Icelandair is wet-leasing Boeing 767s and acquiring a Boeing 757 on a temporary basis for their its 737 MAX 8s affected by the grounding.
The airline has four MAX 8s within its fleet, three more on order and orders for six MAX 9s.
Icelandair said it was bringing in the 767s and 757s on the assumption that the MAX will be grounded until June 16.
The airline is wet-leasing two 767s in two-class, 262-seat configuration. One is due to arrive imminently and the second next month. Both will be in service until the end of September.
Icelandair is also temporarily acquiring a 757-200 with 184 seats, from May 15 until the end of September. The carrier is a major operator of the 757, with around 25 in service.
In a statement regarding the effect of the suspension of the MAX services, the airline said that it intended to reduce its schedule by around 100 flights during the period April 1 to June.
“In most cases, these are flights to destinations where more than one flight is available on the same day. Despite these changes, the total seat capacity during the period will essentially remain the same since the company will use Boeing 767 aircraft that are larger than the 737 MAX. Therefore, these changes will not have significant effects on the total number of passengers during the period.
“The financial impact of the suspension of the Boeing 737 MAX is uncertain at the time as the amount of compensation from the aircraft producer is still under review,” said Icelandair.
