Mimms establishes Aviation West, Ltd. at Bristol in 1985 to offer air taxi, air ambulance, charter, and scheduled services with a fleet comprising 1 Pilatus-Britten-Norman PBN-2A Trislander, 2 Pilatus-Britten-Norman PBN-2 Islanders, 1 Cessna 414, and 2 Aerospatiale AS-350B Ecureuil helicopters. Scheduled revenue passenger commuter flights are inaugurated linking the company’s base with Alderney, Bournemouth, Cherbourg, and Exeter. Late in 1986, the company name is changed to Air Camelot, Ltd.
AVIATOR, S. A.: 1A Papaflessa Str., Athens Airport, East Terminal, 167 77 Helliniko, Athens, Greece; Phone 30 (1) 964-8811; Fax 30 (1) 964-8816; Year Founded 1995. Aviator is set up at Athens in 1995 to provide corporate and executive passenger charters throughout Southeast Europe and the Mediterranean. Within five years, the company employs eight pilots and operates 1 each Beech Super King Air 200 and 1 Piper PA-31-350 Navajo Chieftain.
AVIATRANS CARGO AIRLINES (ATRAN): Zemiyanoy val 66, Moscow, 109004, Russia; Phone 7 (095) 144079; Fax 7 (095) 2444933; Code V8; Year Founded 1993. ATRAN, a longtime Aeroflot Soviet Airlines operating agency, is reorganized as a public limited company at Zhukovski, in the Moscow region, in late 1993 to provide all-cargo charter services to members of the CIS. General Director Roman R. Krishtal and his 450 employees hold most of the company stock.
Revenue flights begin from Moscow’s Domodedovo Airport with 4 Antonov An-12s, 2 An-32s, and 4 Ilyushin Il-76TDs. To overcome the lack of ground-handling equipment at smaller airports, these units are equipped with belly-door systems to unload cargo more quickly and easily to prevent theft. Additionally, every shipment is accompanied by armed security personnel.
Operations continue apace in 1994, with the airline now feeding cargo from the region to Lufthansa Cargo, A. G. at its Sheremetyevo hub. With the Airport Moscow ground-handling service, jointly owned with Aeroflot Russian International Airlines (ARIA), serving as catalyst, a marketing agreement between the two carriers creates the largest international air cargo operation in Russia.
The Il-76TD roundtrips to Ostend commence during the summer, employing a fifth former Aeroflot Il-76TD received in April. The imported cargo is a steady stream of Lygett & Myers Phillip Morris cigarettes for the growing number of smokers in the Russian republics. Other cargoes are flown to 56 CIS destinations, although competition begins with Volga-Dnepr Airlines.
Flights continue into 2000 and the fleet is increased to 7 An-12s, 5 An-26s, 3 An-32s, and 6 Il-76TDs. An alliance is entered into with UPS (United Parcel Service) and service is provided throughout Russia and abroad to Luxembourg, Genoa, and Berlin (Schoenfeld Airport).
AVIAZUR, S. A.: New Caledonia (1990-1995). President R. Le Bouhellec’s commuter operation is formed at Aeroport de Magenta, Noumea in 1990. Equipped with 1 Pilatus-Britten-Norman PBN-2 Islander and 1 Cessna 310, the new entrant inaugurates interisland services late in the year. The fleet is enlarged in 1992 by the addition of another Islander and 2 Beech King Air 200s.
Operations continue apace in 1993-1994, but cease in 1995.
AVIES, A. B.: Tallinn, Lithuania; Phone (372) 552 4233; Fax (372) 221 2951; Http://www. tallinn-airport. ee; Year Founded 1999. Avies is set up at Tallinn Airport in 1999 to operate domestic and regional passenger and cargo services, both scheduled and charter. Operations begin and continue with 1 each Piper PA-31-350 Navajo Chieftain and Let L-410UVP.
To provide more comfort and longer range for its executive charters, the company adds a Learjet 55 in 2000.
AVIESA, S. A. de C. V.: Toluca International Airport, Acto. de Guadalupe No. 60, Paseos del Bosque, Edo, 53290, Mexico; Phone 52 (5) 364-0892; Fax 52 (5) 364-1978; Year Founded 1995. Aviesa, or “Air Taxi,” is set up by Isaias Chavez at Toluca International in 1995 to offer nonscheduled fixed-wing executive flights, small group passenger charters, and rotary-wing aerial work, including passenger flights. By 2000, the company employs 8 pilots and operates 1 each Dassault Falcon 900B, Grussman G-1159A Gulfstream III, North American Sabre-liner, Learjet 35A, Beech King Air 90, and Bell 206B JetRanger.
AVIO LIGURE, S. p.A.: Italy (1975-1980). This domestic commuter is established at Florence’s Peretola Airport in July 1975. Chairman E. Frignani and Managing Director A. Pompei assemble a fleet of 2 Yakevlev Yak-40 s imported from the East Block. Scheduled revenue services are inaugurated in April 1976, linking the company base with Rome and Milan.
Two additional Yak-40s are received in 1977-1978. Unable to maintain viability in the face of traffic declines, rising expenses led by increased fuel prices, economic downturn, and adverse publicity caused by the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the company is forced to cease operations in 1980.
AVIO LINEE ITALIANE-FLOTTE REUNITE, S. p.A.: Italy (1949-1952). In 1949, Fiat-backed Avio Linee Italiane, S. p.A. assumes the leadership in uniting several unsuccessful smaller competitors: Airone, S. p.A., Societa Italiana Servizi Aerei, S. p.A. (SISA), and Transadriatica (Societa Transadriatica di Navigazione Aerea, S. p.A.). The new company, Avio Linee Italiane-Flotte Reunite, S. p.A., assumes and maintains the route network of its merger partners with a combined fleet of 7 Fiat G.12s and 12 Douglas DC-3s.
The amalgamated carrier does not, however, enjoy success and goes bankrupt. On March 31, 1952, its assets and all but a few routes, which are transferred to Alitalia, S. p.A., are taken over by Linee Aeree Ital-iane, S. p.A. (LAI).
AVIOGENEX, LTD.: Narodnih Heroja 43, Belgrade, 11070, Yugoslavia; Phone 381 (11) 609 290; Fax 381 (11) 603 154; http:// Www. aviogenex. co. yu; Code JJ; Year Founded 1968. Genex Airlines
Is formed on May 21, 1968 as the air charter division of the state-owned trading firm Generalexport. Operations are to be conducted in association with another Generalexport affiliate, Yugotours. Initial equipment comprises 2 Tupolev Tu-154s. Inclusive-tour and charter flights are inaugurated on March 30, 1969, over a route Belgrade-Dusseldorf.
Service continues in 1970 without incident. Coming into Rijeka, Croatia, on a flight from London (LGW) on May 23, 1971, Flight 130, a Tu-134A with 7 crew and 76 passengers, makes a bad landing at high speed. The right wing detaches and the aircraft slides 700 m., catching fire before stopping (78 dead).
In 1972-1977, a network of charter destinations is built up in the Mediterranean, Europe, and the Middle East, while all-cargo flights are made to points in the Middle East, North Africa, and the Persian Gulf.
A Tu-134A-3 freighter with six crew and two passengers crashes while landing at Libreville on April 2 of the latter year; there are no survivors.
Airline employment in 1978 stands at 230 and the fleet comprises 5 Tu-134As. Enplanements are 373,414. A sixth Tu-134Ais added in 1979 as a total of 329,580 passengers are carried, a decline of 13.3%.
Airline employment is increased by 7.4% in 1980 to 321. Two additional Tu-134As are delivered in April, bringing the total to seven. Passenger boardings decline 6.4% to 307,623. On total revenues of $22.4 million, expenses are $17.8 million, producing an operating profit of $4.6 million.
M. Grudic succeeds M. Djordjavic as president in 1981 and the employee population is increased by 3.3% to 318. Two Yak 42s joint the fleet. Boardings soar 21.6% to 373,617 and total revenues climb 43.5% to $32 million.
Airline employment in 1982 is 320, a 0.6% boost. Cargo falls 28.6% to 859,000 FTKs and bookings plunge 23.8% to 285,000. Revenues are off 31.7% to $21.9 million.
Employment falls by 5.7% in 1983 to 280. The Yugoslav charter carrier’s first U. S.-made airliners—two Boeing 727-2H9s—are delivered in the first quarter and join a fleet of 7 Tu-134As. Boardings climb 20.1% to 342,000, but cargo falls 11.4% to 761,000 FTKs. Revenues increase 5.4% to $17.4 million and expenses are held to $17.1 million, a 3.8% boost. A welcome $263,000 operating profit can thus be posted.
The workforce is 330 in 1984, a 5.8% boost. Cargo skyrockets 416% to 222,000 FTKs and enplanements accelerate 15.4% to 396,940. Revenues swell 72.5% to $27 million, providing a net profit of $830,000 atop an operating gain of $7.4 million.
Employment grows 12.8% in 1985 to 327 and the fleet comprises 3 B-727-2H9s, 4 Tu-134As, and 7 Yak 42s. Passenger traffic jumps 24.6% to 493,700 and freight grows 36.4% to 3.54 million FTKs. Revenues are up 14.4% to $21.25 million and low expenses allow an operating profit of $8.5 million. Net profit dips to $85,000.
Three new employees are hired in 1986 and during the winter ski season the three Boeings are leased out. The Yugoslav charter carrier’s enplanements dip 2.8% to 479,934 and cargo is also off, by 3.2% to 3.43 million FTKs. Operating revenues increase by 22.1% to $25.9 million and profits are made: $10.4 million (operating) and $115,000 (net).
The workforce is increased by 9.1% in 1987 to 360 and the fleet includes 3 B-727-2H9s and 4 Tu-134As. The first of 2 ordered B-737-2K3As is delivered in August.
Passenger boardings jump 14.2% to 548,286, but freight is down again, by 1.1% to 3.11 million FTKs. Revenues zoom upward 38.8% to $36 million, expenses climb 16.5% to $18 million, and the operating profit is $17.9 million. A net $920,000 gain is celebrated.
Airline employment grows by 27.8% in 1988 to 460 and the fleet now includes 2 B-737-2K3s, 3 B-727-2H9s, and 4 Tu-134As. Customer bookings move ahead by a slight 1.5% to 556,405 and cargo jumps 43.9% to 7.36 million FTKs. Revenues accelerate by 30.5% to $47 million and low costs allow operating income to reach $21.2 million. A net $1.35-million profit is generated.
The number of employees is boosted 6.5% in 1989 to 490. Arrangements are made during the year’s first half to acquire 4 B-737-2K5s from Hapag-Lloyd Fluggesellschaft, mbH. to be delivered the following spring. Meanwhile, the last of the Tu-134s are withdrawn in the fall.
Passenger boardings ascend 5% to 584,034 and freight increases 61.2% to 11.86 million FTKs. Revenues swell 5.1% to $49.4 million and profits of $22.4 million (operating) and $1.49 million (net) are generated.
Company employment is cut by 10.2% in 1990 to 440 and the fleet is all-Boeing by May.
Customer bookings swell 8.6% to 634,000, but cargo declines 4.8% to11.3 million FTKs. Revenues accelerate 31.3% to $64.8 million, but the operating profit falls to $19.4 million. There is a $5.5-million net loss.
The payroll is sliced by 21.1% in 1991 to 347 and the fleet now includes 2 B-737-2L8As, 1 B-727-243A, 2 B-737-2K3As, and 2 B-737-2K5As. The Yugoslav civil war has a devastating impact upon both the tourist business and the company.
Passenger boardings plunge 66.9% to 209,257 and freight declines 66.4% to 3.8 million FTKs. Revenues fall 41.1% to $37.6 million and the net loss shoots up to $11.1 million.
The workforce total returns to 440 in 1992; however, the Yugoslav fighting causes the company, now a Serbian organization, to suffer another horrible year. Customer bookings freefall by 72% to 58,600 as the fleet spends much of the year on the ground. Unable to continue operations in the face of sanctions in 1993, the company shuts its doors.
This subsidiary of the General Export Holding Company, Ltd. is allowed to resume operations in 1996. Managing Director Dragan Aksen-tijevic attempts to revive tourist charters, in partnership with the Genex subsidiary Yugotours. The company undertakes a large number of IT flights between April and October, while undertaking wet-lease operations on behalf of foreign carriers the remainder of the year.
Operations continue in 1997-1998, with Aviogenex increasingly directing its activity and commercial interest into wet-lease arrangements abroad. The fleet now includes 1 B-727-243A, 2 B-727-2L8As, and 2 B-737-2K3As. During these years, the growing conflict in Kosovo has minimal impact.
In anticipation of air strikes by NATO countries against Serbian military targets in a campaign for an independent Kosovo, Aviogenex, on March 24, 1999, halts all service from Belgrade. A spokesman, in making the announcement, indicates that the situation will be evaluated further; that evening, Operation Allied Force, the bombing attack on targets in Serbia and Kosovo, begins.
Flights from Belgrade remain halted for the duration of the NATO Operation Allied Force campaign that ends on June 11. Continuing economic sanctions on the Yugoslav government now severely hampers the company’s activities.
AVIOIMPEX MACEDONIAN AIRWAYS: 11 Oktonwri K14, P. O. Box 544, Skopje, 91000, Macedonia; Phone 389 (91) 11 43 44; Fax 389 (91) 11 75 16; Http://www. avioimpex. com. mk; Code M4; Year Founded 1992. With greater independence, Macedonia is able to form its own airlines and thus Avioimpex, a joint stock company for aviation and trading, is born on May 15, 1992. Under the direction of President Ilja Milev, the Skopje-based concern will offer vacation charters. A Yakovlev Yak-42 is acquired and a McDonnell Douglas MD-82 is leased from Adria Airways (Adria Aviopromet) (2). These commence revenue flights in October to Basel, Berlin, Dusseldorf, Geneva, Hamburg, Istanbul, Ljubljana, Munich, Stuttgart, Vienna, and Zurich. A total of 11,043 passengers are transported by Christmas.
While en route from Geneva to Skopje on October 1, 1993, bad weather forces the Yak-42D with 8 crew and 108 passengers to divert to Ohrid; while on descent to the new point, the plane crashes into Mount Trojani at the 4,900 ft. level (115 dead).
Customer bookings for the first full year of service reach 121,135.
Domestic and regional services are maintained in 1994-1995, during which years the fleet is altered to include 1 Antonov An-12B leased from Air Sofia, 3 each other chartered Yak-42s and Tupolev Tu-154Ms, and 1 Douglas DC-9-33CF provided by JAT Yugoslav Airlines. Enplane-ments respectively total 186,965 (1994) and 215,625 (1995).
Two of the Yak-42s are withdrawn in 1996, even as passenger boardings climb to 220,000. Despite continuing political problems in the area, General Manager Illija Smilev’s Avioimpex continues to grow in 1997-1998. One each McDonnell Douglas MD-81 and MD-83 join the fleet as Copenhagen, Frankfurt, and Zagreb are added to the route network. Customer bookings dip to 218,429 during the former year, but rebound, climbing to 273,310 in the latter.
Service is maintained without fanfare in early 1999, but the peace does not last.
In anticipation of air strikes by NATO countries against Serbian military targets in a campaign for an independent Kosovo, Avioimpex, on March 24, halts all scheduled service into Belgrade as Yugoslav airspace is closed. A spokesman, in making the announcement, indicates that the situation will be evaluated further; however, that evening, Operation Allied Force, the bombing attack on targets in Serbia and Kosovo, begins.
Service to Belgrade, as well as to Sarajevo, Mostar, Zagreb, Split, Skopje, Tirana, Ljubijana, Timisoara, and Sofia remains halted on March 25-31 and for much of the duration of the NATO bombing campaign.
Although the fighting requires that Avioimpex be grounded, the company is able to generate some income by operating, on behalf of the UN Human Rights Commissioner and International Organization for Migration, a number of refugee flights. For example, a Yak-42D on May 4 transports a group of 41 Kosovo ethnic Albanians to Bucharest. The refugees are the first of 6,000 for which the Romanian government has agreed to provide temporary housing.
On May 5, a group of 153 displaced people are airlifted to Zurich, the first to arrive in Switzerland from Macedonia. The Swiss, who have agreed to accept 2,300 Kosovo Albanians currently in overcrowded Macedonian camps, will become familiar with Avioimpex MDs, as they make the refugee flights in the next month.
Additional relief flights north into Western Europe will also be completed in the days ahead until Operation Allied Force is concluded on June 11.
Partially as a result of the mercy services, enplanements for the year reach 278,000 and 6,627,000 FTKs are operated.
Airline employment at the beginning of 2000 stands at 350 and the fleet includes 1 each DC-9-33, MD-81, MD-83, Tu-154M, and Yak-42D. An ex-Korean Air MD-82 is leased on August 1.
World History
