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Finnair wet leases Airbus A330 from Iberia for its Miami route

TO accommodate the training of pilots that will be require to cope with the airline's growing operation for the summer 2017 season and beyond, Finnair is to wet lease an Airbus A330 aircraft and crew from its oneworld partner Iberia for its Miami route from January 10 to January 31.

The airline said in a statement that due to the arrival of additional A350 aircraft in 2017, Finnair is currently training its A330 pilots for A350 operations. The pilot trainings will continue during the spring of 2017 and may require Finnair to extend the period of the Iberia wet lease beyond the month of January.

Finnair flies to Miami three times a week. With the wet lease, the cockpit and cabin crew are from Iberia and the flights will have two Finnair service crew members on board to support the delivery of Finnair's customer service concept.

The airline's COO, Jaakko Schildt, said: "Pilot trainings are a key part of our preparations for growth. This wet lease from Iberia enables us to ensure punctual operations during a time when a large share of Finnair pilots are tied up in A350 related trainings."

The wet leased aircraft from Iberia is three years old with 36 full-flat seats in Business Class and 242 seats in Economy Class, all with a seat-back inflight entertainment system. Finnair is contacting customers with bookings on the flights to be operated with the wet leased aircraft directly to inform them of the change in carrier, the airline said.