Delta Air Transport

Last updated
Delta Air Transport
Delta Air Transport logo.jpg
IATA ICAO Call sign
  • QG
  • SN
  • DE
  • DAT
  • SAB
DELTAIR
Founded1966 (1966)
Commenced operations19 September 1967 (1967-09-19)
Ceased operationsFebruary 2002 (2002-02)
(re-organized as SN Brussels Airlines)
Hubs Antwerp International Airport
Focus cities Brussels Airport
Parent company
Headquarters Antwerp

Delta Air Transport (abbreviated DAT) was a Belgian regional airline headquartered in Antwerp, Belgium, operating scheduled and chartered flights, mostly on short-haul routes. It served a multitude of regional European destinations on behalf of Sabena during the 1990s and early 2000s.

Contents

History

Delta Air Transport was founded in 1966, by Frans Van den Bergh, as a provider for air taxi and charter flight services with an initial fleet of three Cessna aircraft (one each of the types Skymaster, 210 and 206). DAT's first scheduled flight from Antwerp to Amsterdam on behalf of KLM took place on 19 September 1967; for that purpose two Beechcraft Queen Air feederliners had been acquired (some sources erroneously mention three of the type). [1] [2]

Delta Air Transport Douglas DC-3 arrives at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport in June 1972 on a scheduled service from Antwerp Airport. Douglas DC-3C OO-GVG Delta AT AMS 05.06.72 edited-3.jpg
Delta Air Transport Douglas DC-3 arrives at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport in June 1972 on a scheduled service from Antwerp Airport.

Operations grew when the larger Douglas DC-3, CV440 and DC-6 joined the fleet over the following years, allowing DAT to operate charter flights on behalf of KLM (which owned a 33.3 percent stake in DAT), Sabena, Crossair and BIAS. In 1973, the majority of the airline's stake was bought by Compagnie Maritime Belge. [3] During 1974, a Boeing 720 was leased, allowing DAT to offer worldwide charter flights under the Delta International branding, [4] which soon turned out to be unsuccessful, though. [5]

In 1986, Sabena acquired a 49 percent stake in DAT, and an increasing number of flights were operated on behalf of the Belgian national airline henceforth [6] (also adopting the airline codes of Sabena), using a fleet of British Aerospace 146 aircraft, in favor of which other airliners were gradually phased out. DAT became a member of the European Regional Airlines Association in 1993. [7] In 1996, Sabena bought the remaining KLM stake, thus DAT became a wholly owned Sabena subsidiary, moved its headquarters from Antwerp to Brussels [8] and was re-branded as DAT Belgian Regional Airline, offering low-cost flights. Gradually, the livery of Sabena was applied to all DAT aircraft.

On 1 November 2001, Sabena collapsed due to financial difficulties. DAT could re-launch its operations on 10 November with a flight to Geneva, [9] having received all of Sabena's slots at Brussels Airport and thus being able to maintain the successful European network. [10] Freddy Van Gaever, its former CEO, planned to merge DAT with Virgin Express and add flights to the United States using former Sabena aircraft, which was why the new DAT Plus branding was adopted. [11] [12] Actually, DAT came under the umbrella of SN Airholding (the liquidator of Sabena) in 2002, and was re-organized under a new AOC as SN Brussels Airlines, which later became Brussels Airlines after indeed merging with Virgin Express, today's flag carrier of the country. [5]

Destinations

In its early years, Delta Air Transport offered up to 4 daily scheduled flights between its then base at Antwerp Airport and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol on behalf of KLM (the contract lasted until 1997, when DAT had become a wholly owned Sabena subsidiary), [13] as well as a limited number of routes to the neighboring countries. During the 1990s and early 2000s, DAT was able to grow an extensive short-haul network, as more and more flights were operated on behalf of demising Sabena, eventually becoming the tenth largest regional airline of the continent, transporting more than 1.7 million passengers per year. [14] During its height, the airline had nearly 800 employees, [15] and served the following cities on a scheduled basis from its hub at Brussels Airport: [16] [17] [18] [19]

Fleet

A DAT Fokker F28 Fellowship at Stuttgart Airport in 1991 Fokker F-28-4000 Fellowship, Delta Air Transport - DAT AN0206438.jpg
A DAT Fokker F28 Fellowship at Stuttgart Airport in 1991
An Avro RJ100 in the latest livery of Delta Air Transport at Berlin Tempelhof Airport in 2001 British Aerospace BAe 146 RJ100, OO-DWH, Delta Air Transport.jpg
An Avro RJ100 in the latest livery of Delta Air Transport at Berlin Tempelhof Airport in 2001

Over the years, Delta Air Transport operated the following aircraft types: [5] [20]

AircraftIntroducedRetired
Aérospatiale N 262 1976
Beechcraft Queen Air 1967
Boeing 720 19741975
British Aerospace 146
(various versions)		1989 [21] 2002
Cessna 206 1966
Cessna 210 1966
Cessna Skymaster 1966
Convair CV-440 19721977 [22]
Dash 8-300 20012002
Douglas DC-3 19681972
Douglas DC-4
Douglas DC-6 1978
Douglas DC-8 1973 [4]
Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia 1988 [23] 1997
Fairchild Hiller FH-227 1977 [22]
Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner
Fokker F28 Fellowship 1997

Accidents and incidents

Related Research Articles

Martinair is a Dutch cargo and former passenger airline headquartered and based at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. The airline was founded in 1958 by Martin Schröder, and is currently a subsidiary of Air France–KLM. Since 2011, Martinair has operated entirely as a cargo airline with scheduled services to 20 destinations worldwide and additional charter flights. Prior to that date, passenger flights were also operated.

Kenya Airways Ltd., more commonly known as Kenya Airways, is the flag carrier airline of Kenya. The company was founded in 1977, after the dissolution of East African Airways. Its head office is located in Embakasi, Nairobi, with its hub at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.

The Societé anonyme belge d'Exploitation de la Navigation aérienne, better known by the acronym Sabena or SABENA, was the national airline of Belgium from 1923 to 2001, with its base at Brussels Airport. After its bankruptcy in 2001, SN Brussels Airlines was formed through a takeover of former subsidiary Delta Air Transport and took over part of Sabena's assets in February 2002. SN Brussels Airlines merged with Virgin Express in 2007 to form Brussels Airlines. The airline's corporate headquarters were located in the Sabena House on the grounds of Brussels Airport in Zaventem.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brussels Airport</span> International airport serving Brussels, Belgium

Brussels Airport is the main international airport of Belgium. It is located in the municipality of Zaventem in Flemish Brabant, 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) northeast of Brussels.

SN Brussels Airlines (SNBA) was the flag carrier of Belgium, which mainly operated from Brussels Airport. SNBA was the trading name of the Belgian airline Delta Air Transport. SNBA was a full-service airline, connecting Brussels with the rest of Europe. It also flew to Africa, continuing Sabena's extensive network there. The airline merged with Virgin Express into Brussels Airlines which started operations on 25 March 2007. The airline had its head office in Airport Building 117 in Brussels Airport, Zaventem, near Brussels.

Tunisair is the national airline of Tunisia. Formed in 1948, it operates scheduled international services to four continents. Its main base is Tunis–Carthage International Airport. The airline's head office is in Tunis, near Tunis Airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sobelair</span> Defunct charter airline of Belgium (1946–2004)

Société Belge des Transports par Air SA, known by its short form Sobelair, was a Belgian charter airline that operated from 1946 to 2004. It was headquartered in Brussels and operated mostly non-scheduled passenger and cargo flights out of Brussels Airport.

CityJet is an Irish regional airline with headquarters at Dublin Airport. It was founded in 1992 and has gone through a series of corporate structures. The airline was sold to Air France in 2000 and then by Air France to Intro Aviation in May 2014; in March 2016 the airline was bought by founder Pat Byrne and other investors. CityJet ended its own-brand scheduled services in 2018 and is now a major provider of wet leasing to European airlines. As of Summer 2023, CityJet operates wet lease services on behalf of Brussels Airlines, Lufthansa and Scandinavian Airlines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">German Airways</span> Former German regional airline headquartered in Cologne.

German Airways Fluggesellschaft GmbH, operating as German Airways and formerly named Luftfahrtgesellschaft Walter or LGW for short, was a German regional airline headquartered in Düsseldorf.

AirUK was a wholly privately owned, independent regional airline in the United Kingdom formed in 1980 as a result of a merger involving four rival UK-based regional airlines. British and Commonwealth (B&C)-owned British Island Airways (BIA) and Air Anglia were the two dominant merger partners. The merged entity's corporate headquarters were originally located at Redhill, Surrey, the location of the old BIA head office. It subsequently relocated to Crawley, West Sussex. In addition to the main maintenance base at Norwich Airport, there also used to be a second major maintenance base at Blackpool Airport. This was closed down following Air UK's major retrenchment during Britain's severe recession of the early 1980s. In 1987, Air UK established Air UK Leisure as a charter subsidiary. The following year, Air UK shifted its headquarters to London Stansted Airport. When Stansted's new Norman Foster-designed terminal opened in 1991, the airline became its first and subsequently main tenant.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">VLM Airlines</span> Former Belgian regional airline

VLM Airlines, short for Vlaamse Luchttransport Maatschappij – "Flemish Air Transport Company", was a Belgian airline offering scheduled, charter and ACMI services. It was headquartered at Antwerp International Airport in Deurne. It ceased operations on 31 August 2018. It is not to be confused with its Belgian sister airline VLM Airlines Brussels, which operated leisure charters and ceased operations in December 2018. A new airline known as Air Antwerp which was owned by CityJet (75%) and KLM (25%) launched operations on 9 September 2019 and consisted of ex-employees and fleet of VLM Airlines until its closure in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antwerp International Airport</span> International airport serving Antwerp, Belgium

Antwerp International Airport, commonly known simply as Antwerp Airport, is a small international airport located 2.9 nautical miles south of Antwerp, Belgium. The airport is used for some scheduled and charter flights, as well as business and general aviation, and served 239,517 passengers in 2022.

Belgian International Air Services was a Belgian airline with its headquarters in Antwerp and Brussels. It was operational between 1959 and 1980 and offered mainly passenger and cargo air charter flights from Brussels Airport to the former Belgian colonies in Central Africa.

Brussels Airlines is the flag carrier and largest airline of Belgium, based and headquartered at Brussels Airport. It operates to over 100 destinations in Europe, North America and Africa and also offers charter services, maintenance and crew training. It is a member of the Star Alliance as well as the International Air Transport Association. The airline's IATA code SN is inherited from its predecessors, Sabena and SN Brussels Airlines. Brussels Airlines is part of the Lufthansa Group. The company slogan is ′You’re in good company′.

Lignes Aériennes Congolaises (LAC) was the flag carrier of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was established in 1997 to succeed the folded Air Zaïre. Halting operations in 1999, it was reactivated for a short period in 2002, only to fold operations permanently in 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Air Zaïre</span> Former national airline of Zaire

Air Zaïre was the national airline of Zaire. Its head office was located on the grounds of N'djili Airport in Kinshasa.

Korongo Airlines sprl was an airline from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, headquartered in Lubumbashi. It was founded on behalf of Brussels Airlines and other Belgian investors in 2009, and operated scheduled regional flights from its base at Lubumbashi International Airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sabena Flight Academy</span>

CAE Oxford Aviation Academy Brussels - Sabena Flight Academy is an aviation training organisation created in 1953, and located in Steenokkerzeel (Belgium). The school is now part of CAE Global Academy. The training is performed in Brussels, in Mesa at CAE Oxford Aviation Academy Phoenix . Sabena Flight Academy is one of the oldest airline transport pilot schools in Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nordic Regional Airlines</span> Regional airline of Finland

Nordic Regional Airlines Oy is a Finnish regional airline based on the grounds of Helsinki Airport. Norra is owned as a joint venture by Finnair, Finland's flag carrier, and Danish Air Transport.

Air Antwerp was a short-lived Belgian regional airline headquartered at Antwerp International Airport in Deurne.

References

  1. ↑ "flightglobal.com: 1968 issue of Flight International" (PDF). Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  2. ↑ "1966 Delta Air Transport" (in Dutch). Barrois.be.
  3. ↑ "World Airlines Directory, Flight International, 1974". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  4. 1 2 "World Airline Directory, Flight International, July 1973". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  5. 1 2 3 "Information about DAT at SkyStef's Aviation Page". Skystef.be. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  6. ↑ "Sabena sizes down, Flight International, March 1986". flightglobal.com. 1986-03-25. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  7. ↑ "European regionals log healthy growth", Flight International, October 1993". flightglobal.com. 1993-10-12. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  8. ↑ "Sabena boss seeks more work for less, Flight International, October 1995". flightglobal.com. 1995-10-24. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  9. ↑ "DAT Plus gets airborne as Virgin Express signs interim co-operation agreement, Flight International, November 2001". flightglobal.com. 2001-11-26. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  10. ↑ "Delsey folds its wings, Flight International, November 2002". flightglobal.com. 2002-11-18. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  11. ↑ "3748.html?search=Delta Air Transport flightglobal.com: "Ex-DAT Boss to Plug Belgian Gap", Flight International, Nov/Dec 2001 issue". Flightglobal.com. 2010-06-14. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  12. ↑ "0071.html?search=Delta Air Transport flightglobal.com: "Virgin Express Begins Merher Talks", Flight International, Jan 2002 issue". Flightglobal.com. 2010-06-14. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  13. ↑ "DAT Disposal, Flight International, February 1997". flightglobal.com. 1997-02-25. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  14. ↑ "The World's Top Regional Airlines by Passenger Numbers, Flight International, May 1999". flightglobal.com. 1999-05-11. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  15. ↑ "DAT's entry in the World Airlines Directory, Flight International, March/April 2000". flightglobal. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  16. ↑ "World Airlines Directory, Flight International, March/April 1995". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  17. ↑ "World Airlines Directory, Flight International, March/April 1997". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  18. ↑ "World Airline Directory, Flight International, March 1998". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  19. ↑ "World Airlines Directory, Flight International, March/April 2002". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  20. ↑ "Selected DAT fleet listing (1990 onwards) at". Planespotters.net. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  21. ↑ "Flight International, Dec 1989/Jan 1990 issue, "News In Brief" section, page 10". flightglobal.com. 1989-12-20. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  22. 1 2 "Delta Air Transport re-equips, Flight International, April 1977". flightglobal.com. 1977-04-30. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  23. ↑ "Flight International, August 1987. "Marketplace" section on page 6". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  24. ↑ "DAT 1974 accident at the Aviation Safety Network". Aviation-safety.net. 1974-10-04. Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  25. ↑ "Official report of the 1974 DAT accident at Southend Airport" (PDF). Retrieved 2013-09-23.
  26. ↑ "DAT 1990 incident at the Aviation Safety Network". Aviation-safety.net. 1990-06-02. Retrieved 2013-09-23.

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.