Thomsonfly
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| Thomsonfly | ||
|---|---|---|
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| IATA BY |
ICAO TOM |
Callsign TOMSON |
| Founded | 1962 (as Euravia) | |
| Hubs | Manchester Airport London Gatwick Airport |
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| Focus cities | Belfast International Airport Birmingham Airport Newcastle Airport Cardiff Airport East Midlands Airport London Luton Airport Doncaster Sheffield Airport Bournemouth Airport Glasgow Airport |
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| Alliance | TUI Airlines | |
| Fleet size | 47 | |
| Destinations | 87 | |
| Parent company | TUI Airlines-(TUI Group) | |
| Company slogan | Don't just travel, travel with a smile | |
| Headquarters | Luton, United Kingdom | |
| Key people | Chris Browne MD) John Murphy(DFO) |
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| Website: http://www.thomsonfly.com | ||
Thomsonfly is a British airline owned by the TUI Group. Thomsonfly is the largest charter airline in the world, and also operates scheduled services to 20 European cities. The airline has several bases including Birmingham, Bournemouth, Cardiff, Coventry, Glasgow, Liverpool, London Gatwick, Belfast, London Luton, Manchester, Newcastle, Doncaster-Sheffield and Durham Tees Valley.
Thomsonfly Limited holds a United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority Type A Operating Licence permitting it to carry passengers, cargo and mail on aircraft with 20 or more seats.[1]
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[edit] History
Thomsonfly traces its roots to its parent airline, Britannia Airways, founded by Ted Langton. The airline began as Euravia in 1962. The name was changed to Britannia Airways and remained until December 2004. Britannia grew rapidly when it acquired Boeing 737-200 aircraft, and was the European launch customer for the Boeing 767 and then moved to an all-Boeing 767 and 757 fleet in the mid-1990s, with a total fleet of 45 aircraft by 2004.
Thomson Holidays subsequently embraced a web-oriented rebranding and used the Thomsonfly name to include all of the UK flying operations, with the larger Britannia Airways rebranded as Thomsonfly in 2005.
Scheduled operations began on 31 March 2004 with four Boeing 737-500 aircraft, from a new passenger terminal at Coventry Airport. The airline became involved in controversy when it took over ownership of the airport lease. A number of local residents and Warwick District Council mounted a campaign against regular passenger flights from the airport, which had previously been used for both passenger and freight aircraft. The planning case was contentious and lengthy, and Thomsonfly continued to operate from Coventry awaiting the outcome of the case. Planning permission was granted for a larger passenger terminal and the ownership of the lease has passed to CAFCO, an airport and property development company with no links to TUI.
On 28 April 2005, Thomsonfly became the first airline to fly from Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield. Thomsonfly was also the first airline to operate direct long haul services from the airport. The airline remains the dominant carrier at Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield, as well as Coventry Airport and Bournemouth Airport, where a base was also established.
Thomsonfly was the best on-time charter airline in 2004 as measured by the Air Transport Users' Council and also won the 'Travel Weekly' best UK charter airline award for 2004. The airline is part of TUI Airline Management (TAM).
In March 2008 the tourism division of the airline's parent group TUI AG, merged with First Choice Holidays PLC which has seen both Thomson and First Choice Holidays combined. This will eventually see a merger of both holiday company's airlines, Thomsonfly and First Choice Airways.
The new company is known as TUI Travel PLC and the company's head office is in Crawley, West Sussex although the UK & Ireland head office is in Luton.
[edit] Destinations
[edit] Fleet
In May 2008, the Thomsonfly fleet comprised:[2]
| Aircraft | Total | Passengers[3] | Routes | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing 737-300 | 11 | 148 | Short Haul | |
| Boeing 737-500 | 2 | 131 | Short Haul | |
| Boeing 737-800 | 11 | 189 | Short & Mid Haul | |
| Boeing 757-200 | 14 | 235 | Short & Mid haul | |
| Boeing 767-200 | 2 | 263, 274 or 290 | Short, Mid & Long haul | |
| Boeing 767-300ER | 7 | 315 or 328 | Short, Mid & Long haul | |
| Total | 47 |
The average age of the Thomsonfly fleet was 10.7 years as of May 2008.[4]
[edit] Awards
- FlightOnTime.info - Runner-up UK Charter Airline for punctuality - Summer 2005 & Summer 2007
- FlightOnTime.info - Most Punctual UK Charter Airline - Summer 2004
- AUC Crown Awards: Most Punctual Charter Carrier - Summer 2004
- Travel & Tourism Web Awards: Best Airline - 2004
- Telegraph Travel Awards: Best Charter Airline - 2003
[edit] Gallery
.jpg/120px-Boeing_737-204C_-_Britannia_Airways_-_G-AXNB_(1985).jpg) Britannia Airways Boeing 737-204 (1985) |
 Britannia Airways Boeing 757-200 in Thomson colours (2003) |
[edit] External links
[edit] References
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