Panaji: Regional airline FLY91 has inducted two aircraft under long-term operating leases from global regional aircraft lessor TrueNoord, as it continues a measured fleet expansion focused on strengthening connectivity across Tier-2 and Tier-3 markets in India.
The first aircraft entered service in December 2025, while the second aircraft, delivered in January 2026, is scheduled to begin operations in February.
With this transaction, TrueNoord becomes FLY91’s second aircraft lessor, supporting the airline’s disciplined growth strategy.
“This partnership gives us the flexibility to scale our fleet in a disciplined manner, aligned with demand and our long-term regional strategy,” said Manoj Chacko, Managing Director and CEO, FLY91.
“The addition of a second leading global lessor to our portfolio is a significant reaffirmation of FLY91’s operational strengths, governance standards and execution capability,” he added.
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TrueNoord partnership strengthens FLY91’s regional expansion strategy
One of the newly inducted aircraft will be based in Goa, the airline’s home base, while the other will operate from Hyderabad, reinforcing FLY91’s dual-hub strategy and its focus on underserved regional routes.
According to Harsha Raghavan, Chairman of FLY91 and Managing Partner at Convergent Finance, the collaboration supports responsible scaling. “The partnership with TrueNoord enables growth while maintaining financial and operational discipline,” he said.
India’s regional aviation market continues to gain momentum, driven by rising demand from smaller cities and policy support under the UDAN scheme.
“TrueNoord is delighted to partner with FLY91 and support its growth plans,” said Anne-Bart Tieleman, CEO of TrueNoord.
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Regional flying in India is becoming increasingly viable and commercially sustainable. Airlines like FLY91 are seeking aircraft that can be rapidly deployed, operate from regional airports and deliver low trip-cost economics, and TrueNoord is well positioned to support such requirements.
Abhineet Awasthi, Commercial & Transaction Manager at TrueNoord, shared the lessor’s perspective on FLY91’s operating approach. “FLY91 is an agile, execution-driven airline with a clear regional connectivity focus. The team demonstrated a pragmatic, solution-oriented approach throughout the transaction.”
With this induction, FLY91’s fleet expands to four aircraft. The airline currently serves nine destinations and plans to grow its network to 15 destinations in the first quarter of 2026, with two additional aircraft expected to join the fleet by the end of Q1 FY2026.
