly on E95.

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