Austrian Airlines (Vienna) will resume daily Vienna – Manchester Fokker 100 service on September 10 per Airline Route.
Copyright Photo: SPA/AirlinersGallery.com. Previously operated by Tyrolean Airways as Austrian arrows, all Fokker 100s are now operated by a combined and new Austrian Airlines. Tyrolean Airways was quietly closed down on March 31, 2015. Fokker F.28 Mk. 0100 (Fokker 100) OE-LVI (msn 11468) departs from London (Heathrow).
Greenland Express (Keflavik and Aalborg) has suspended operations according to this report by check-in.dk. The flights were being operated with a Fokker 100 operated by Denim Air (above) twice-weekly. The flights from Denmark were making a technical stop in Keflavik, Iceland which was adding to the costs incurred by the company. According to the report, the company intends to restart operations with new investors and will look at possibly using an Airbus A320 for nonstop flights to Greenland. Greenland Express will lease the aircraft directly from the leasing company.
Copyright Photo: Ton Jochems/AirlinersGallery.com. Denim Air’s Fokker F.28 Mk. 0100 (Fokker 100) PH-MJP (msn 11505) prepares to taxi to the runway at Amsterdam.
Greenland Express has had to deal with two cancelled flights and other operational issues recently with operator Denim Air (Amsterdam) according to Nordjyske.dk. According to the report, the airline has issued refunds for the cancelled flights.
Greenland Express CEO Gert Brask also stated to the Danish website that a new investor will have to be found in the future. He will determine the time when new capital is needed.
Greenland Express Air is a Greenlandic/Danish virtual airline, established in the beginning of 2013.
Greenland Express Air chose Dutch flight operator Denim Air to operate the flights.ย Greenland Express Air uses a Denim Air 100-seat Fokker 100 aircraft (above) on flights between Denmark and Greenland.
Copyright Photo: Greenland Express. Denim Air’s Fokker 100 (F.28 Mk. 0100) PH-MJP (msn 11505) has been operated for Greenland Express in their colors since the start of services on June 17, 2014.
Adriatic Skyways (Dubrovnik) has started charter operations from Basle/Mulhouse/Freiburg (EuroAirport) to Pristina using a wet leased Denim Air Fokker F.28 Mk. 0100 (Fokker 100) PH-LND according to ch-aviation.
The company describes itself:
Adriatic Skyways has joined forces with the Dutch AOC Holder Denim Air ACMI B. V. The flights will be operated by Denim on behalf of Adriatic Skyways, all other commercial operations are run by Adriatic Skyways.
Denim was carefully selected by Adriatic Skyways to become its single and exclusive airline partner. Denim has established an impressive track record as a regional aircraft operator. They have operated on behalf of airlines, companies, tour operators and other groups since 1996. Denim focuses on operational excellence, rather than ticket sales. The optimization of the flight operation in terms of reliability, punctuality, and passenger satisfaction has the highest priority.
Denim operates Embraer E190, Fokker 50 and Fokker 100, and confirms that they have these aircraft available.
Adriatic Skyways is established to promote and develop airline traffic from the Balkan region. Its expertise lies in the commercial operation of an airline, rather than the operational. Adriatic Skyways focuses on the contacts with tour operators, local tourism agencies, hotels, governments, etc, in order to increase traffic and tickets sales from the region. The business model excludes starting its own AOC to stay lean and low cost, and therefore Adriatic Skyways has selected Denim Air ACMI as its operator. The aircraft are in Adriatic Skyways livery and the flight program is managed by Adriatic Skyways. The entire flight experience for the passanges is an Adriatic Skyways product.
Copyright Photo: Paul Bannwarth. Denim Air’s Fokker F.28 Mk. 0100 (Fokker 100) PH-LND (msn 11320) carries joint titles for this new operation. Oddly the titles on the aircraft “Adriatic Sky”.
Austrian Airlines (Vienna) and Tyrolean Airways (Innsbruck and Vienna) have met with stiff resistance and a possible strike from its unions on its recent proposals for a new contract and hopefully some labor peace. As a result, Tyrolean Airways has now withdrawn its offer for a new contract as previously reported. In addition, Tyrolean Airways will not be merged into Austrian Airlines. Lower cost Tyrolean Airways currently operates all aircraft (except one Boeing 777-200) for Austrian Airlines under the Austrian brand. The company has also decided not to pursue a replacement program for the Fokker jet aircraft due to this uncertain labor environment. The group issued this statement:
โข Threat of industrial action or even a strike met with incomprehension
โข Works Council considers the old collective wage agreement to be the basis for negotiations
โข โOld collective wage agreement would lead into an economic dead endโ
After ten months of negotiations the management of Tyrolean Airways has withdrawn its offer for a new Group collective wage agreement. Last Monday the Works Council responded to the presented offer by holding a general staff meeting and threatening industrial actions or even a strike – a total of 34 flights had to be cancelled, and almost 3,000 passengers were affected by the disruption of normal flight operations.
Moreover, at the first round of negotiations following the announcement of the offer, Karl Minhard, Chairman of the Works Council for the flight and cabin crew, declared that from his point of view the basis for negotiations is still the original collective wage agreement applying to the former flight staff of Austrian Airlines. In January, both parties had still defined the goal of reaching an agreement by May 31, 2014.
โWe would not manage to achieve this under the prevailing circumstances, neither with respect to the timing or the contentsโ, says Klaus Froese, Managing Director of Tyrolean Airways. โThe past cannot be the answer to an economically challenging future. The old collective wage agreement would lead us straight into an economic dead endโ, he adds. As a reminder: for six consecutive years Austrian Airlines operated in the red. As of 2013 the company was again in the black, as a result of strict cost management and after the termination of the old collective wage agreement.
After consulting with the Executive Board of Austrian Airlines, the management of Tyrolean Airways decided to take the proposed solution off the agenda. โWe have to remain punctual and reliable, especially when people are planning their summer vacations. Flight disruptions and cancellations are not acceptable for our customersโ, Froese adds.
Thereby, for the time being, also the offer of merging Tyrolean Airways and Austrian Airlines is no longer under discussion. The management of Austrian Airlines does not believe it is an opportune time to make the potential investments of up to EUR 1 billion to replace the Fokker aircraft and expand long haul routes. This is because the former collective wage agreement does not provide a sound basis for such investments.
โWe will now deliberate which options we have. Naturally my door remains open for serious negotiations about an economically viable Austrian Airlinesโ, Froese emphasizes.
The management remains confident with respect to the lawsuits filed by the trade union and the Works Council. The transfer of flight operations to Tyrolean was economically essential and also legally permissible.
Copyright Photo: TMK Photography/AirlinersGallery.com. The Fokker 70s and 100s operated by Tyrolean Airways are not likely to replaced any time soon with this uncertainty. Fokker F.28 Mk. 0100 (Fokker 100) OE-LVC (msn 11446) arrives in Amsterdam.
Virgin Australia today (May 7) unveiled its new regional airline operation with Virgin Founder Sir Richard Branson and Virgin Australia Chief Executive Officer John Borghetti in Perth.
Following the acquisition of Skywest Airlines last month, today marked the launch of the newly branded airline. The first two aircraft to be rebranded as โVirgin Australiaโ were officially unveiled (Fokker 100 VH-FSQ and Fokker 50 VH-FNA), representing the airlineโs commitment to continued investment and new growth opportunities for regional and charter travel in Australia.
The entity known as Virgin Australia Regional Airlines will be based in Perth, Western Australia and the operation will now have 32 aircraft operating over 800 services per week to 41 different destinations.
The old Skywest Airlines route map (above).
Virgin Australia Chief Executive Officer John Borghetti described it as a momentous day for the airline, tourism and the travel industry.
โThis country has one of the most geographically dispersed populations in the world and reliable, affordable air services are vital to the growth of regional Australia.
โIn 2010, we articulated a strategy to become the airline of choice for all travellers in Australia. Since then, we have changed the competitive landscape in many ways and today marks our next major leap forward.
โBy integrating Skywest Airlines into the Virgin Australia Group, we unlock new opportunities to grow our services to regional Australia and significantly increase our charter presence in the high growth fly-in-fly-out markets.
โWestern Australia is one of the fastest growing aviation markets and a very important part of our strategy. We have made significant investment over the past two years with the introduction of our internationally configured Airbus A330 aircraft on services between the East and West Coast, increased frequencies to the resource-rich Pilbara region and established a large crew base in Perth.
โBy building a Perth-based operation and workforce, we will continue to invest in local resources, expertise and infrastructureโ, Mr Borghetti said.
Sir Richard Branson said: โIt is fantastic what John and the team have done over the last couple of years, completely repositioning the airline with the introduction of the Virgin Australia brand and its brilliant product and service. Now I am thrilled to see him focusing on other market segments including regional and charter services where I know they will deliver.
โThis is the start of the next ground-breaking chapter for the Virgin Australia Group and an exciting time for the airlineโ, Sir Richard said.
Copyright Photo: Micheil Keegan. All other images and photos from Skywest. The Skywest Airlines brand is now being retired. All of the aircraft are gradually being repainted into the Virgin Australia brand.
The faces of Skywest Airlines.
Video: Skywest Airlines of Australia fades into the sunset:
Air Bagan‘s (Yangon) flight W9 011 from Mandalay to Heho, Myanmar (formerly Burma) was being operated yesterday (December 25) with the pictured Fokker F.28 Mk. 0100 (Fokker 100) XY-AGC (msn 11420). The jetliner was operating with 65 passengers and six crew members. According to local reports, the flight was on approach to Heho in fog, when the Fokker 100 made an emergency landing on a road near the airport and came to a stop in a rice field in pieces and caught on fire.
One passenger and one motorcyclist was killed in the accident and eight were injured.
The airline issued the following statement:
Read the full account from The Independent: CLICK HERE
According to the airline, “Heho is the gateway to beautiful Inle Lake with its unique lifestyle, and the ancient pagoda complexes of Kekku, Indain and Taungto. There is also the Shwe Umin Cave Pagoda of Pindaya, a lovely little town with a lake in its centre ad a flourishing craft industry of hand made paper and paper umbrellas
Gateway to the Inle Lake which is known as the Venice of the East, picturesque Inle Lake is definitely one of the magical sights in South East Asia. The lake is not only a beautiful sight to enjoy, but also the practical home of the native Intha (sons of the lake), who live on the lake in stilt houses with neatly cultivated floating farms and nurseries. The presence of many ethnic groups in the area, still wearing their national dress, especially on market day makes it a captivating place of much cultural interest.”
Copyright Photo: K.C. Sim. Fokker F.28 Mk. 0100 (Fokker 100) XY-AGC (msn 11327) is pictured departing from Singapore before the accident.
OLT Express (Germany) (Bremen) has been sold byย Amber Gold to Dutch financial investor Panta Holdings BV.
Under the leadership of Panta Holdings, OLT Express (Germany) will continue its expansion plans by integrating Contact Air (Stuttgart) in early September.
Panta Holdings has been active in the aviation industry with Dutch company Denim Airways and leasing company Mass lease.ย In addition, Panta is involved in the Canadian supplier Avcorp Industries. Panta Holdings also owned VLM Airlines in the past before it was sold to the Air France-KLM Group.
After Amber Gold announced it was getting out of the aviation industry after the recent failure of OLT Express (Poland) there was a period of uncertainty for the employees of the OLT Express (Germany) and Contact Air. Now they have a more secure future.
Copyright Photo: Andi Hiltl. The Fokker 100 will now be the main aircraft for the new OLT Express. Fokker F.28 Mk. 0100 D-AOLG approaches for landing in the bright 2011 livery at Zurich. Unfortunately this color scheme is now also associated with the failure of OLT Express (Poland) which made headlines when it stranded passengers. A new branding effort by the new owners could become a new reality.
OLT Express Germany (Bremen) took ย over the operations of Contact Air Service GmbH & Co. KG (Stuttgart) on July 4. Both companies will continue to operate under the OLT Express brand. Anti-trust clearance of the acquisition is expected to be completed in early September 2012.
With the acquisition, OLT Express Germany now employs about 500 additional employees.ย Of these, there are approximately 200 employees in Bremen, about 200 in Stuttgart and about 100 in Saarbruecken.
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