Inside Brussels Airlines: how an airline prepares its fleet for hibernation

photo and video report

As a consequence of the coronavirus crisis, we had to temporarily suspend all of our flights. Except for a few aircraft that are on standby to bring stranded Belgians home, our entire fleet is parked and stored at Brussels Airport.

If you think this is a simple task, just like parking a car, you should guess again. Storing an Airbus A330 takes about 400 man hours, as our Maintenance & Engineering teams meticulously follow Airbus manufacturer instructions to make sure that our birds are stored safely. This means that all windows are taped to prevent sunlight from decolouring the interior, landing gears and engines are thoroughly packed so that birds cannot nest in them and to prevent corrosion. All our seats are covered as well, to keep them crisp and clean.

All this creates an unusual, but spectacular sight at Brussels Airport. As an airport is not made to park so many aircraft at the same time, a taxiway even had to be cleared.

One might think that after parking and locking an aircraft, there’s nothing left to do but wait until it can take off again. But in reality, the Brussels Airlines Maintenance & Engineering teams are kept quite busy in order to keep the fleet in tip-top shape. Every day, for example, the wheels have to be turned just slightly, to make sure they don’t get worn out under the weight of the aircraft and every week, inspections and tests need to be performed. 30 Maintenance & Engineering colleagues still work full-time to perform all these tasks. They make sure that our fleet is ready to welcome our guests on board once we’re able to take off again.

This series of photos shows the rare sights the Brussels Airlines fleet at the airport. You can download and use the pictures with copyright Brussels Airlines.

Footage of the parking and storage process can be downloaded here (please use Copyright Brussels Airlines)

Preview of the footage:

 

 

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About Brussels Airlines

Brussels Airlines is the home carrier of Belgium and one of the four network airlines of the Lufthansa Group. It connects the European capital from Brussels Airport with over 90 destinations, 18 of which are in Sub Saharan Africa. The company employs more than 3,500 people and operates 44 aircraft.

Brussels Airlines aims to emit 50% less CO2 by 2030 compared to 2019 and plans to be carbon neutral by 2050. The airline is participating in the Stargate Project led by Brussels Airport and is therefore part of the testing ground for sustainable aviation at its home base. In addition, the airline signed the Circular Economy agreement of the Antwerp Management School in 2021. The airline was the first to transport Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) through the CEPS-pipeline connecting Brussels Airport early 2023. By end 2024, Brussels Airlines will have welcomed five state-of-the-art Airbus A320neo allowing the airline to significantly lower its CO2- and noise-emissions on its medium-haul network.

As an ambassador of its country, Brussels Airlines brings the world to Belgium and the best of Belgium to the world, among others through collaborations with Belgian Star Chefs, Belgian culinary products and the Belgian Icons, specially painted aircraft that honour a Belgian iconic person, team or event to promote Belgian culture worldwide.

More information on brusselsairlines.com 


About Star Alliance

Established in 1997 as the first truly global airline alliance, the Star Alliance network was founded on a customer value proposition of global reach, worldwide recognition, and seamless service. Since its inception, it has offered the largest and most comprehensive airline network, with a strong emphasis on enhancing the customer experience throughout the entire Alliance journey.

Overall, the Star Alliance network currently offers more than 17,500 daily flights to over 1,150 airports in almost 190 countries.

Star Alliance Press Office: +65 8729 6691; mediarelations@staralliance.com
More information on staralliance.com

Contact

b.house Zone General Aviation - Airport Building 26 1831 Diegem

+32 2 723 89 90

press@brusselsairlines.com

www.brusselsairlines.com