AEGEAN AVIATION, S. A.: 572 Vouliagmenis Ave., Athens, 16451, Greece; Phone 01 996 81 81; Fax 01 995 75 98; Http://server. traveling. gr/aegean-aviation; Year Founded 1977. Aegean Aviation is originally established as an FBO at Athens Airport in 1977, with charter flights occasionally operated. On February 17, 1992, Aegean becomes the first independent Greek airline to be issued an air operator’s license by the Ministry of Transport.
By 1998, Aegean has been purchased into the TH. Vassilakis Group of companies, led by Theodores Vassilakis. Capitalization exceeds $6.5 million.
Executive passenger and express services are a major component of the director Nick Kovfovdakis’s company’s business. A total of eight full-time and four part-time pilots are on staff and the fleet includes 1 each Learjet 55 Longhorn, Learjet 35A Century 3, and Piper PA-31-350 Navajo Chieftain.
In addition to the operation of flight services (including medical air charter), the company continues to operate the only specialized fixed-wing business and general aviation maintenance unit in Greece.
At the end of February 1999, Aegean places an order for two Avro RJ100s while simultaneously dispatching several pilots to the U. K. for training. The planes are required to launch scheduled flights in the recently deregulated Greek market.
A third RJ100 is requested on April 7. The first two jetliners arrive on April 30, with the third expected in September.
Beginning in June, scheduled service is launched from Athens to Thessalonika, Heraklion, Corfu, Chania, and Rhodes.
Following receipt of a third AVRO RJ100 in September, an order is placed for a fourth, to be delivered before year’s end.
In December, the carrier absorbs competing Air Greece, S. A., creating the largest privately owned airline in Greece, and the second largest after Olympic Airways, S. A. The Minoan Lines, previously Air Greece’s majority owner, is now a minority 28% shareholder in the surviving line.
Integration of Air Greece continues into 2000. Although the unprofitable Air Greece routes to Germany are dropped, the combined 10-plane fleet still operates 62 daily services to 12 destinations. Much of the first quarter is taken up in the preparation of a corporate strategic plan.
An order is placed in March for 2 more AVRO RJ100s to supplement the 4 already in service, while a concentrated effort is made to sell 2 former Air Greece Fokker 100s. Air Greece is fully integrated by the end of May.
The 2 AVROs ordered in March are on hand by July, bringing the total for the type to 6.
AEOL: Russia (1993-1994). Aeol is formed at Moscow in 1993 to
Offer charter all-cargo services to other nations in the CIS as well as Europe. P. P. Stepin is named general director and revenue flights commence with a single Ilyushin Il-76. Operations continue for less than a year.
AER AIRLINES (AEROTRANSPORTES ENTRE RIOS, S. A.): Argentina (1962-1982). AER Airlines is formed at Buenos Aires in 1962 to offer all-cargo charter services with a pair of Canadair CL-44Ds. During the next decade, flights, which come to emphasize the transport of livestock, are undertaken from Ezeiza Airport to Lima, Panama, Miami, New York, Montevideo, Asuncion, Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Caracas. A former KLM (Royal Dutch Airlines, N. V.) Lockheed L-749 freighter, along with 1 Curtiss C-46 Commando, are obtained in 1964; before the decade’s end, 4 L-1049s also arrive.
A third swing-tail, Canadian-built freighter joins the fleet in 1973 and a total of 34 million FTKs are flown in 1974. The high cost of fuel forces cancellation of services to Europe and Africa and temporary withdrawal of the new Canadair received just the year before. The Commando is also retired.
Airline employment in 1975 stands at 120. Cargo accelerates 15% to 40 million FTKs. Consequently, plans are made to resume operations to the markets suspended in 1974 and an order is placed for a Douglas DC-8-63CF.
A Canadair CC-106 with 5 crew and 5 passengers fails its takeoff from Miami on September 27, overruns the runway, and crashes into the west bank of a canal 960-ft. away (6 dead).
Services continue apace in 1976-1981 and in 1982 Chairman Carlos Martinez Guerrero’s company is merged into TAR (Transporte Aereos Rioplatense, S. A.).
AER ARANN (KILROE AIR IRELAND, LTD.): Connemara Airport, Caislean, Connemara, County Galway, Ireland; Phone 353 (91) 593 034; Fax 353 (91) 593 238; Http://www. aerarann. ie; Code RE; Year Founded 1970. Former captain of Aer Lingus Irish Airlines,
Ltd. Bill Wallace convinces a group of local Oranmore businessmen to form the charter/commuter operation Aer Arann in 1970, with him as CEO/chief pilot. Flying the company’s single Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander, Wallace initiates revenue services in July linking Shannon with the Aran islands of Inishmore and Inishmaan. Later, the company changes its base of operations from Oranmore to Galway.
Regular service is started from Dublin to the Channel Islands in 1973 as the fleet is improved by the addition of three more BN-2s. In September 1974, thrice-weekly service is initiated to Glasgow. Two of the four Islanders are damaged in accidents in Ireland in October 1975 and the company temporarily ceases operations. However, resumption of commuter services to the Aran Islands is soon thereafter resumed, along with regional charters.
In 1976-1977, Col. Charles Blair, accompanied by his wife, actress Maureen O’Hara, employs his famous Antilles Air Boats Short S-25 Sandringham flying boat Southern Cross on summer-only flights among the Aran islands. In 1978-1987, the regional’s scheduled frequencies are maintained and charters are flown to as many as 31 different destinations in Britain and Europe. General Manager Christopher Ryan’s fleet is upgraded to include 2 Islanders and 1 Embraer EMB-110. During these years, the company becomes an associate of the U. K. commuter carrier Air Kilroe, Ltd.
David P. Browne is named general manager in 1988 and the Ban-deirante is withdrawn, to be replaced in 1989 with a Piper PA-23 Aztec. Operations continue apace in 1990-1992.
In 1993, President Timothy Kilroe, who is also CEO of Air Kilroe, Ltd., oversees an Irish workforce of 20 and a fleet that includes 2 Islanders and the Piper PA-23 Aztec. Services are maintained in 1994-1997 and destinations visited from the base at Connemara Airport continue to include Inishmore, Inishmaan, and Inisheer. The Aztec is withdrawn.
Early in 1998, a contract is signed with the board of Donegal Airport Company to provide, with the assistance of Aer Lingus Irish Airlines, Ltd., EU essential Air Service flights to and from Donegal. A British Aerospace BAe Jetstream 31 is leased from Manchester-based Air Kilroe, Ltd. and is employed to inaugurate the new service, Aer Arann Express, on March 2. General Manager Bob Laird’s division is subsequently established as a free-standing subsidiary.
Over the next two years, the main line continues to operate Islander flights to Serves Aran.
AER ARAN EXPRESS, LTD.: International House, Dublin, Ireland; Phone 353 (1) 814 5240; Fax 353 (1) 814 5250; Http://www. aerarann. ie; Code RE; Year Founded 1998. Early in 1998 , a contract is signed by Aer Arann: Kilroe Air Ireland, Ltd. with the board of Donegal Airport Company to provide, with the assistance of Aer Lin-gus Irish Airlines, Ltd., EU essential Air Service flights to and from Donegal. A British Aerospace Bae Jetstream 31 is leased from Manchester-based Air Kilroe, Ltd. and is employed to inaugurate the new service on March 2.
GM Bob Laird's division is subsequently established as a freestanding subsidiary, with headquarters at Dublin. In addition to scheduled services to Donegal and Siego, the carrier also undertakes replacement flights for Manx Airlines, Ltd. (2).
A Shorts 330 is employed to launch expanded services on July 1, 2000. On August 15, the company seeks funding to operate routes from Dublin to both Kerry and Galway when they are given up by Aer Lin-gus Irish Airlines, Ltd. in January. A Shorts 360-300 is leased from Flying Enterprise, A. B. on August 20.
As planning for expanded services from Dublin continue, arrangements are completed on September 18 for the purchase of two exContinental Express ATR42-320s.
The twice-weekly route between Dublin and Sheffield City, abandoned by British Regional Airlines, Ltd., is taken over on October 30.
AER KAVANGO (PTY.), LTD.: Botswana (1994-1995). Anthony Baker establishes this third-level operation at Maun in 1994 to provide scheduled passenger and cargo flights to local destinations. Revenue flights begin with a fleet comprised of 3 Cessna 206s, 1 Cessna 210, and 2 Pilatus Britten-Norman PBN-2 Islanders. Operations cease in 1995.
AER LINGUS COMMUTER (AERLINTE EIREANN TIO-RANTA, LTD.): P. O. Box 180, Dublin Airport, County Dublin, Ireland; Phone (353) 1-705-33-60; Fax (353) 1-705-64-95; Http://www. aerlingus. ir; Code El; Year Founded 1983. Under the direction of Projects Manager Garry Cullen (who will become Aer Lingus Group CEO in 1998), Aer Lingus Commuter is established in May 1983 as an experimental division of the national flag line Aer Lingus Irish Airlines, Ltd. Equipped with two Shorts 360s, the new entrant inaugurates scheduled Ireland-U. K. service from a hub at Dublin. It also flies to local Irish destinations. Two more 360s are delivered in 1984, followed by a fifth in 1985. E. C. Murphy is appointed CEO in July.
Flights to Bristol, Edinburgh, and the East Midlands continue in 1986. In 1987 the 50-employee carrier adds Jersey and Rennes as destinations. The fleet’s 5 Shorts 360s and 1 Shorts 330 transport a total of 195,000 passengers.
In 1988, Ray Wilson is named chief executive and Liverpool, Leeds, Cork, and Ronaldsway join the route network. In October, orders are placed for a pair of Fokker 50s. Enplanements total 195,000. Service to Sligo and Shannon is opened in 1989 and the fleet is enhanced in March by the addition of the first Fokker F-50.
Three more F-50s and a sixth Shorts 360 arrive in 1990 as the company begins flying to Kerry and Waterford. Two 360s are withdrawn in the fall and returned to their lessor, Maersk Air, A. S.
In early 1991, the Shorts are replaced by 2 more Fokker F-50s. The fleet now includes 6 F-50s and 1 out-of-service Shorts 360. Orders are placed in January for 4 SAAB 340Bs, which arrive, beginning with the St. Eithne, and enter service during June and August. They will be employed to develop the carrier’s traditionally thin routes from Dublin to the U. K. destinations of Bristol and East Midlands.
The last Shorts is withdrawn at the beginning of October. In the seven years that the carrier has employed this type, the Shorts have transported 1.5-million passengers.
In 1992, Conor McCarthy becomes CEO and his fleet is enhanced with two more SAAB 340Bs. Airline employment reaches 220 and new service is initiated to Brussels. McCarthy’s fleet in 1993 includes 4 SAABs and 6 Fokker 50s. U. K. destinations served by the regional include Bristol, Bradford, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Newcastle, and Birmingham. Brussels and Dusseldorf are also visited. Henceforth, financial and traffic figures are reported with those of its parent, Aer Lingus Group.
Eithne McManus becomes CEO in 1994, by which time the company’s SAABs have well-developed domestic services in Ireland, serving Galway, Kerry County, Shannon and Sligo in the west and Cork in the south. Routes are also operated to the U. K. communities of Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds/Bradford, Manchester, Newcastle, Bristol, and East Midlands. On weekends, daily direct service is offered from Cork to Manchester.
To keep pace with the parent’s enhanced transatlantic services built around introduction into service of A330-301s, the feeder begins to heavily promote its Dublin hub. Passengers en route to America are encouraged to forsake London and, traveling from an airport in the western half of the U. K., come to Ireland on a Fokker or SAAB flight timed to coincide with Airbus departures. Late in the year, plans are made to replace the Swedish-made turboprops the following year with larger aircraft and the British Aerospace BAe 146-300 is selected. The year’s marketing strategy appears to work, as enplanements increase dramatically, reaching 500,000 on the year for the first time.
The fleet at the beginning of 1995 includes 4 SAAB 340s and 6 Fokker 50s. On behalf of its subsidiary, Aer Lingus Irish Airlines, Ltd. announces the lease of 3 BAe 146-300s from Asset Management Organization on April 3. The first of the regional jets enters service on April 23 from Dublin to Manchester and Birmingham.
The two remaining jetliners are delivered between May and June and, during the latter month, enter service on routes from Dublin to Glasgow, Bristol, and Edinburgh, as well as the network that reaches from Dublin to Cork and Shannon. The SAABs are now removed. A total of 26,000 scheduled departures are made during the year and enplanements reach 1,150,000.
During the spring of 1996, a fourth BAe 146-300 is leased for five years and enters service on the company’s regional routes.
Customer bookings accelerate to 1,241,080 made in 25,538 scheduled departures.
Destinations visited in 1997 include Amsterdam, Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Brussels, Copenhagen, Cork, Dublin, Dusseldorf, Edinburgh, Frankfurt, Galway, Glasgow, Kerry County, Knock, London (LHR and STN), Manchester, Newcastle, Paris, Rome (Fiumicino), Shannon, and Zurich.
On July 15, a new Ir ?2-million departures facility is opened at Dublin Airport that caters exclusively to commuter customers. The new area, with its 16 check-in desks, is being developed in order that the Aer Lin-gus parent may employ the old central terminal building as a dedicated boarding area. A new departure lounge and eight new boarding gates will be added during the remainder of the year and in early 1998.
The fiftieth anniversaries of service to Glasgow and London are celebrated on July 19 and August 1, respectively. The company now provides over 600 weekly departures.
Enplanements for the year reach 1,475,541 on 26,998 scheduled departures.
Service continues in 1998. Seamus Kearney is now CEO and his fleet includes 2 BAe 146-200s, 5 BAe 146-300s, and 7 Fokker 50s. Late in the year, arrangements are completed for the lease of another BAe 146200 on a temporary basis from Flightline, Ltd.
Formerly operated by Jersey European Airways, Ltd., a sixth BAe 146-300 is delivered to the carrier in March 1999. The new acquisition is employed to expand capacity on regional services to the U. K. where jet demand is high.
Leases on three other Dash-300s already in service are extended.
The Flightline, Ltd. BAe 146-200 is returned in mid-month and, repainted in Team Lufthansa colors, begins operating replacement services for Lufthansa CityLine, GmbH. between London and Dusseldorf.
Four-times-weekday (reduced on weekends) BAe 146-300 return service from Dublin to London (LCY) begins on November 1. The new flights compete with those offered by CityJet, Ltd.
The carrier’s 2 BAe 146-200s are retired on July 10, 2000. They are replaced by 2 BAe 146-300s purchased from KLMuk, Ltd.
World History
