RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – As anticipated at the end of last year, based on information from an internal Itapemirim communiqué, at least three aircraft will leave Brazil in the coming days.
The airline claims that the reason for sending the aircraft is the need for preventive maintenance, while industry sources believe it is a return at the request of the aircraft owners (the lessors).
Sources close to the company confirmed to AEROIN that two of these aircraft are PS-ITA (msn 2395) and PS-SFC (msn 2156), both owned by DCAL 2 Leasing Limited. These are the only two aircraft of this owner in the Itapemirim fleet, as the other four (PS-AAF, PS-TCS, PS-SPJ, and PS-MGF) are owned by UMB Bank, and there is one more, model A319 (PS-SIL, which never flew at ITA), leased to Hi Fly Malta.
According to sources, the planes will leave Brasilia (PS-SFC) and Rio de Janeiro (PS-ITA) at the end of this week for Marana, in the California desert.
With the departure of these two, the company’s fleet will be reduced to five aircraft in Brazilian territory. The statement to employees said that a third aircraft would also be sent from Brazil, but its registration has not yet been confirmed.
Itapemirim suspended operations on December 17, citing “operational adjustments”, just six months after launching scheduled flights.