Aegean Airlines
Encyclopedia
Aegean Airlines S.A. is the largest Greek airline by total number of passengers carried. A Star Alliance
member since June 2010, it operates scheduled and charter services from Athens and Thessaloniki
to other major Greek destinations as well as to a number of European destinations. Its main base is Athens International Airport in Athens
, with secondary hubs at Thessaloniki International Airport, "Macedonia", Heraklion International Airport, "Nikos Kazantzakis" and Larnaca International Airport
. It has its head office in Kifisia, Athens Prefecture
.
In 2009, it carried 6,600,000 passengers surpassing for the first time its rival Olympic Airlines
, which carried 5,265,729 passengers.
In 2010 Aegean Airlines carried 6,100,000 passengers, of which 50% were foreigners.
Aegean's first commercial flights were from Athens
to Heraklion
, Crete
and Thessaloniki
with 2 brand-new wholly owned BAe 146
/RJ100. In 1999 Aegean also bought Air Greece
. After an agreement in March 2001 to merge Aegean and Cronus Airlines
, the company operated for a while as Aegean Cronus Airlines until full integration. Since 2005, the airline has been in partnership with Lufthansa
, offering participation in the Miles & More programme, and its flights, in addition to its A3 code also have the Lufthansa LH code. In March 2006, Aegean Airlines also entered into a co-operation agreement with TAP Portugal
. In December 2008, Aegean Airlines announced its co-operation with Brussels Airlines
.
In 2009, Aegean Airlines started codeshare agreements with; bmi
, Brussels Airlines
, Lufthansa
and TAP Portugal
.
The airline is owned by Laskaridis Group (25.3%), Vassilakis Group (45.2%), B Konstantakopoulos (8.3%), D Ioannou (8.1%), G David (6.3%) and Piraeus Bank (5.9%) and has 2,300 employees (2009).
On 26 May 2009, Aegean Airlines' membership application was approved by the Chief Executive Board of Star Alliance
. Aegean officially joined the alliance on 30 June 2010.
In 2011 Aegean also started a codeshare agreement with Spanair
.
fueling rumours of a possible merger. On 22 February 2010, Olympic Air and Aegean Airlines announced that they agreed to a merger. The newly merged airline was to carry the Olympic brand name and logo, after a transition period in which both airline brands will be used in parallel. The Aegean brand would cease to exist after the transition period. It was expected that the merger would be finalised and the new combined airline would begin operation by October 2010.
Aegean joined Star Alliance
at the end of June 2010. The intent was for the merged carrier to be a Star Alliance member, despite the fact that Olympic Air was forging ties with SkyTeam
pre-merger. Star Alliance welcomed the proposed merger, releasing a statement stating "The integration teams from both sides will soon meet to assess the necessary steps, in order to guarantee a smooth transition of the merged Aegean Airlines and Olympic Air operations into the Star Alliance network".
On January 26, 2011, the European Commission blocked the merger between the two airlines, citing anti-competition concerns. The commission stated that the merger would have created a "quasi-monopoly" in Greece's air transport market, with the combined airline controlling more than 90% of the Greek domestic air transport market. The EC further stated its belief that the merger would lead to higher fares for four of the six million Greek and European passengers flying to and from Athens each year, with no realistic prospects that a new airline of sufficient size would enter the market to restrain the merged airline's pricing. Additionally, commissioner Joaquin Almunia stated that the merger would have led to higher prices and lower quality of service for Greeks and tourists traveling between Athens and the islands. Both carriers offered remedies in an attempt to ease concerns, though the EU believed that they would not be enough to protect travelers adequately and ease competition concerns. One of the remedies proposed by the companies, included offering to cede takeoff and landing slots at Greek airports, though the commission noted that Greek airports don't suffer from the congestion observed at other European airports in previous airline mergers or alliances.
Aegean Airlines has codeshare agreements with the following airlines:
(PSS) to Amadeus
. The migration to Altéa was completed in the first quarter of 2010.
As of June 2011, the Aegean Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft with an average age of 3.7 years:
In August 2010, Aegean became the first airline to commit to upgrading its Airbus A320
fleet with FANS-B+
datalink system offered by Airbus
, which will be mandated by February 2015 across European Airspace.
In Spring 2011, the last RJ-100's were retired, and sold.
and Airbus A321
aircraft to replace the older Boeing 737-300
and Boeing 737-400
aircraft in the fleet. The last Boeing 737
was phased out in February 2010.
Star Alliance
Star Alliance is the world's first and largest airline alliance, headquartered in Frankfurt am Main, Germany . The alliance was founded in 1997 by five of the world's leading airlines: Air Canada, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Thai Airways International and United Airlines...
member since June 2010, it operates scheduled and charter services from Athens and Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...
to other major Greek destinations as well as to a number of European destinations. Its main base is Athens International Airport in Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, with secondary hubs at Thessaloniki International Airport, "Macedonia", Heraklion International Airport, "Nikos Kazantzakis" and Larnaca International Airport
Larnaca International Airport
Larnaca International Airport is an international airport located southwest of Larnaca, Cyprus. Larnaca International Airport is Cyprus' main international gateway and the larger of the country's two commercial airports, the other being Paphos International Airport on the island's southwestern...
. It has its head office in Kifisia, Athens Prefecture
Athens Prefecture
The Athens Prefecture was one of the prefectures of Greece. It was part of the Attica region and the Athens-Piraeus super-prefecture. The capital of the prefecture was the city of Athens. After Lefkada Prefecture it was the second-smallest in Greece, but was the most populous and most densely...
.
In 2009, it carried 6,600,000 passengers surpassing for the first time its rival Olympic Airlines
Olympic Airlines
Olympic Airlines was the flag carrier airline of Greece, with its head office in Athens. It operated services to 37 domestic destinations and to 32 destinations world-wide. Its main base was at Athens International Airport, with hubs at Thessaloniki International Airport, "Macedonia" and Rhodes...
, which carried 5,265,729 passengers.
In 2010 Aegean Airlines carried 6,100,000 passengers, of which 50% were foreigners.
History
Aegean Airlines was founded as Aegean Aviation in 1987. It was originally a VIP/business air operation specialising in executive and air ambulance services. On 17 February 1992, it became the first airline to be issued with a Greek independent air operator's licence. After it was bought by Vasilakis Group in 1994, Aegean Aviation commenced VIP flights from Athens all over the world with wholly owned Learjet aircraft. The Aegean Airlines name was adopted with the start of scheduled passenger services at the end of May 1999.Aegean's first commercial flights were from Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
to Heraklion
Heraklion
Heraklion, or Heraclion is the largest city and the administrative capital of the island of Crete, Greece. It is the 4th largest city in Greece....
, Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
and Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...
with 2 brand-new wholly owned BAe 146
BAe 146
The British Aerospace 146 is a medium-sized commercial airliner formerly manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2002. Manufacture of an improved version known as the Avro RJ began in 1992...
/RJ100. In 1999 Aegean also bought Air Greece
Air Greece
Air Greece was an airline based in Heraklion, Greece. It was one of thefirst private airlines to operate scheduled domestic flights in Greece.-Code data:*IATA Code: JG*ICAO Code: AGJ*Callsign: Air Greece-History:...
. After an agreement in March 2001 to merge Aegean and Cronus Airlines
Cronus Airlines
Cronus Airlines was a Greek airline based in Athens. It operatedscheduled as well as chartered flights using a fleet of Boeing 737-300 & 400 aircraft.-History:Cronus Airlines was established in 1994 by construction entrepreneur Ioannis Manetas....
, the company operated for a while as Aegean Cronus Airlines until full integration. Since 2005, the airline has been in partnership with Lufthansa
Lufthansa
Deutsche Lufthansa AG is the flag carrier of Germany and the largest airline in Europe in terms of overall passengers carried. The name of the company is derived from Luft , and Hansa .The airline is the world's fourth-largest airline in terms of overall passengers carried, operating...
, offering participation in the Miles & More programme, and its flights, in addition to its A3 code also have the Lufthansa LH code. In March 2006, Aegean Airlines also entered into a co-operation agreement with TAP Portugal
TAP Portugal
TAP Portugal, commonly known as TAP, is the national airline of Portugal. It has its head office in Building 25 on the grounds of Portela Airport in Lisbon, and has been a member of the Star Alliance since 14 March 2005, the same day on which the company celebrated its 60th anniversary...
. In December 2008, Aegean Airlines announced its co-operation with Brussels Airlines
Brussels Airlines
Brussels Airlines is a flag carrier airline headquartered in the b.house on the grounds of Brussels Airport and in Diegem, Machelen, Belgium and a subsidiary of Lufthansa. It is the largest airline based in Belgium, operating to over 65 destinations in 20 European countries as well as long-haul...
.
In 2009, Aegean Airlines started codeshare agreements with; bmi
Bmi (airline)
British Midland Airways Limited , is an airline based at Donington Hall in Castle Donington in the United Kingdom, close to East Midlands Airport, and a fully owned subsidiary of Lufthansa...
, Brussels Airlines
Brussels Airlines
Brussels Airlines is a flag carrier airline headquartered in the b.house on the grounds of Brussels Airport and in Diegem, Machelen, Belgium and a subsidiary of Lufthansa. It is the largest airline based in Belgium, operating to over 65 destinations in 20 European countries as well as long-haul...
, Lufthansa
Lufthansa
Deutsche Lufthansa AG is the flag carrier of Germany and the largest airline in Europe in terms of overall passengers carried. The name of the company is derived from Luft , and Hansa .The airline is the world's fourth-largest airline in terms of overall passengers carried, operating...
and TAP Portugal
TAP Portugal
TAP Portugal, commonly known as TAP, is the national airline of Portugal. It has its head office in Building 25 on the grounds of Portela Airport in Lisbon, and has been a member of the Star Alliance since 14 March 2005, the same day on which the company celebrated its 60th anniversary...
.
The airline is owned by Laskaridis Group (25.3%), Vassilakis Group (45.2%), B Konstantakopoulos (8.3%), D Ioannou (8.1%), G David (6.3%) and Piraeus Bank (5.9%) and has 2,300 employees (2009).
On 26 May 2009, Aegean Airlines' membership application was approved by the Chief Executive Board of Star Alliance
Star Alliance
Star Alliance is the world's first and largest airline alliance, headquartered in Frankfurt am Main, Germany . The alliance was founded in 1997 by five of the world's leading airlines: Air Canada, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Thai Airways International and United Airlines...
. Aegean officially joined the alliance on 30 June 2010.
In 2011 Aegean also started a codeshare agreement with Spanair
Spanair
Spanair is a Spanish airline, with its head office in the Spanair Building in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, near Barcelona. It was, until 2009, a subsidiary of Scandinavian Airlines, which now holds slightly under 20% of the company. Spanair provides a scheduled passenger network within Spain and...
.
Attempted merger with Olympic Air
In February 2010, initial shareholder discussions took place to consider co-operation between Aegean Airlines and Olympic AirOlympic Air
Olympic Air is the largest Greek airline by destinations served, formed from the privatisation of the former national carrier Olympic Airlines. Olympic Air commenced limited operations on 29 September 2009, after Olympic Airlines ceased all operations, with the official full-scale opening of the...
fueling rumours of a possible merger. On 22 February 2010, Olympic Air and Aegean Airlines announced that they agreed to a merger. The newly merged airline was to carry the Olympic brand name and logo, after a transition period in which both airline brands will be used in parallel. The Aegean brand would cease to exist after the transition period. It was expected that the merger would be finalised and the new combined airline would begin operation by October 2010.
Aegean joined Star Alliance
Star Alliance
Star Alliance is the world's first and largest airline alliance, headquartered in Frankfurt am Main, Germany . The alliance was founded in 1997 by five of the world's leading airlines: Air Canada, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Thai Airways International and United Airlines...
at the end of June 2010. The intent was for the merged carrier to be a Star Alliance member, despite the fact that Olympic Air was forging ties with SkyTeam
SkyTeam
SkyTeam, branded as SKYTEAM, is an airline alliance with its centralised management team, SkyTeam Central, based at the World Trade Center Schiphol Airport on the grounds of Amsterdam Airport Schiphol in Haarlemmermeer, Netherlands...
pre-merger. Star Alliance welcomed the proposed merger, releasing a statement stating "The integration teams from both sides will soon meet to assess the necessary steps, in order to guarantee a smooth transition of the merged Aegean Airlines and Olympic Air operations into the Star Alliance network".
On January 26, 2011, the European Commission blocked the merger between the two airlines, citing anti-competition concerns. The commission stated that the merger would have created a "quasi-monopoly" in Greece's air transport market, with the combined airline controlling more than 90% of the Greek domestic air transport market. The EC further stated its belief that the merger would lead to higher fares for four of the six million Greek and European passengers flying to and from Athens each year, with no realistic prospects that a new airline of sufficient size would enter the market to restrain the merged airline's pricing. Additionally, commissioner Joaquin Almunia stated that the merger would have led to higher prices and lower quality of service for Greeks and tourists traveling between Athens and the islands. Both carriers offered remedies in an attempt to ease concerns, though the EU believed that they would not be enough to protect travelers adequately and ease competition concerns. One of the remedies proposed by the companies, included offering to cede takeoff and landing slots at Greek airports, though the commission noted that Greek airports don't suffer from the congestion observed at other European airports in previous airline mergers or alliances.
Destinations
Commercial
Codeshare agreementsAegean Airlines has codeshare agreements with the following airlines:
|
Continental Airlines Continental Airlines was a major American airline now merged with United Airlines. On May 3, 2010, Continental Airlines, Inc. and UAL, Inc. announced a merger via a stock swap, and on October 1, 2010, the merger closed and UAL changed its name to United Continental Holdings, Inc... Lufthansa Deutsche Lufthansa AG is the flag carrier of Germany and the largest airline in Europe in terms of overall passengers carried. The name of the company is derived from Luft , and Hansa .The airline is the world's fourth-largest airline in terms of overall passengers carried, operating... |
Spanair Spanair is a Spanish airline, with its head office in the Spanair Building in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, near Barcelona. It was, until 2009, a subsidiary of Scandinavian Airlines, which now holds slightly under 20% of the company. Spanair provides a scheduled passenger network within Spain and... TAP Portugal TAP Portugal, commonly known as TAP, is the national airline of Portugal. It has its head office in Building 25 on the grounds of Portela Airport in Lisbon, and has been a member of the Star Alliance since 14 March 2005, the same day on which the company celebrated its 60th anniversary... US Airways US Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country.... |
Technology
In 2009 Aegean decided to outsource its Passenger Service SystemPassenger service system
A PSS or Passenger Service Systems, is the name given to a series of critical systems used by airlines. The PSS usually comprises an Airline Reservation System, an Airline Inventory System and a Departure Control System .- Overview :...
(PSS) to Amadeus
Amadeus IT Group
Amadeus IT Group is a transaction processor for the global travel and tourism industry. The company is structured around two key related areas - its global distribution system and its IT Solutions business area...
. The migration to Altéa was completed in the first quarter of 2010.
Fleet
| Aircraft | In Service | Orders | Passengers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A319 | 3 | 0 | 138 | Leased from Olympic Air Olympic Air Olympic Air is the largest Greek airline by destinations served, formed from the privatisation of the former national carrier Olympic Airlines. Olympic Air commenced limited operations on 29 September 2009, after Olympic Airlines ceased all operations, with the official full-scale opening of the... and ILFC |
| Airbus A320-200 | 22 | 0 | 168 | SX-DVQ painted in Star Alliance Star Alliance Star Alliance is the world's first and largest airline alliance, headquartered in Frankfurt am Main, Germany . The alliance was founded in 1997 by five of the world's leading airlines: Air Canada, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Thai Airways International and United Airlines... livery Leased from Olympic Air Olympic Air Olympic Air is the largest Greek airline by destinations served, formed from the privatisation of the former national carrier Olympic Airlines. Olympic Air commenced limited operations on 29 September 2009, after Olympic Airlines ceased all operations, with the official full-scale opening of the... , Air Via Air Via Air VIA is a charter airline based in Varna, Bulgaria, operating charter flights on behalf of the largest European tour operators, most of them from a broad range of European destinations into Varna Airport and Burgas Airport, as well wet lease subservices.... and SmartLynx Airlines |
| Airbus A321-200 | 4 | 0 | 195 | |
| Total | 29 | 0 |
In August 2010, Aegean became the first airline to commit to upgrading its Airbus A320
Airbus A320 family
The Airbus A320 family is a family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger jet airliners manufactured by Airbus Industrie.Airbus was originally a consortium of European aerospace companies, and is now fully owned by EADS. Airbus's name has been Airbus SAS since 2001...
fleet with FANS-B+
Future Air Navigation System
The Future Air Navigation System is an avionics system which providesdirect data link communication between the pilot and the Air Traffic Controller. The communications include air traffic control clearances, pilot requests and position reporting...
datalink system offered by Airbus
Airbus
Airbus SAS is an aircraft manufacturing subsidiary of EADS, a European aerospace company. Based in Blagnac, France, surburb of Toulouse, and with significant activity across Europe, the company produces around half of the world's jet airliners....
, which will be mandated by February 2015 across European Airspace.
In Spring 2011, the last RJ-100's were retired, and sold.
Aircraft orders
In 2007, the airline ordered a combined total of 27 Airbus A320Airbus A320 family
The Airbus A320 family is a family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger jet airliners manufactured by Airbus Industrie.Airbus was originally a consortium of European aerospace companies, and is now fully owned by EADS. Airbus's name has been Airbus SAS since 2001...
and Airbus A321
Airbus A320 family
The Airbus A320 family is a family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger jet airliners manufactured by Airbus Industrie.Airbus was originally a consortium of European aerospace companies, and is now fully owned by EADS. Airbus's name has been Airbus SAS since 2001...
aircraft to replace the older Boeing 737-300
Boeing 737 Classic
The Boeing 737 Classic is the name given to the -300/-400/-500 series of the Boeing 737 following the introduction of the -600/-700/-800/-900 series. They are short- to medium- range, narrow-body jet airliners produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The Classic series was introduced as the 'new...
and Boeing 737-400
Boeing 737 Classic
The Boeing 737 Classic is the name given to the -300/-400/-500 series of the Boeing 737 following the introduction of the -600/-700/-800/-900 series. They are short- to medium- range, narrow-body jet airliners produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The Classic series was introduced as the 'new...
aircraft in the fleet. The last Boeing 737
Boeing 737
The Boeing 737 is a short- to medium-range, twin-engine narrow-body jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from Boeing's 707 and 727, the 737 has developed into a family of nine passenger models with a capacity of 85 to 215 passengers...
was phased out in February 2010.
Awards and recognition
Aegean Airlines has received a number of awards and recognitions: (*Airport issued awards not included)- 2000/2001 - ERAEuropean Regions Airline AssociationFounded in 1980, European Regions Airline Association, ERA, is a non-profit trade association representing almost 200 companies involved in European air transport, including airlines, airframe and engine manufacturers, airports, suppliers and service providers from all over Europe.The Association...
Bronze Award: Airline of the Year - 2004/2005 - ERAEuropean Regions Airline AssociationFounded in 1980, European Regions Airline Association, ERA, is a non-profit trade association representing almost 200 companies involved in European air transport, including airlines, airframe and engine manufacturers, airports, suppliers and service providers from all over Europe.The Association...
Gold Award: Airline of the Year - 2005/2006 - ERAEuropean Regions Airline AssociationFounded in 1980, European Regions Airline Association, ERA, is a non-profit trade association representing almost 200 companies involved in European air transport, including airlines, airframe and engine manufacturers, airports, suppliers and service providers from all over Europe.The Association...
Silver Award: Airline of the Year - 2006/2007 - ERAEuropean Regions Airline AssociationFounded in 1980, European Regions Airline Association, ERA, is a non-profit trade association representing almost 200 companies involved in European air transport, including airlines, airframe and engine manufacturers, airports, suppliers and service providers from all over Europe.The Association...
Silver Award: Airline of the Year - 2007 - ERA'sEuropean Regions Airline AssociationFounded in 1980, European Regions Airline Association, ERA, is a non-profit trade association representing almost 200 companies involved in European air transport, including airlines, airframe and engine manufacturers, airports, suppliers and service providers from all over Europe.The Association...
Palme d'Or award - 2008/2009 - ERAEuropean Regions Airline AssociationFounded in 1980, European Regions Airline Association, ERA, is a non-profit trade association representing almost 200 companies involved in European air transport, including airlines, airframe and engine manufacturers, airports, suppliers and service providers from all over Europe.The Association...
Gold Award: Airline of the year - 2009 - Skytrax Top Regional Airline in EuropeSkytraxSkytrax is a United Kingdom-based consultancy, the public face of Inflight Research Services, which has the largest airline and airport review and ranking site. It conducts research for commercial airlines...
- 2011 - Skytrax Top Regional Airline in EuropeSkytraxSkytrax is a United Kingdom-based consultancy, the public face of Inflight Research Services, which has the largest airline and airport review and ranking site. It conducts research for commercial airlines...