Source: TAP

  • Limited to a cap of 99 aircraft and with reduced slots, TAP optimises fleet, operational and financial performance
  • ATR fleet reduced from six to two aircraft
  • Portugalia to operate six additional Embraer aircraft
  • Contract with White Airways ends on 31 October
  • ATR aircraft will be operated by another provider to improve performance and results

White Airways has been operating a fleet of six ATR aircraft for TAP, which has been a constant challenge, with multiple ATR aircraft grounded due to breakdown and experiencing declining operational regularity.

According to the restructuring plan that TAP is committed to, the Company has a limitation in terms of fleet size, which cannot exceed 99 aircraft.

This limitation requires the company to enhance its offer by using aircraft with higher seating capacity to the detriment of aircraft from the fleet with lower capacity, namely ATRs.

In addition, TAP must strengthen the reliability of its fleet to avoid operational results being penalised by aircraft unavailability.

In future, TAP will only need two ATRs, as it will rely on Portugalia’s six additional E-jets, two of which began operations in September this year, while the remaining four will be phased in until January 2023.

During the last year alone, White Airways has averaged 10 aircraft grounded (AOG) per month for technical reasons.

In 2022 (accumulated), White Airways has 1,9 AOGs per 100 flights, contrasting with TAP’s ratio of 0,52 AOG’s per 100 flights. White operated 94% of planned flights, while in TAP this percentage rises up to 98,2%.

Between November 2021 and September 2022, technical reasons resulted in an aggregate of 342 cancelled flights, with an average of 31 cancelled flights per month. In September 2022 alone, White had 84 flights cancelled for technical reasons.

Since January 2022, the underperformance of the ATR fleet operated by White has had a negative financial impact on TAP of €4.8 million due to cancellations, the need to exchange aircraft with increased capacity and passenger compensation.

Despite White’s operational unreliability, TAP has been paying White directly for flight hours and bearing the costs of aircraft leases and maintenance spares.

Between 2016 and 2022, TAP paid €109 million for flight hours directly to White and €98 million for aircraft leases in White’s service, plus $33 million for maintenance spares to the aircraft lessor.

During the pandemic years, TAP continued to support White, paying €24 million during 2020 and 2021, which represented an average decrease of only 20% compared to 2019, although on average White’s operations for TAP decreased by 42%.

White’s contract with TAP expires on 31 October 2022.

TAP has issued a request for proposal to several ATR operators to optimize the fleet operating in its service, increase reliability and reduce costs.

Of the five proposals received, the best offer to operate two ATRs is being negotiated and will provide the necessary operational regularity and avoid the negative financial impact TAP has suffered so far due to White’s unreliability. The selected operator will hire Portuguese crew and maintenance personnel for the two ATRs.