Eastar Jet (ZE, Seoul Gimpo) took delivery of a B737-8 from BOC Aviation, marking the type's return to operations with the LCC following its extended restructuring and suspension of operations.
"We had experienced the operational efficiency of Boeing 737-8 by operating it for the first time in South Korea. Starting with this Boeing 737-8, we will expand our routes and initiate substantial business expansion," Chief Operating Officer Sang-Jong Yoo said.
The lessor and the airline did not disclose the identity of the aircraft. The ch-aviation fleets module shows that BOC Aviation owns thirty-two B737-8s, of which one - 2-FLKS (msn 62881), formerly placed with Flair Airlines - is currently without an operator. The lessor also has outstanding orders for 71 new B737-8s.
Eastar Jet currently operates just three B737-800s. The South Korean LCC suspended all flight operations in March 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic started and subsequently lost its AOC. It has since undergone business restructuring, ownership change, and recertification, before finally restarting operations in March 2023. Its fleet peaked at 25 units in 2018, when it operated nineteen B737-800s and two each of B737-700s, B737-900ERs, and B737-8s. The airline operated the two B737-8s on lease from Minsheng Financial Leasing between December 2018 and March 2019, returning them formally in December 2021.
The LCC plans to operate ten B737s by the end of 2023, including three B737 MAX and seven B737NGs.
