OpenSkies
Encyclopedia
OpenSkies is a fully owned subsidiary
airline
of British Airways
that began operations in June 2008. Originally OpenSkies was operated by BA European Limited but in April 2009 the name was transferred to Elysair (which had operated as L'Avion
). It is a full-service carrier and offers business class only cabins on board its aircraft. It is headquartered in Building 519 in Paray Vieille Poste, France
, near Wissous
.
The airline currently flies to Paris-Orly Airport in France and Newark Liberty International Airport
in the United States. Future possible routes for the airline include Dublin, Frankfurt
, Madrid
, Brussels
, Rome
, and Milan
. The Amsterdam-JFK route was dropped in August 2009 due to weak customer demand. In December 2009, the airline announced a change of its New York operations: in January 2010, all OpenSkies flights were shifted from JFK
to Newark
.
(BA). British Airways wanted to reduce the over-dependence on their Heathrow Airport hub by flying between the United States and cities in continental Europe. The bypass was only able to be done after the open skies treaty between the United States the European Union
would allow any airline to fly between airports in the two continents starting in March 2008.
The first flight, from New York, was on 19 June 2008, using a single Boeing 757 transferred from the BA fleet.
In July 2008 BA bought French airline L'Avion
for £54 million. The operations of BA European and L'Avion were merged on 4 April 2009, with the latter now operating as OpenSkies.
On 24 July 2009, the airline announced that the route from New York-JFK to Amsterdam Schiphol would be suspended as of 16 August, due to economic reasons. On September 30 the airline announced that the Washington to Paris service would be suspended October 29.
in New York to Orly Airport
in Paris. However, the airline changed its plans to include a very small five row section of economy class
seats in the rear of the aircraft in addition to premium economy
and business class
seats. In October 2008 the economy section was eliminated in favour of more premium economy seating. With the integration of L'Avion, the Prem+ section was changed to 'Biz Seat', making the airline a business-class-only airline.
The third destination for Openskies was Amsterdam, when flights began on 15 October 2008, and Newark became an additional destination when L'Avion was integrated into OpenSkies on 4 April 2009.
OpenSkies is not a member of any airline alliance and has no affiliation with the Oneworld
alliance of which parent British Airways is a founding member. However, British Airways Executive Club members are able to claim tier points and BA miles on OpenSkies flights.
North America
. British Airways
transferred one Boeing 757
for the start of operations, with an additional aircraft transferred in December 2008. All of
OpenSkies' aircraft are fitted with blended winglets to increase range, improve fuel efficiency and
decrease emissions. The cabin on all the aircraft is divided into two sections which together provide seating for 64 or 84 passengers depending on configuration. L'Avion
's fleet of two 757s was converted to OpenSkies' specifications and transferred into the fleet.
The fleet retains the British Airways
tailfin logo, but features a grey underbelly instead of the dark blue that features on British Airways aircraft. The engine nacelle
is painted silver while the winglets are painted red further distinguishing OpenSkies from British Airways. The first Boeing 757 was named Lauren after OpenSkies' code-name prior to launch, Project Lauren. Openskies have continued to name their aircraft with the other three aircraft being named Gloria, Penny and Violette.
In February, 2009, British Airways announced that they would not transfer additional 757s to its OpenSkies subsidiary by the end of 2009, as originally planned, but instead would sell them to a third party. OpenSkies was originally to expand to six aircraft by the end of 2009, but BA said this plan had been canceled.
, which permits any American or European airline to operate services to and from any European or American location. The availability of landing slots
limits the impact of the agreement at certain airports, such as London Heathrow Airport
.
BA European Limited, trading as Openskies, holds a United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority Type A Operating Licence. This permits the airline to carry passengers, cargo, and mail on aircraft with 20 or more seats. The operating licence was suspended on May 6, 2009 for three months following the transfer of the name to Elysair, at BA European's request.
Subsidiary
A subsidiary company, subsidiary, or daughter company is a company that is completely or partly owned and wholly controlled by another company that owns more than half of the subsidiary's stock. The subsidiary can be a company, corporation, or limited liability company. In some cases it is a...
airline
Airline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...
of British Airways
British Airways
British Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
that began operations in June 2008. Originally OpenSkies was operated by BA European Limited but in April 2009 the name was transferred to Elysair (which had operated as L'Avion
L'Avion
Elysair SAS, operating as L'Avion, was an airline headquartered in Paray Vieille Poste, France, near Wissous. It operated business class only long-haul services between Orly Airport, Paris and Newark Liberty International Airport in the USA....
). It is a full-service carrier and offers business class only cabins on board its aircraft. It is headquartered in Building 519 in Paray Vieille Poste, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, near Wissous
Wissous
Wissous is a commune in the Essonne department in Île-de-France in northern France. Paris-Orly Airport is partially located in the commune.Inhabitants of Wissous are known as Wissoussiens.-History:...
.
The airline currently flies to Paris-Orly Airport in France and Newark Liberty International Airport
Newark Liberty International Airport
Newark Liberty International Airport , first named Newark Metropolitan Airport and later Newark International Airport, is an international airport within the city limits of both Newark and Elizabeth, New Jersey, United States...
in the United States. Future possible routes for the airline include Dublin, Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
, Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, and Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
. The Amsterdam-JFK route was dropped in August 2009 due to weak customer demand. In December 2009, the airline announced a change of its New York operations: in January 2010, all OpenSkies flights were shifted from JFK
John F. Kennedy International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport is an international airport located in the borough of Queens in New York City, about southeast of Lower Manhattan. It is the busiest international air passenger gateway to the United States, handling more international traffic than any other airport in North...
to Newark
Newark Liberty International Airport
Newark Liberty International Airport , first named Newark Metropolitan Airport and later Newark International Airport, is an international airport within the city limits of both Newark and Elizabeth, New Jersey, United States...
.
History
"Project Lauren" was the code-name for OpenSkies when it was first planned by British AirwaysBritish Airways
British Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
(BA). British Airways wanted to reduce the over-dependence on their Heathrow Airport hub by flying between the United States and cities in continental Europe. The bypass was only able to be done after the open skies treaty between the United States the European Union
EU–U.S. Open Skies Agreement
The EU–US Open Skies Agreement is an air transport agreement between the European Union and the United States. The agreement allows any airline of the European Union and any airline of the United States to fly between any point in the European Union and any point in the United States. Airlines of...
would allow any airline to fly between airports in the two continents starting in March 2008.
The first flight, from New York, was on 19 June 2008, using a single Boeing 757 transferred from the BA fleet.
In July 2008 BA bought French airline L'Avion
L'Avion
Elysair SAS, operating as L'Avion, was an airline headquartered in Paray Vieille Poste, France, near Wissous. It operated business class only long-haul services between Orly Airport, Paris and Newark Liberty International Airport in the USA....
for £54 million. The operations of BA European and L'Avion were merged on 4 April 2009, with the latter now operating as OpenSkies.
On 24 July 2009, the airline announced that the route from New York-JFK to Amsterdam Schiphol would be suspended as of 16 August, due to economic reasons. On September 30 the airline announced that the Washington to Paris service would be suspended October 29.
Service
The new airline was initially rumoured to be planning business-class-only flights, with the first flight from John F. Kennedy International AirportJohn F. Kennedy International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport is an international airport located in the borough of Queens in New York City, about southeast of Lower Manhattan. It is the busiest international air passenger gateway to the United States, handling more international traffic than any other airport in North...
in New York to Orly Airport
Orly Airport
Paris-Orly Airport is an airport located partially in Orly and partially in Villeneuve-le-Roi, south of Paris, France. It has flights to cities in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Caribbean, North America and Southeast Asia. Prior to the construction of Charles de Gaulle Airport, Orly was...
in Paris. However, the airline changed its plans to include a very small five row section of economy class
Economy class
__FORCETOC__Economy class, also called coach class , steerage, or standard class, is the lowest class of seating in air travel, rail travel, and sometimes ferry or maritime travel....
seats in the rear of the aircraft in addition to premium economy
Premium economy
Premium economy is a travel class offered on some airlines, positioned in price, comfort, and amenities between economy class and business class. As of 2011, the term is not standardized among airlines, and varies significantly when comparing its use on domestic versus international flights or...
and business class
Business class
Business class is a travel class available on many commercial airlines and rail lines, known by brand names which vary by airline or rail company. In the airline industry, it was originally intended as an intermediate level of service between economy class and first class, but many airlines now...
seats. In October 2008 the economy section was eliminated in favour of more premium economy seating. With the integration of L'Avion, the Prem+ section was changed to 'Biz Seat', making the airline a business-class-only airline.
The third destination for Openskies was Amsterdam, when flights began on 15 October 2008, and Newark became an additional destination when L'Avion was integrated into OpenSkies on 4 April 2009.
OpenSkies is not a member of any airline alliance and has no affiliation with the Oneworld
Oneworld
Oneworld , branded as oneworld, is one of the world's three largest global airline alliances with its central management team, oneworld Management Company, based in New York City, New York, USA. Oneworld was founded in 1999 by American Airlines, British Airways, Canadian Airlines, Cathay Pacific...
alliance of which parent British Airways is a founding member. However, British Airways Executive Club members are able to claim tier points and BA miles on OpenSkies flights.
Destinations
Europe- FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
- ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
- Paris-Orly Airport Hub
- Paris
North America
- United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
- NewarkNewark, New JerseyNewark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
- Newark Liberty International AirportNewark Liberty International AirportNewark Liberty International Airport , first named Newark Metropolitan Airport and later Newark International Airport, is an international airport within the city limits of both Newark and Elizabeth, New Jersey, United States...
- Newark
Terminated Destinations
- Europe
- Netherlands - Amsterdam
- North America
- United States - New York-JFK, Washingon DC
Fleet
OpenSkies operates a single type of aircraft, the Boeing 757Boeing 757
The Boeing 757 is a mid-size, narrow-body twin-engine jet airliner manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Passenger versions of the twinjet have a capacity of 186 to 289 persons and a maximum range of , depending on variant and cabin configuration...
. British Airways
transferred one Boeing 757
Boeing 757
The Boeing 757 is a mid-size, narrow-body twin-engine jet airliner manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Passenger versions of the twinjet have a capacity of 186 to 289 persons and a maximum range of , depending on variant and cabin configuration...
for the start of operations, with an additional aircraft transferred in December 2008. All of
OpenSkies' aircraft are fitted with blended winglets to increase range, improve fuel efficiency and
decrease emissions. The cabin on all the aircraft is divided into two sections which together provide seating for 64 or 84 passengers depending on configuration. L'Avion
L'Avion
Elysair SAS, operating as L'Avion, was an airline headquartered in Paray Vieille Poste, France, near Wissous. It operated business class only long-haul services between Orly Airport, Paris and Newark Liberty International Airport in the USA....
's fleet of two 757s was converted to OpenSkies' specifications and transferred into the fleet.
The fleet retains the British Airways
British Airways
British Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
tailfin logo, but features a grey underbelly instead of the dark blue that features on British Airways aircraft. The engine nacelle
Nacelle
The nacelle is a cover housing that holds engines, fuel, or equipment on an aircraft. In some cases—for instance in the typical "Farman" type "pusher" aircraft, or the World War II-era P-38 Lightning—an aircraft's cockpit may also be housed in a nacelle, which essentially fills the...
is painted silver while the winglets are painted red further distinguishing OpenSkies from British Airways. The first Boeing 757 was named Lauren after OpenSkies' code-name prior to launch, Project Lauren. Openskies have continued to name their aircraft with the other three aircraft being named Gloria, Penny and Violette.
In February, 2009, British Airways announced that they would not transfer additional 757s to its OpenSkies subsidiary by the end of 2009, as originally planned, but instead would sell them to a third party. OpenSkies was originally to expand to six aircraft by the end of 2009, but BA said this plan had been canceled.
| Aircraft | Total | Passengers | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B | S | Total | ||
| Boeing 757-200 Boeing 757 The Boeing 757 is a mid-size, narrow-body twin-engine jet airliner manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Passenger versions of the twinjet have a capacity of 186 to 289 persons and a maximum range of , depending on variant and cabin configuration... |
3 | 24 12 |
40 72 |
64 84 |
Approvals
The routes that OpenSkies intends to fly are only possible because of the EU-US Open Skies AgreementEU–U.S. Open Skies Agreement
The EU–US Open Skies Agreement is an air transport agreement between the European Union and the United States. The agreement allows any airline of the European Union and any airline of the United States to fly between any point in the European Union and any point in the United States. Airlines of...
, which permits any American or European airline to operate services to and from any European or American location. The availability of landing slots
Landing slots
Landing slots or Airport slots are rights allocated to an entity by an airport or government agency granting the slot owner the right to schedule a landing or departure during a specific time period....
limits the impact of the agreement at certain airports, such as London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport or Heathrow , in the London Borough of Hillingdon, is the busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the third busiest airport in the world in terms of total passenger traffic, handling more international passengers than any other airport around the globe...
.
BA European Limited, trading as Openskies, holds a United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority Type A Operating Licence. This permits the airline to carry passengers, cargo, and mail on aircraft with 20 or more seats. The operating licence was suspended on May 6, 2009 for three months following the transfer of the name to Elysair, at BA European's request.