Brussels Airlines gets three additional long-haul aircraft for Africa

Brussels Airlines’ fleet will be expanded with three new A330 long-haul aircraft, the first of which is expected in mid-2025. With four leased short-haul aircraft, Brussels Airlines will offer 14% more seats next summer while reserving 100 million euros for brand-new cabins. With 13 jets, the long-haul fleet has never been so large and is expected to provide more traffic to and from Africa.

New destinations are not yet to be expected immediately, but Brussels Airlines wants to fly more often and more directly to existing African destinations. After all, the demand for flights to and from sub-Saharan Africa is developing rapidly, according to the airline.

18 destinations in Africa

Brussels Airlines is the Lufthansa Group’s Africa specialist. It recently added the Kenyan capital of Nairobi as its 18th destination in Africa.

The ambition is to make Brussels a European hub for flights to and from Africa. For the supply of passengers from the United States, for example, who fly on via Brussels to Africa and vice versa, Brussels Airlines counts mainly on partners, such as United Airlines and Air Canada. It has no ambition to add additional American destinations but will continue to fly to New York and Washington.

250 extra jobs, deployment of four Airbus A220 aircraft

The additional aircraft will account for at least 250 additional jobs “just to operate them: pilots, stewards and flight attendants, and maintenance personnel.” In addition, the fleet expansion will also create additional jobs in administration, at the airport, and at the baggage handler.

Additional capacity will also be available on short-haul flights. Brussels Airlines does not yet have additional aircraft of its own, but it will lease four aircraft during the summer from Baltic carrier AirBaltic (wet lease, with crew included).

These are Airbus A220s with 148 seats, suitable for regional connections and routes with lower passenger numbers. The agreement with airBaltic runs for at least three years. The company will deploy 21 A220-300 aircraft in total for the Lufthansa Group.

Those additional aircraft mean Brussels Airlines will offer 14% more seats next summer. There won’t be a big passenger increase this year compared to 2023 when the airline carried 8.3 million passengers. But next year, “a big step” is expected.

Once all the announced aircraft are operational, Brussels Airlines will fly with more than 50 aircraft again. This will bring the airline back close to the number of aircraft it had before the major restructuring during the Covid-19 crisis, in which the fleet was reduced by 30% and the workforce by a quarter.

€100 million for brand-new cabins

Brussels Airlines is also investing 100 million euros in new interiors for its planes over the next few years. These should be available in business, premium economy, and economy class from 2027.

Investments are possible because Brussels Airlines is once again profitable. In 2023, the company recorded an operating profit of 53 million euros, the first profit in several years and a record. Brussels Airlines currently has a fleet of 44 aircraft: 34 for short-haul and 10 for long-haul aircraft. It employs more than 3,400 people.