GOL Not Expecting Significant MAX Delivery Disruptions

No 737-7 jets areincluded in its 2022 deliveries due to an unclear certification time frame for the aircraft.Meanwhile, GOL took delivery of eight 737-8s in the first quarter of 2022 and three in the second quarter (Q2).“We are not facing significant [delivery] delays,” GOL’s new CEO Celso Ferrer said during a recent earnings call. He explained the airline is facing delays on roughly 20-to-25 aircraft but said, “we have been able to accommodate those delays.”Ferrer explained that most of the aircraft GOL had taken delivery of during the last 12 months were aircraft that were already built, withBoeinghandling the pre-delivery packages. He said GOL will start taking deliveries off the production line by the beginning of 2023. “That’s our own configuration, our own order,” he said.GOL has a healthy MAX order book withBoeing.Aviation Week Network’s Fleet Discovery database shows the airline has 72 737-8s and 25 737-10s on order. The airline’s projections show GOL’s fleet of MAX jets will grow from 44 at the end of 2022 to 56 by year-end 2023. GOL’s goal is to have MAX aircraft represent 50% of its fleet in 2025.Overall, GOL’s fleet will grow from 136 aircraft at the end of 2022 to 139 by the end of next year. While its fleet will only grow slightly year-on-year, Ferrer said GOL’s aircraft utilization should increase 10% next year compared with 2022.A single 737-NG exited GOL’s fleet during Q2, and the company said that three -NGs previously scheduled for return would be converted to dedicated freighters for its new partnership with Mercado Livre. GOL’s logistics business GOLLOG forged a new agreement with Mercado Livre, which operates marketplaces in e-commerce and online auctions, in April. The agreement spans 10 years and includes a dedicated fleet of six 737-800BCFs and the option to add six additional aircraft by 2025. GOL expects to begin operations with the first aircraft in September.Previously, GOL has said GOLLOG will generate roughly BRL 100 million ($19 million) in incremental revenue in 2022.As it works to strengthen its position in the cargo market, GOL posted Q2 revenues ofBRL3.2 billion, a 3% increase over its Q2 2019 revenue and a company record, GOL CFO Richard Lark said. However, the airline posted a Q2 net loss of BRL2.8 billion due to rising jet fuel costs and the lower impact of exchange rate variations compared with the Q2 2021, Lark said. The loss was partially offset by BRL2.2 billion of additional operating income.The airline has adjusted its 2022 revenue projections from BRL13.7 billion to BRL15.4 billion. GOL is trimming its capacity growth year-on-year to 55%-to-65% growth from a prior projection of growth ranging from 65%-to-75%. “We’re being very disciplined on capacity given what’s going on with costs and particularly fuel costs,” Lark said.