The contract to lease two Boeing 737-300 aircraft from 1994 was made with International Lease Finance Corporation in May. Maintenance was outsourced to a British company, after Braathens, which also operated 737 Classic aircraft, had denied Color Air the use of its simulators and technical workshops. For the start-up, Color Air hired 18 pilots, 40 flight attendants and 40 ground employees, in addition to the administration. The company was criticized for only hiring women flight attendants. Braathens operated with an internal pension age of 58 years for its pilots, while SAS had a 60-year age limit. Due to EEA rules, the judicial age limit was 65 years, so Color Air was able to hire retired SAS and Braathens pilots. These could be paid only NOK 500,000 in annual wage, since they received a full pension from their old employers on top of it. The Norwegian Airline Pilots Association stated that this was morally reprehensible, but Color Air was supported by the Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority, medical experts, and SAS, who all claimed that there were no medical reasons to not let people in their 60s operate aircraft.