| |||||||
Founded | November 2002 | ||||||
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Commenced operations | 29 March 2003 | ||||||
Ceased operations | October 2005 | ||||||
Operating bases | Glasgow Airport | ||||||
Focus cities | Manchester Airport | ||||||
Fleet size | 6 (at closure) | ||||||
Destinations | 17 | ||||||
Headquarters | Glasgow, Scotland, UK | ||||||
Key people | Dhia Al-Ani (Founder) |
Air Scotland was a Scottish low-cost airline based in Glasgow, Scotland. It operated scheduled services from Glasgow International Airport, and other UK airports, to the Mediterranean and Athens using the air operator's certificate of Greece Airways, a Greek registered company and licensed by the Greek Civil Aviation Authority.
The airline formerly known as Air Scotland is no longer operating, as the Greek Civil Aviation Authority suspended their Operating Licence and AOC in December 2006.
Air Scotland was established in November 2002 by Iraqi-born businessman Dhia Al-Ani and started operations on 29 March 2003, using 2 Boeing 757-200 aircraft operated by Electra Airlines, to Spanish holiday resorts. The company was a ticket provider for Electra Airlines until 25 April 2003, when the Electra aircraft were grounded by BAA plc over debts owed to the airport operator. Air Scotland ceased the agreement with Electra and began operating with Air Holland, who agreed to resume operation of the former Electra routes. With the demise of Air Holland, it then began operating under the air operator's certificate of Greece Airways, which was formed out of Electra and owned by Mr Al-Ani, albeit with only one 757 aircraft. All aircraft (before 2006) that have operated for Air Scotland have carried the operator's livery of white fuselage with the Flag of Scotland design on the aircraft tailfin.[ citation needed ]
Under Mr Al-Ani's ownership, there were reports of Air Scotland looking to lease two Lockheed L-1011 Tristar to utilise on services from Glasgow to Miami, New York City and Cuba, [1] and to fly between Glasgow and London Stansted Airport to Baghdad, but these failed to materialise.
At the start of October 2005 Mr Al-Ani sold his stake in the airline to H Top Hotels Group of Barcelona, Spain. However, administrative difficulties in transferring ownership of the airline resulted in the operator's solitary aircraft being grounded at Palma over unpaid fuel bills. Passengers were left stranded for up to 17 hours and in one instance armed police were called to calm angry passengers delayed in Palma. [2] The knock-on effect to the airline's network as a result of the delay was considerable. An aircraft was chartered from Fischer Air Polska to help clear the backlog, but returned to Poland empty after the pilot refused service to Air Scotland as he believed that they had not paid. Air Scotland had in fact transferred money to Fischer Air Polska's account that morning. [3]
Taken from air-Scotland.com in 2006:
Aircraft | Total | Routes | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Airbus A320-211 | 1 | Short-medium haul Europe | |
Boeing 757-236 | 5 | Short-medium haul Europe |
[ citation needed ]
On the day the Airline ceased trading, it operated a single A320-211 based in Glasgow, it had also operated a Boeing 757-200 which wore a combination of Air Scotland & Greece Airways decals.
Sterling Airlines A/S was a low-cost airline with its head office at Copenhagen Airport South in Dragør, Dragør Municipality, Denmark. It was created in September 2005 through the merger of two Danish airlines — Sterling European Airlines and Maersk Air — which had been acquired by the Icelandic investment group Fons Eignarhaldsfélag a few months before for MDKK 500. Fons was owned by Icelandic business tycoon Palmi Haraldsson. One month after the merger, Sterling Airlines was sold to the FL Group for an amount of MDKK 1500. In December 2006, Sterling was sold again, this time to Nordic Travel Holding. On 6 January 2006, Hannes Þór Smárason, CEO of the FL Group, stated that a merger of EasyJet and Sterling was a possibility.
Futura International Airways was an airline with its head office in the Zona Facturación on the property of Palma de Mallorca Airport in Palma de Mallorca, Spain. It operated scheduled services and charter flights for tour operators and other airlines, in Europe, as well as wet lease and ad hoc charters. Its main base was Palma de Mallorca Airport. After failing to re-finance itself the company ceased trading on the 8 September 2008, leaving many passengers stranded in and around Spain.
Jet2.com Limited is a British low-cost airline based at Leeds Bradford Airport, England, United Kingdom. It offers scheduled and charter flights from the United Kingdom. As of 2022, it is the third-largest scheduled airline in the UK, behind easyJet and British Airways. Jet2 is also officially the largest tour operator in the UK after overtaking TUI in 2023.
EUjet was a low-cost airline based at Shannon Airport, Ireland. It operated a network of services from its main base at Shannon Airport (SNN), with a hub at Kent International Airport (MSE), Manston, Kent, UK. The airline was sold to a British company, PlaneStation, which also owned Kent airport, for €10m. In July 2005, PlaneStation went out of business with €40m in debts, forcing EUjet to cease operations.
Britannia Airways was a charter airline based in the UK. It was founded in 1961 as Euravia and became the world's largest holiday airline. Britannia's main bases were at London Gatwick, London Stansted, London Luton, Cardiff, Bristol, East Midlands, Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle, Leeds Bradford, Liverpool, and Glasgow. It had its headquarters at Britannia House in Luton.
XL Airways was a British low-cost charter and scheduled airline, which ceased operations when it went into administration on 12 September 2008. Its headquarters were in Crawley, West Sussex, near London Gatwick Airport. It was part of the XL Leisure Group. From its three bases at London Gatwick, Manchester and Glasgow, the airline provided short-haul and long-haul charter services, predominantly to leisure destinations.
Dubrovnik Airline Limited was a Croatian charter airline, based in Dubrovnik, Croatia. It operated tourist charter flights from Europe and Israel to holiday destinations in Croatia. Its main base was Dubrovnik Airport.
MyTravel Airways Limited was a British scheduled and charter airline with headquarters in Manchester, England. It operated worldwide holiday charter services mainly for its parent company, the MyTravel Group. The airline merged with Thomas Cook Airlines UK Limited in 2008 and was renamed Thomas Cook Airlines Limited.
Blue Wings AG was a charter airline based in Germany, focusing on serving Turkey, the Middle East and Russia from its base at Düsseldorf Airport. The headquarters were located on the airport property.
Lte International Airways S.A. was a Spanish charter airline based in Palma de Mallorca, Spain. It operated passenger charter services throughout Europe. Its main base was Son Sant Joan Airport, Palma de Mallorca with hubs at Tenerife South Airport, Gran Canaria Airport, Lanzarote Airport, Fuerteventura Airport and Josep Tarradellas Barcelona–El Prat Airport.
Fly Me Europe AB, operating as FlyMe, was a low-cost airline based in Gothenburg, Sweden. It operated flights from Gothenburg, Stockholm and Malmö to destinations within Europe. Its main hub was Göteborg Landvetter Airport, with hubs at Malmö Airport and Stockholm-Arlanda Airport. Beginning in April 2006, it widened its destination network and started daily services to European destinations. Majority owner of the business was English Billionaire John Robert Porter and his Norwegian business partner Christen Ager-Hanssen. They also had a majority interest in another airline Global Supply Systems a British all cargo carrier. FlyMe acquired in late 2006 a 25% stake in Global Supply Systems holding company Riverdon ltd with the aim to create a low cost long haul product.
Flyglobespan was a Scottish low-cost airline based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It operated scheduled services from five airports across Scotland, England and Ireland to destinations in Europe, North America, North Africa and South Africa. Its main bases were Glasgow Airport, Edinburgh Airport, Aberdeen Airport and Liverpool Airport. The airline's slogan was "Award-winning airline". It went into administration due to financial problems and the airline declared bankruptcy on 16 December 2009.
Quantum Air was an airline based in Madrid, Spain. It operated domestic scheduled services within Spain, as well as charter and ACMI operations all over Europe. Its fleet was originally wet-leased to Spanair for use on domestic and international routes, but since 14 September 2008, they have operated on their own.
Málaga Airport, officially Málaga–Costa del Sol Airport since June 2011, is the fourth busiest airport in Spain after Madrid–Barajas, Barcelona and Palma de Mallorca. It is significant for Spanish tourism as the main international airport serving the Costa del Sol. It is 8 km (5.0 mi) southwest of Málaga and 5 km (3.1 mi) north of Torremolinos. The airport has flight connections to over 60 countries worldwide, and over 14.4 million passengers passed through it in 2015. In 2017, 18.6 million passengers passed through Málaga Airport.
Airways International Cymru was an airline based in Cardiff, Wales formed by Red Dragon Travel, at the time a leading Welsh travel agency and tour operator. It commenced operations in early 1984, and ceased all operations in early 1988 after financial difficulties arising from the lease of an aircraft to an American airline.
Transavia Denmark ApS, also known as Transavia.com Denmark or Transavia Denmark and trading as transavia.com, was a Danish based low-cost airline operating as a subsidiary of Transavia group. Its main base was at Copenhagen Airport. Transavia Denmark chiefly operated scheduled and charter services to leisure destinations. It was headquartered in Kastrup, Tårnby Municipality. Operations ceased in 2011, although those in the Netherlands and France continue.
Palma de Mallorca Airport is an international airport located 8 km (5.0 mi) east of Palma, Mallorca, Spain, adjacent to the village of Can Pastilla.
For the former airline, see Hamburg Airlines
Helitt Líneas Aéreas was a Spanish charter airline based in Málaga, with its main base at Málaga Airport.
Air Spain was a Spanish charter airline that operated from 1965 to 1975. Its main base was Son Sant Joan Airport, in Palma de Mallorca, Balearic Islands.