Manx Airlines
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| Founded | 1982 | |||
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| Ceased operations | 2002 | |||
| Hubs | IOM Isle of Man Airport | |||
| Frequent-flyer program | Club Sovereign | |||
| Fleet size | 5 (2002) | |||
| Destinations | BHX Birmingham International CWL Cardiff ORK Cork DUB Dublin GLA Glasgow JER Jersey LBA Bradford LPL Liverpool LHR London Heathrow LTN London Luton MAN Manchester NCL Newcastle SOU Southampton | |||
| Headquarters | Isle of Man Airport Ballasalla, Malew, Isle of Man |
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| Key people | Terry Liddiard | |||
| Website | N/A | |||
Manx Airlines was an Isle of Man based airline which existed between 1982 and 2002. Its head office was located on the grounds of Isle of Man Airport in Ballasalla, Malew.[1] An airline of the same name had existed between 1947 and 1958.[2]
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[edit] History
Manx Airlines started up on November 1, 1982. The first flight was JE601, flown from their base at Isle of Man Airport at Ronaldsway, by their Bandeirante to Glasgow.
From 1985 until 1993, the airline had employed the Shorts 360 and the Shorts 330. A Vickers Viscount 836 was operated from October 1983 until October 1988.[3] Before retirement, the Viscount performed several 'champagne' flights, as it was the last to operate scheduled passenger services in the UK.
Manx flew a Saab 340 during 1987-88, which bore "City Hopper" titles when operating the Liverpool-Heathrow shuttle service. In October 1988, the airline collected their first BAe ATP, replacing the Viscount. Manx also flew the BAe 146. Eventually, the airline owned seventeen ATPs. The airline was successful in acquiring Business Air in 1991. The airline became part of the British Regional Airlines Group in 1998 and lost its separate identity in 2002.
[edit] Aircraft operated
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Manx Airlines operated the following types of aircraft:-
- Vickers Viscount
- Fokker Friendship
- Embraer EMB 110
- BAC 1-11
- BAe ATP
- Jetstream 31
- Jetstream 41
- BAe 146
- Series 100
- Series 200
- Series 300
- Britten-Norman Islander
- de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter
- Embraer EMB 110
- Embraer ERJ 145
- Fokker Friendship
- Piper PA-23
- Piper PA-31
- Saab 340
- Shorts 330
- Shorts 360
- ATR-72
- Vickers Viscount
[edit] Manx's last days
Manx Airlines ceased operations on 31 August 2002. Between March 1999 and the date of closure, the fleet was as follows:[4]
| Type | Registration(s) |
|---|---|
| BAe 146 | G-MIMA |
| BAe ATP | G-MANA, G-MANB, G-MANC |
| Jetstream 41 | G-MAJA |
The last flight was planned to be flown by BAe 146 G-MIMA, from London (Gatwick) to Isle of Man Airport (Ronaldsway). However, due to technical problems, a sub-chartered aircraft was brought in to operate this service. Therefore, the honour of operating the last Manx Airlines flight (JE 818 Birmingham International to Ronaldsway) went to Manx-born pilot Captain Paul Quine who was in command of ATP G-MANB, which landed at Ronaldsway at 20:10 GMT on Saturday 31 August 2002. The BRAL Group (holding company for Manx Airlines and British Regional Airlines) was bought out for about £72 million by British Airways, and Manx Airlines ceased to exist.
[edit] References
- Notes
- ^ "World Airline Directory." Flight International. 26 March-1 April 1997. 86. "Isle of Man (Ronaldsway) Airport, Ballasalla, Isle of Man, IM9 2JE, UK"
- ^ Merton Jones, 1976, PP.289-290
- ^ Eastwood 1998, p. 529
- ^ Pither 1999, p. 166
- Bibliography
- Eastwood, Tony (1998), Turbo Prop Airliner Production List, The Aviation Hobby Shop, ISBN 0-907178-69-3
- Merton Jones, A.C. (1976), British Independent Airlines since 1946, Merseyside Aviation Society & LAAS, ISBN 0-902420-09-7
- Pither, Tony (1999), Airline Fleets 1999, Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd, ISBN 0-85130-278-5
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