A worldwide shortage of new and used widebodies is delaying the launch of Really Cool Airlines (LUV), CEO Patee Sarasin has told the Bangkok Post. However, he indicated that the start-up may get two aircraft as soon as November.
As earlier reported in ch-aviation, Sarasin had hoped to launch his airline towards the end of 2023 and wanted to be operating four Airbus widebodies by the end of 2024.
"If the first two aircraft are delivered in November, we will start with charter flights to Japan as planned to settle our system for three to four months," he now says. "Hopefully, we can start scheduled flights in the first or second quarter of 2025 to tap the high travel demand during that period.”
Late last year, Sarasin said he would launch using A330-300s in 2024 and intended to introduce A350-900s in 2025. Responding to inquiries from ch-aviation at the time, a Really Cool Airlines spokesperson said the lease negotiations were "a work in progress."
Sarasin told the Bangkok Post that delays with new aircraft deliveries meant operators were holding onto their existing inventory for longer than planned, which has impacted the secondary market. The carrier will operate as a point-to-point operator targeting the international inbound market. Sarasin has previously said he will launch with flights to Japan before expanding into regional airports such as Hong Kong International, Shanghai Pudong, and Singapore Changi and later venturing into long-haul markets like Europe.
