The Fleet History Of Former Russian Carrier KD Avia

The carrier operated various jetliner designs over the years.

Before we look at what aircraft former Russian airline KD Avia had in its fleet, let's first take a closer look at the airline and see how it came to be.

Using the name Kaliningrad Avia the airline began operations shortly after the end of the hostilities on October 8, 1945, as a part of Aeroflot. Based at Khrabrovo Airport (KGD), the airline connected The Russian Baltic enclave of Kaliningrad, sandwiched between Poland and Lithuania, with the rest of Russia. In 1992, Kaliningrad Avia became independent of Aeroflot and, in 2004, launched its first international flights.

Read more: Aeroflot Group signs purchase agreement for 339 Russian-built aircraft

The airline changed its name to KD Avia

To differentiate it from a state-owned company of the same name, on May 27, 2005, the airline changed its name from Kaliningrad Avia to KD Avia. The same year, the airline began to modernize its fleet, replacing Russian Tupolev Tu-134 and Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft with American-built Boeing 737-300s.

The first Boeing aircraft arrived in February 2005, and the airline received a further five by the end of the year. During 2005, KD Avia operated scheduled flights between Kaliningrad, St. Petersburg, and Moscow, along with charter flights to vacation destinations in Turkey and Egypt.

KD Avia operated a hub and spoke system

Focussed on operating a hub and spoke route system out of Khrabrovo Airport, the airline began to invest in a new, modern passenger terminal. The big picture was to make Khrabrovo Airport a transit point for passengers traveling to destinations in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

Things, however, did not develop as expected, and on September 14, 2009, the airline had its air operator certificate revoked, leading to the suspension of all flights. Two months later, the airline's owner Sergei Grishchenko and executive director Leonid Itskov were charged with abuse of power. The pair had the airline make deals with companies affiliated with them that did not make financial sense.

KD Avia's historical fleet

All the information below was gathered from the aviation data and statistics website ch-aviation.

Tupolev Tu-134

The Tupolev Tu-134 is a 72–84 passenger narrowbody airliner built by the Soviet Union for short and medium-haul routes. KD Avia operated 10 of these aircraft during its time:

Tupolev Tu 134 with the registration RA-65845 was delivered to Aeroflot on November 23, 1974. The plane is listed as now being derelict.
Tupolev Tu 134 with the registration RA-65824 was delivered to Aeroflot on June 7, 1974. The aircraft was later scrapped at KGD in 2006.
Tupolev Tu 134 with the registration RA-65870 was delivered to Aeroflot on April 16, 1975. The aircraft was scrapped at KGD in 2000.
Tupolev Tu 134 registration RA-65011 was delivered to Aeroflot on March 10, 1976. After suffering a fire the plane is now listed as being derelict at KGD.
Tupolev Tu 134 with the registration RA-65010 was delivered to Aeroflot on April 20, 1976, and is listed as having been scrapped in October 2012
Tupolev Tu 134 with the registration RA-65019 was delivered to Aeroflot on April 27, 1976, and is listed as having been scrapped on May 18, 2010.
Tupolev Tu 134 with the registration RA-65027 was delivered to Aeroflot on June 30, 1976. In March 2005, the aircraft was listed as being derelict at MHP.
Tupolev Tu 134 with the registration RA-65054 was delivered to Aeroflot on February 28, 1977. The plane is now listed as being preserved at an unspecified location.
Tupolev Tu 134 with the registration RA-65087 was delivered to Aeroflot on December 23, 1977. The plane is listed as being scrapped on July 13, 2011.
Tupolev Tu 134 with the registration RA-65090 was delivered to Aeroflot on December 30, 1977. The plane is listed as having been scrapped in 2012.

Tupolev Tu-154

The Tupolev Tu-154 is a three-engined Soviet-built narrowbody airliner designed in the mid-1960s. The plane proved very popular and was the workhorse of Soviet and Eastern European airlines for many years. KD Avia operated three, which were as follows,

Tupolev Tu-154, with the registration RA-85789, was first delivered to Kaliningradavia on August 20, 1996. In April 2006, the aircraft went to UTair before being scrapped at VKO in March 2012.
Tupelov Tu-154, with the registration RA-85789, was first delivered to CSA Czechoslovak Airlines on December 13, 1998. In 1992 the plane went to China United Airlines before being acquired by KD Avia in September 2005. Following the failure of KD Avia, the aircraft went to the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force.
Tupelov Tu-154, with the registration RA-85788, was first delivered to Kaliningradavia on August 20, 1998. In 2001 the plane went to Russian Sky Airlines, Eurasia Air, and UTair before being scrapped at UFA in September 2013.

Boeing 737-300

Regarded as the Classic, the Boeing 737-300, was the second series of Boeing 737 aircraft with an increased capacity and more extended range. A total of 12 were operated by KD Avia after its independence from Aeroflot:

KD Avia Boeing 737-300 with the registration EI-DJK was first delivered to Air Malta on June 15, 1999. The aircraft then went to KD Avia on January 5, 2005. The plane was scrapped at Tallinn Lennart Meri (TLL) in June 2019.
KD Avia Boeing 737-300 with the registration EI-DJS was first delivered to Go Fly on June 11, 1998. It then served with easyJet before being acquired by KD Avia on July 13, 2005. The plane is listed as having been scrapped at Kyiv Boryspil (KBP) in March 2015.
KD Avia Boeing 737-300 with the registration EI-DJR was first delivered to Go Fly on September 3, 1998. I then served with easyJet before being acquired by KD Avia on July 7, 2005. The plane later went to Air Guinée Express and South Supreme Airlines and is now in storage at Al Fujairah International (FJR).
KD Avia Boeing 737-300 with the registration EI-CHH was first delivered to Frontier Airlines on October 28, 1995. It joined the KD Avia fleet on May 27, 2005. The plane is now listed as having been scrapped at Lasham (QLA) in 2012.
KD Avia Boeing 737-300 with the registration EI-DMN was first delivered to Transavia on December 9, 1999. The plane joined KD Avia on December 1, 2005. The aircraft was later scrapped at Tucson International (TUS) on July 22, 2011.
KD Avia Boeing 737-300 with the registration EI-DOM was first delivered to America West Airlines on October 6, 1998. The plane joined KD Avia on August 2, 2006. The aircraft was scrapped at Leeds/Bradford Airport (LBA) in December 2011.
KD Avia Boeing 737-300 with the registration EI-DON was first delivered to Transbrasil on August 4, 2002. The plane joined KD Avia on December 27, 2006. The aircraft has been displayed at Kaliningrad Khrabrovo Airport (KGD) since 2014.
KD Avia Boeing 737-300 with the registration EI-DOO was first delivered to Delta Air Lines on July 21, 1998. The plane joined KD Avia on December 22, 2006. The aircraft is listed as being displayed at Lasham Airfield (QLA) in Hampshire, England.
KD Avia Boeing 737-300 with the registration EI-DTY was first delivered to SAETA Air Ecuador in January 2001. The plane joined KD Avia on December 8, 2006. The aircraft is currently displayed at Cotswold Airport (GBA) in Gloucestershire, England.
KD Avia Boeing 737-300 with the registration VP-BBG was first delivered to KLM Royal Dutch Airlines on January 15, 1987. The aircraft joined KD Avia on December 6, 2006. The plane is listed as having been scrapped at Vilnius International (VNO) in 2012.
KD Avia Boeing 737-300 with the registration VP-BJW was first delivered to US Air on August 5, 1989. The plane joined KD Avia on August 16, 2007. The aircraft is currently listed as being on display at Cotswold Airport (GBA) in Gloucestershire, England.
KD Avia Boeing 737-300 with the registration VP-BFPwas first delivered to US Air on March 24, 1986. The plane joined KD Avia's fleet in January 2008 and is currently listed as being on display at Porto Alegre Salgado Filho International Airport (POA) in Brazil since September 2010.