The handover of 15 out of 40 aircraft back to the leasing companies and layoff of one-third of employees. That is how Mikołaj Budzanowski, Treasury Minister, sees the repair plan of national air carrier LOT, according to Rzeczpospolita.

In his opinion it will work best if all domestic and regional flights are serviced by Eurolot, while busier European destinations and long-haul flights (US, Canada, China) would be serviced by LOT in the new Dreamliners. The first one is scheduled to operate the Chicago-Warsaw route in mid-January.

Many air travel market analysts, such as Krzysztof Moczulski, feel that cutting the fleet may not necessarily be the best decision. For example, payments for the Embraer 170 aircraft are high, but perhaps it’s worth analyzing the destinations they service and rethinking the schedule, rather than paying the price of early lease contract termination. In the end though, the final plan for rescuing LOT will be carried out by the new CEO and management board, which may be selected by the end of January.

Poland A.M.