Ukrainian airline SkyUp opened an airline in the EU with an office in Malta. This will allow it to open regular flights from Europe.
According to avianews.com, the carrier currently has only one airliner in its fleet, but the situation will improve by the end of the year.
Subsidiary SkyUp MT received the necessary documents: operator’s certificate (AOC), airworthiness license (AOL), and certificate of airworthiness maintenance organization (CAMO). This will allow the carrier to start operating flights without restrictions as a full-fledged EU airline and take advantage of the open skies.
It is noted that the company will focus on renting aircraft with crews for flights from other airlines. Currently, the SkyUp MT fleet has only Boeing 737-800 2011 release. By the end of 2023, SkyUp plans to expand its company’s fleet in Malta. The carrier noted that these will be aircraft under new contracts and not from the SkyUp fleet.
The war in Ukraine and SkyUp
The SkyUp company managed to evacuate almost all the aircraft from the beginning of the war in Ukraine. Only one plane remained at Boryspil airport – a Boeing 737-800 with registration UR-SQP. It was taken out in April 2023.
As you know, on February 24, 2022, the pilots tried to fly to Chisinau, but the controllers ordered them to return to the airport, as the sky over Ukraine was closed to civilian aircraft.
On August 5, 2022, SkyUp announced plans to launch its airline in Europe. Initially, the carrier will operate flights from the Baltic countries, Moldova, Romania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and flights from Germany and Austria are also possible. The main part of the routes will be traditional tourist destinations such as Turkey and Egypt, as well as exotic destinations such as Tanzania.