Qatar Airways is reportedly considering the acquisition of several former American Airlines Airbus A330 widebodied aircraft to plug the capacity gap caused by the delay to new aircraft being delivered from both Airbus and Boeing. The aircraft concerned were inherited by American Airlines when it merged with US Airways in December 2013, but since the pandemic have been mothballed in long-term storage in the United States. 

Aviation industry commentator JonNYC stated on social media that Doha-based Qatar Airways is considering a deal with its oneworld partner American Airlines to acquire a number of the mothballed jets for deployment within its own widebody fleet. The aircraft, should they be acquired by the carrier, are likely to be repainted and retrofitted with Qatar’s onboard product to ensure fleet consistency and a seamless customer experience.  

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the US-based carrier consolidated its fleet around four core families of aircraft – the Boeing 737, 777, 787, and Airbus A320 family. This strategic decision saw dozens of other types retired from service, namely the Boeing 757, 767, Airbus A330-200, and A330-300s, as well as dozens of regional jets.