Air Moldova

Air Moldova
IATA ICAO Callsign
9U MLD AIR MOLDOVA
Founded 1993
Hubs Chișinău International Airport
Frequent-flyer program Air Moldova Club
Fleet size 8
Destinations 24
Company slogan Born to fly
Headquarters Chișinău, Moldova
Key people Iulian Scorpan
Website airmoldova.md

Air Moldova is the national airline of Moldova headquartered in Chișinău.[1] It mainly operates scheduled and charter services to destinations within Europe from its base at Chișinău International Airport.

History

The roots of Moldavian civil aviation

Air Moldova Tupolev Tu-154 in 1994

The origin of Air Moldova can be traced to 19 September 1944, when the first unit of Po-2 transport aircraft arrived in Chișinău and the Moldovan Independent Squadron was established. Aside from fifteen aircraft Po-2 biplanes operating domestic flights and serving in the agricultural role, there were also two Li-2 aircraft, used on flights to Moscow, some Ukrainian cities and to Black Sea and Caucasus summer resorts.

In the 1960s, considerable steps were made in the development of the local Moldovan airline industry. A new airport in Chișinău able to accommodate gas turbine aircraft was opened early in the decade. The enterprise received status of Civil Aviation Administration in 1965 and new Antonov An-10, An-12 and An-24 aircraft expanded its fleet. Regular flights to many cities in the USSR were begun and the transportation of fruits and vegetables grown in Moldova to the largest industrial centers of the USSR was established.

The beginning of the 1970s was marked by the appearance of jet aircraft on Moldova's main air routes. The first Tupolev Tu-134 twin-jet airliner began service in Moldova in 1971 and became the main aircraft type of the enterprise, increasing in number until at one point 26 of them were in use. In Chișinău there was even an all-union test basis for aircraft of this type.

The fleet was further enlarged in 1972 with the Yakovlev Yak-42 tri-jet regional aircraft and in 1974 with the An-26 turboprop cargo aircraft. The route map kept expanding and the flow of traffic kept growing throughout the decade. In the middle of the 1980s, Moldovan operations received ten larger Tupolev Tu-154 tri-jet airliners, furthering the development of Moldovan aviation. At that time Moldovan aircraft flew to 73 cities in the USSR and carried over 1,000,000 passengers per year. In 1990 the first international route between Chișinău and Frankfurt was opened.

Creation of Air Moldova

The airline was created in 1993[2] on the basis of the local Aeroflot unit. Since its very start, the company’s efforts were targeted at integration to the international market and compliance with the modern standards and requirements to high-end airlines. Air Moldova joined the management team improvement program in 1999.

On 13 July 2004, Air Moldova became an International Air Transport Association member. Air Moldova has also passed the operation safety audit and received the IOSA operator certificate. In May 2006, Air Moldova implemented e-ticketing on all its flights. The Air Moldova air operators certificate permitted the transport of passengers, goods and mail as of July 2007.[3]

In February 2015, Air Moldova ceased three routes to Bucharest, Kiev and Sochi as the contract with Tandem Aero, which operated them on behalf of Air Moldova, was discontinued.[4] The Chisinau-Bucharest route will be relaunched on 12 December 2016.

Destinations

Air Moldova operates flights to several European metropolitan destinations from its base at Chișinău International Airport as well as additional seasonal and charter flights to Bulgaria, Egypt, Greece, and Turkey and London.

Codeshare agreements

Air Moldova has codeshare agreements with the following airlines (as of July 2015):

Fleet

Current fleet

Air Moldova Airbus A320-200
Air Moldova Embraer E-190

The Air Moldova fleet consists of the following aircraft as of 22 May 2016

Air Moldova Fleet
Type In Fleet Orders Passengers Notes
J Y Total
Airbus A319-100 2 — – 138 138
Airbus A320-200 2 — 8 162 170
Airbus A321-200 1 — – 220 220 Leased from Hermes Airlines
Embraer E-190 3 — 6 108 114
Total 8 —

Fleet development

In 2001, Air Moldova leased Embraer 120 and 145 aircraft. The two Yakovlev Yak-42s went back to Russia in late 2003 and 2004. The last Tupolev Tu-154B (ER-85285) was destroyed on July 5, 2006.

In November 2006, 93.1 million Moldovan lei (about €6 million) were transferred from the 2006 state budget to Air Moldova. With another 9 million lei taken from a bank, one of the six Airbus A320 has been bought. The political opposition at that time had doubts about the transparency of this deal.[5] In June 2007, Air Moldova gave back an Airbus A320 to the lessor after 38 months of service.[6]

A MD-82 (SX-BSQ) from SkyWings was leased for 5 months from 15 May until October 2007.[7]

The Tupolev Tu-134 operated the Moscow and Istanbul flights more often when the second Airbus left the fleet. In the past Air Moldova chartered a Cirrus Airlines Boeing 737-500, the Moldavian Airlines Fokker 100, a Bulgarian Air VIA A320, Jet Tran Air MD81/82s and a Khors Air MD82 as a replacement. The Yak-40 replaced the Embraer EMB-120 (e.g. to Prague or Vienna) when that aircraft was in maintenance.

The first Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia was part of the fleet from 12 October 2001 until 28 September 2006 when it was transferred to Tandem Aero. The second Embraer 120RT flew between 23 April 2004 and 26 March 2005 for Air Moldova. The second Embraer EMB120 Brasilia was bought in 2006. In February 2015, Air Moldova phased out their remaining single Embraer EMB-120 which was operated on lease by Tandem Aero.[8]

Embraer signed a firm order with Air Moldova for 2 one-class Embraer 190 regional jets. The contract included purchase rights for another aircraft. Delivery was on 10 May 2010. A third Embraer 190 (manufactured in 2009 and previously operated by Lufthansa and Borajet) joined the fleet in 2016.

Statistics

In 2012, Air Moldova transported 506,000 passengers. In 2013, Air Moldova transported 527,000 passengers.[9] In 2015, Air Moldova transported 1,000,000 passengers.[10]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Contact us." (Direct map link) Air Moldova. Retrieved on 31 December 2010. " Legal Address: Dacia bd. 80/2, Airport, MD-2026 Chișinău, Moldova." Address in Romanian: "bd. Dacia 80/2, Aeroport, MD 2026, Chişinău, Moldova." Map in Romanian. Address in Russian: "ул. Дачия 80/2, MD-2026 Кишинев, Молдова." Map in Russian. Archived May 13, 2011, at WebCite
  2. ↑ History Archived May 13, 2011, at WebCite
  3. ↑ Civil Aviation Authority of the Republic of Moldova Archived May 13, 2011, at WebCite
  4. ↑ http://ch-aviation.com/portal/news/36203-air-moldova-ends-embraer-120-operations
  5. ↑ All Moldova
  6. ↑ Airfleets Archived May 13, 2011, at WebCite
  7. ↑ Airliners Archived May 13, 2011, at WebCite
  8. ↑ http://ch-aviation.com/portal/news/36203-air-moldova-ends-embraer-120-operations
  9. ↑ Air Moldova website
  10. ↑ Air Moldova – peste un milion pasageri transportați în 2015

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