Air Europe (Italy)

Air Europe was an Italian airline based at Milan Malpensa Airport, Italy. It was, at the time of closure, part of the Alitalia group.

This article is about the defunct Italian airline. For the defunct British airline, see Air Europe. For the defunct Belgian airline, see Trans European Airways. For the active Spanish airline, see Air Europa.
Air Europe
IATA ICAO Callsign
PE AEL AIR EUROPE
Founded1989 (1989)
Commenced operations19 December 1989 (1989-12-19)
Ceased operations12 December 2008 (2008-12-12)
HubsMilan–Malpensa
Secondary hubsRome–Fiumicino
Frequent-flyer program
Parent companyAlitalia-Linee Aeree Italiane
HeadquartersVarese, Italy

Air Europe suspended operations in December 2008 after Compagnia Aerea Italiana (which was going to take over as the new Alitalia) decided to close down the Air Europe brand.[1] The airline at one time was a subsidiary of the Volare Group which had its head office in Thiene, Italy, and its commercial management and charter management in Milan.[2]

History

The airline was established in 1989 and started operations on 19 December 1989. It started as part of the Airlines of Europe Group based in the United Kingdom, but became wholly Italian owned in 1991. In December 1997, it inaugurated its first scheduled flight to Havana, Cuba.[3]

It eventually became a subsidiary of Volare Airlines. With this partnership, Air Europe became a major domestic and international airline, operating Airbus A320, Boeing 737, Boeing 757, Boeing 767 and Boeing 777 aircraft.

In 2004, Volare Group S.p.A. (the holding that controlled Air Europe S.p.A. and Volare Airlines S.p.A.) went bankrupt and was put up for sale by the Italian government in December 2004. Alitalia's offer for 38 million euros was the winning bid, but Air One tried to block the sale for various reasons by going to court — this happened five times and, in fact, so many obstacles were placed in front of Alitalia's acquisition of the group (including Alitalia's financial difficulties), that the affair was considered like a soap-opera by the Italians.

In the end, Air One was unsuccessful but Alitalia had to create Volare S.p.A. (also known as Volareweb.com) in order to take over the then Volare "Group" S.p.A. Finally, in May 2006, the former Volare Group employees were transferred to Volare S.p.A. and Air Europe S.p.A.

By 1 January 2008, the airline (Air Europe) was considered an integral part of the Alitalia Group. That year Alitalia used it for long-haul leisure destinations such as Mauritius.

In September 2008, Compagnia Aerea Italiana (CAI) made an offer to buy Alitalia, to save it from the bankruptcy to which it too was destined, and, on 12 December 2008, the offer was accepted. As a part of the re-branding, CAI decided that it was going to close Air Europe as there was no longer a need for it. As a partner for leisure long-haul operations, it is possible that the "new" Alitalia will use Air Italy, an airline with which Alitalia already has some agreements.[4]

Destinations

Air Europe served the following destinations at the time of closure:

Fleet

Air Europe operated the following aircraft throughout its existence:

Boeing 767-352(ER)
Air Europe Historical Fleet[5]
AircraftTotalIntroducedRetiredRemark
Airbus A320-200919992005
Boeing 737-300119861987G-BLKD
leased from Orion Airways
Boeing 737-400119901991G-BRKG on lease
Boeing 747-100119891990N602FF on lease
Boeing 757-200719892007on lease
Boeing 767-300ER1319912009on lease
Boeing 777-200ER219992003EI-CRS, EI-CRT
on lease
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30119951996OO-JOT on lease

See also

References
  1. "Air Europe chiude: ha fatto scoprire il charter allItalia A Cai ora non serve". il Giornale (in Italian). 16 December 2008. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  2. "Contact us". Volare Group. Archived from the original on 27 November 2003. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  3. "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 27 March 2007. p. 56.
  4. "Alitalia: Sabelli, pensiamo ampliare collaborazione con Air Italy" [Alitalia may extend partnership with Air Italy]. Milano Finanzia (in Italian). 13 October 2010. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
  5. "Air Europe SpA Fleet". Planespotters. Retrieved 23 July 2019.
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