Estonian Air
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Founded | 1991 | ||||||
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Hubs | Lennart Meri Tallinn Airport Vilnius International Airport | ||||||
Focus cities | |||||||
Frequent-flyer program | EuroBonus | ||||||
Subsidiaries |
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Fleet size | 6 (+3 orders) | ||||||
Destinations | 27 | ||||||
Parent company | Scandinavian Airlines System | ||||||
Headquarters | Tallinn, Estonia | ||||||
Key people | Andrus Aljas (CEO) Rait Kalda (COO) Maigi Pernik-Pärnik(CFO) Rauno Parras (CCO) | ||||||
Website | www.estonian-air.com |
AS Estonian Air is Estonia's national carrier, owned by the Estonian state and SAS Group. The airline is based in Tallinn, Estonia.[1] It is a regional airline feeding into the Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) network via Stockholm, Oslo and Copenhagen from Estonia.
The air transport services provided by Estonian Air consist of:
- scheduled passenger transport on international routes
- charter passenger transport
- cargo transport
AS Estonian Air has one subsidiary and two joint ventures: in co-operation with the parent company AS Estonian Air Regional operates Saab 340 aircraft and provides commercial air services to the neighboring region; Estonian Aviation Fuelling Services AS provides aircraft fueling services at Tallinn Airport and AS Amadeus Eesti provides distribution system and support to local travel agents.[2]
Estonian Air is owned by the Estonian government (90%) and SAS Group (49%). It has 351 employees (May 2009, including AS Estonian Air Regional).[2] Unlike its affiliated carrier, Scandinavian Airlines, Estonian Air is not a member of the Star Alliance but it is a part of the SAS loyalty programme, EuroBonus.
History
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Estonian_Air_B737-5L9_%28ES-ABL%29_parked_at_Tallinn_Airport.jpg/220px-Estonian_Air_B737-5L9_%28ES-ABL%29_parked_at_Tallinn_Airport.jpg)
The airline was established by the Estonian government with aircraft acquired from the defunct local Aeroflot Division[3] Estonian Air started operation on 1 December 1991 with service to Frankfurt.[citation needed]
In 1992 the airline became a member of IATA and the first Boeing 737-500 was delivered in 1995. The company was partially privatised in 1996 with 66% of shares to Maersk Air (49%) and Cresco investment bank (17%).[2] The company leased two Boeing 737-500s to replace its old Soviet planes, and in 1996, after obtaining two more Fokker 50s, it was able to retire the Soviet fleet entirely.
In 2003 Maersk Air sold its shares to SAS and the Fokker 50s were retired. By 2004 the airline had carried its 500,000th passenger.
In March 2007 Estonian Air announced that they will lease another Boeing 737-500 and serve a new destination, Vienna. Estonian Air has leased two Saab 340s and in June 2008 Estonian Air established a new company Estonian Air Regional. Under that name it added new destinations from Tallinn to Kuressaare, Stockholm, Helsinki and Vilnius. Later on to Saint Petersburg and to Minsk.
In 2008 three new destinations (Minsk, Munich and Rome) were served and the company announced that it was ordering 3 Bombardier CRJ900 NG and further 3 options. On 27 November 2008, Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip announced that SAS had approached the Estonian government, urgently requesting a cash injection to save the airline and offering to buy out the government's stake in the airline. The Estonian government is reportedly in negotiations with ferry company Tallink to come up with a counter-proposal.[4]
In 2009 Estonian Air gave up its Vienna, Frankfurt and Simferopol routes. The company closed its ground handling division. New destinations from Tallinn were Amsterdam, Berlin and St Peterburg, new route was Tartu–Stockholm.
In 2010 Estonian Air started cooperation with KLM, announcing new route Tallinn–Vilnius–Amsterdam (starting from 12 February 2010).[5]
As of 10 May 2010, the government of Estonia and SAS Scandinavian Airlines have agreed to a transaction where the Estonian government has provided additional 21 million EUR in capital to Estonian Air resulting in the stake of SAS in the carrier to decrease from 49% to 10%. At the same time, the two parties have agreed that the Estonian government gets an option to buy the remaining 10% stake from SAS at a later time between now and 2014. Estonian Air and SAS Scandinavian Airlines will continue to cooperate in the same fashion for the time being.[6][7] The short-term aim of the government is to become a leading shareholder and to invest in the company to ensure it's future as Estonian Air is strategically important to the state. In September 2010, Estonian Air announced that they have finally signed an agreement with Bombardier and two CRJ-900 NextGen planes are going to be delivered in the beginning of 2011 and third one during 2012.[8][9] The agreement with SAS Scandinavian Airlines was signed on 10 September 2010[10] and it took effect on 27 October 2010 when Estonian Parliament ratified 2010 state budget modifications, allocating needed funds for investment.
On-board service
On Boeing operated flights there are two service classes onboard
Premium Class
In the Premium Class cabin is for passengers holding Business or Flexible Economy fare tickets. All passengers are served free breakfast, lunch or dinner and beverages depending on the time of departure.
Travel class
Travel Class is for passengers with Economy fare tickets. Free complimentary refreshments are offered: snacks, coffee, tea, water and juice on longer flights, and coffee, tea and water on flights which are shorter than one hour
Destinations
Estonian Air is offering direct flights from the Estonian capital, Tallinn throughout Europe: Amsterdam, Athens, Barcelona, Berlin, Brussels, Copenhagen, Dublin, Hamburg, Kiev, London, Milan, Minsk, Moscow, Nice, Oslo, Paris, Rome, St Petersburg, Stockholm and Vilnius, as well as from Tallinn to Kuressaare and from Kuressaare, Pärnu and Tartu to Stockholm.
Estonian Air has strong links with Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS). It operates frequent flights to SAS hubs in Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm. The airline boasts "Well connected with SAS" status and the airline's frequent flyer programme is SAS' EuroBonus scheme. Other products and services shared with SAS include co-ordinated timetabling and shared airport lounges. SAS codesharing is for Tallinn–Stockholm, –Copenhagen, –Oslo and Stockholm–Kuressaare, –Pärnu and –Tartu routes.
See also SAS Group destinations
Fleet
The Estonian Air fleet includes the following aircraft as of 20 September 2010[11]:
Aircraft Type | Total | Orders | Passengers | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Boeing 737-300 | 2 | 0 | 142 | leased from ILFC and GECAS |
Boeing 737-500 | 3 | 0 | 118 | leased from ILFC |
Saab 340A | 2 | 0 | 33 | leased from Saab Aircraft Leasing |
Bombardier CRJ900 | 0 | 3 | On order; delivery expected in 2011-2012.[8][9] |
Retired Fleet
- Tupolev Tu-134A: 11 (1990–1996)
- Yakovlev Yak-40: 4 (1990–1996)
- Boeing 737-500: 7 (1995–2010)
- Fokker 50: 5 (1996–2003)
Codeshare agreements
Estonian Air has codeshare agreements with the following airlines:
Other Partner Airlines:
In-flight services
Starting from 9 February 2010, Estonian Air is serving to all its Economy Class passengers complimentary refreshments: snacks, coffee, tea, water and juice on longer flights, and coffee, tea and water on flights which are shorter than one hour.[12] Hot meals may be ordered for purchase in advance.[13]
Business class lounge
Estonian Air Business Class passengers and SAS EuroBonus Gold/Pandion card holders are welcome to Business Class Lounge in the transit area. Payphone, free newspapers and magazines are available. Other facilities include a bar, Internet-connected computers and printers.
References
- ^ "Contact – AS Estonian Air." Estonian Air. Retrieved on 18 January 2010.
- ^ a b c Flight International 3 April 2007
- ^ AS Estonian Air
- ^ [1] The Baltic Times, 4 December 2008
- ^ [2] Estonian Air: Estonian Air and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines will start cooperation on Amsterdam-Vilnius-Amsterdam route
- ^ Hõbemägi, Toomas (10 May 2010). "Estonia, SAS signs letter of intent on Estonian Air". Baltic Business News. Retrieved 30 August 2010.
- ^ "SAS sells 49 percent stake in Estonian Air". The Local. 4 June 2010. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- ^ a b "Estonian Air and Bombardier signed a contract regarding delivery of three new CRJ900 NextGen aircraft". Estonian Air. 13 September 2010. Retrieved 17 September 2010.
- ^ a b Estonian CRJ900s to arrive in 2011 under new dea. Retrieved 13 September 2010
- ^ "Riik ja SAS panid täna paika Estonian Airi omandisuhted". Postimees. 17 September 2010. Retrieved 17 September 2010.
- ^ Estonian Air Fleet. Estonian Air. Retrieved 20 September 2010.
- ^ "Estonian Air improves onboard services."
- ^ "Hot meal order." Estonian Air. Retrieved on 3 August 2009.
External links
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