The welcome ceremony was held for the Bombardier Q400 from SATA Air Açores (registration CS-TSE), which recently joined the airline’s fleet to ensure the reinforcement of flights between the islands of the Azores, considering the increase in traffic that was already expected and that has been occurring.
The ceremony, chaired by the President of the Regional Government of the Azores, was held next to the SATA Air Açores Maintenance hangar and was attended by entities representing the Autonomous Region of the Azores and the aviation sector.
The Bombardier Q400 aircraft (also known as De Havilland Canada Dash 8) is currently configured with a capacity of 78 passengers and a total cargo hold capacity of 1,595 kg.
This aircraft arrived to reinforce the interisland operation, which this year of 2022 is expected to have an increase of around 21%, compared to the pre-pandemic year of 2019.
SATA Air Açores has operated an average of 74 daily interisland flights, around 432 weekly flights, which results in a constant back and forth between the islands of the Azores Archipelago.
“Vitorino Nemésio” was the name chosen to appear on the fuselage of this aircraft, as a tribute to the Azorean poet, novelist and academic, an unavoidable reference in Portuguese literature and culture, who has always carried the name of the Azores far beyond the geographic limits of the archipelago where he was born.
With the integration of this new aircraft, SATA Air Açores started to operate with a fleet of seven aircraft: five Bombardier Q400 and two Bombardier Q200.