OY-GDC; Grat Dane Airlines (in Bamboo Airways livery)@ CGN 11.06.2021
Great Dane Airlines on Friday (11.09.2020) flew an Embraer E195 registered OY-GDC (not pictured) to Vietnam, featuring the Bamboo Airways livery. On board we’re 45 Great Dane Airlines employees who, with just four days notice, have been moved to Vietnam for the next 6 months as part of an agreement between the Danish and Vietnamese carriers.
The agreement includes two Embraer E195 aircraft, and will allow Bamboo Airways to operate several routes including those to Con Dao; the largest plane permitted to operate there is the Embraer E195.
This is the first E-jet to be operated in Vietnam. In total, Great Dane Airlines will send two Embraer E195s to Vietnam, including OY-GDC which has already made its way to Hanoi, Vietnam, as well as OY-GDB. Both feature the Bamboo Airways livery.
OY-GDC was painted in late-July in Warsaw and continued to operate for Great Dane Airlines in the Bamboo Airways livery for some time. On 11 September, the aircraft made its way to Lahore, Pakistan via Trabzon, Turkey, before arriving in Hanoi, Vietnam the next day.
OY-GDB, which is still operating flights for Great Dane Airlines for the time being, left the paint shop in Warsaw, Poland bound for Aalborg, Denmark on 30 July.
Speaking to check-in.dk, the airline’s CEO said it could exercise its option for an additional Embraer E195 aircraft, bringing its fleet of the type to four aircraft. This would allow it to continue to pursue growth in Denmark while 2 of its planes operate in Vietnam.
Great Dane Airlines has given Bamboo Airways the possibility to extend the wet-lease agreement, up until Summer of 2021, by which time it wants the aircraft back.
Thomas Hugo Møller, CEO at Great Dane Airlines, said that without the deal with Bamboo Airways, the plan was to cease operations and declare bankruptcy, before restarting operations next year.
The deal also means that Great Dane Airlines can withdraw some, if not all of the redundancy notices sent out to 32 employees due to COVID-19.