SolitAir (Dubai World Central) obtained an Air Operator's Certificate (AOC), #UAE-AOC-AT-0065, from the Emirati General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) on March 26. This has allowed it to take in-house a B737-800(BCF) previously chartered from ASL Airlines Ireland.
A6-SHO (msn 33023) has been parked at Sofia since March 19 and is reportedly undergoing maintenance at the moment. It was ferried there still under its previous registration, EI-HRA. The 20-year-old jet powered by CFM International CFM56 engines and had been operated by Air India Express, SunExpress, and TUI fly (Germany) as a passenger B737-800 variant before its conversion to a cargo aircraft in 2023, ch-aviation fleets data shows.
It is currently unknown when SolitAir will start operations with the dry-leased jet. ch-aviation asked the airline for comment but it was not immediately available.
SolitAir is also chartering two more B737-800(BCF)s, EI-HRB (msn 32686) and EI-HRF (msn 30879), from ASL Airlines Ireland. Both continue to operate under the latter's '5H' code.
In an exclusive interview with ch-aviation in January 2025, founder and chief executive Hamdi Osman said that the airline planned to obtain AOCs from up to six more countries after getting certified by UAE aviation authority. SolitAir intends to introduce scheduled cargo flights to the various airports in Africa, the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent, Central Asia, and Türkiye.
"With scheduled flights, we will be catering to all the integrators, the freight forwarders, other express operators, e-commerce, and anybody who has the need for an aircraft," Osman said.
The airline is based at Dubai World Central and has a 220,000-square-foot (20,440-square-metre) facility at the airport with direct ramp access. SolitAir plans to invest in its own facilities in other countries as it obtains AOCs in new markets.
