Qatar Airways considers acquiring former US Airways Airbus A330s

During the pandemic, American Airlines reconsidered its stance on its A330-200 fleet. While nine A330-300s were retired soon after the merger, decisions about the smaller A330s were still pending. Former CFO Derek Kerr stated during a Q2 2020 earnings call that some older Boeing 737s and A330-200s were placed into temporary storage programs.

In October 2020, amid efforts to reduce costs and preserve cash during the pandemic, American Airlines announced significant budget cuts totaling $17 billion for that year alone. This led to over 150 aircraft being removed from its fleet, including Boeing and Airbus models like the A330-200.

Kerr noted in an earnings call that retiring certain fleets was part of a long-term strategy to simplify operations: "With the permanent retirement of our A330-200 fleet announced this morning, we now have only four aircraft types in our mainline fleet: 737, the A320 family, 787, and 777."

If Qatar Airways proceeds with acquiring some or all of these ex-American Airlines A330-200s, it would not be unprecedented for them to purchase second-hand aircraft. The airline has previously acquired Boeing jets from Cathay Pacific and Virgin Australia between December 2021 and June 2023.

Moreover, Qatar Airways introduced nine Boeing single-aisle jets into its fleet in 2023 due to changes following international sanctions against Russia's S7 Airlines post-February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The airline's first commercial flight using a newly acquired Boeing jet took place on May 10, 2023.

In addition to acquiring new aircraft types, Qatar Airways has also wet-leased several Oman Air A330 models while maintaining some of its own stored or active versions within its operational lineup.