Niceair

Niceair was a virtual airline headquartered in Akureyri in northern Iceland, with operations based at Akureyri Airport.[3] The company launched services on 2 June 2022, using a leased Airbus A319. It was forced to suspend all operations and later declared insolvency in May 2023.[2]

Niceair
IATA ICAO Callsign
— HFM n/a
FoundedFebruary 2022 (2022-02)
Commenced operations2 June 2022 (2022-06-02)
Ceased operationsApril 2023 (suspended)[1]
May 2023 (bankruptcy)[2]
Operating basesAkureyri Airport
Fleet size1
Destinations3
HeadquartersAkureyri, Iceland
Key peopleÞorvaldur Lúðvík Sigurjónsson (CEO)
Websiteniceair.is

History

In February 2022, Niceair was announced as a virtual airline with the intention of bringing tourists to northern Iceland from other parts of Europe, with services planned to launch on 2 June 2022, using a fleet consisting of a single Airbus A319.[4][5][6][7] The company was launched with financial backing from various investors including Samherji and Norlandair.[8] The company additionally had no immediate plans to acquire its own air operator's certificate, instead planning for its flights to be operated by a separate charter airline.[9] During March 2022, the operating airline was revealed to be Hi Fly Malta,[10] and Niceair subsequently began ticket sales for flights.[11]

Following the launch of its first service to London-Stansted on 3 June 2022, the company found it was not allowed to transport passengers on its first return flight from London back to Akureyri,[12] as an air services treaty between Iceland and the United Kingdom that came into effect as part of Brexit did not allow for Hi Fly Malta to operate scheduled services between the two countries on behalf of Niceair.[13] The company subsequently suspended its London Stansted services for at least the remainder of the month. Though since, services have not been resumed.[14] This also led to the circumstance that the planned flights to Manchester did not proceed in October 2022 as previously planned.[15][16]

In March 2023, Niceair called off its proposed service to Düsseldorf from May 2023, planning to inaugurate it in 2024 instead.[17]

The airline has suspended operations as of 7 April 2023 after their sole aircraft, operated by Hi Fly Malta, was detained by its lessor. Niceair stated a lack of available alternative aicraft as a reason for the forced suspension of all operations.[18][19]

In May 2023, Niceair laid off all remaining staff and announced it would not resume operations in 2023.[1] A few weeks later, the airline filed for insolvency and closed down.[2]

Destinations

As of April 2023, Niceair has offered or planned scheduled services to the following destinations:[16]

Country/territory City/region Airport Start date End date Notes Refs
DenmarkCopenhagenCopenhagen Airport2 June 2022suspended[11]
IcelandAkureyriAkureyri Airport2 June 2022suspendedBase[11]
SpainTenerifeTenerife South Airport8 June 2022suspendedSeasonal[20]
United KingdomLondonLondon Stansted Airport3 June 20223 June 2022Terminated[11][14]

Fleet

As of June 2022, Niceair had chartered the following aircraft under its brand:

Niceair fleet
Aircraft In service Orders Passengers Notes
Airbus A319-100 1 — 150 Leased from Hi Fly Malta[10]
Total 1 —

See also

References
  1. aerotelegraph.com - "Niceair lays off all staff - No restart soon" 2 May 2023
  2. airliners.de - "New icelandic Niceair is insolvent" (German) 22 May 2023
  3. "Niceair Airline Profile". CAPA. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
  4. "Iceland's Niceair to launch in 2Q22 with a chartered A319". ch-aviation. 21 February 2022. Archived from the original on 21 February 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
  5. Schlappig, Ben (17 February 2022). "Niceair, A New Northern Icelandic Airline". One Mile at a Time. Archived from the original on 16 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
  6. Dron, Alan (25 February 2022). "North Icelandic Startup Niceair Eyes International Routes". Routes. Archived from the original on 20 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
  7. "Startup Niceair Aims To Link Northern Iceland, Europe". Aviation Week Network. 24 February 2022. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
  8. Sena, Gastón (22 February 2022). "Niceair, Iceland's new airline seeking to fly to Spain, Denmark and UK". Aviacionline. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
  9. "Why Niceair is not an airline and how Akureyri will benefit from it". Flugblogg. 21 March 2022.
  10. "Iceland's Niceair contracts Hi Fly Malta for charter ops". ch-aviation. 3 March 2022. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  11. Pearson, James (22 March 2022). "Icelandic Startup Niceair Launches Ticket Sales On First 3 Routes". Simple Flying. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
  12. Ragnhildardóttir, Hólmfríður María (3 June 2022). "Farþegar Niceair sendir heim með öðru flugfélagi" [Niceair passengers sent home by another airline]. Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 11 June 2022.
  13. Menshenin, Andrei (7 June 2022). "Why HiFly Malta might not be able to fly to the UK for Niceair". Retrieved 11 June 2022.
  14. "Aflýsa öllum flugferðum til London í júní" [Flights to London canceled in June]. Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 6 June 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
  15. Casey, David (26 April 2022). "Route Analysis: Akureyri-Manchester". Routes. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  16. "Destinations". Niceair. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
  17. nord.news - "Niceair cancels scheduled flights to Düsseldorf" (German) 16 March 2023
  18. Orban, André (6 April 2023). "Icelandic start-up Niceair cancels flights and suspends operations". Aviation24.be. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
  19. icelandreview.com - "Niceair cancels all flights" (German) 6 April 2023
  20. "Fancy the Northern Lights? Niceair starts new flights from Tenerife to Iceland". Canarian Weekly. 10 March 2022. Archived from the original on 12 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
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