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Aeroput

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Six Aeroput Potez 29/2 biplanes at the old Belgrade-Dojno polje Airport, 1929

Aeroput (Serbian Cyrillic: Aeропут, English translation: "Airway") was a Yugoslav airline, and flag carrier of Yugoslavia from 1927 until 1948.

Society for Air traffic AD Aeroput was the first Serbian company for civil air traffic, which was founded on 17 June 1927 as Društvo za Vazdušni Saobraćaj "Aeroput" (Society for Air Traffic "Aeroput"),[1] in the palace of the Adriatic-Danube bank in Belgrade, and was shut down on 24 December 1948. Aeroput was the national carrier of the Kingdom of SHS, and then the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Aeroput was among the first civilian aircraft carriers, as well as 10th airline company in Europe and 21st in the World.

History

The first line Belgrade - Zagreb became operational on 15 February 1928. The following year, 1929, the company joined the International Air Traffic Association (IATA). The first international flight Aeroput recorded on the 7 October 1929, the aircraft that flew from Belgrade via Zagreb to Vienna was Potez 29/2 with five-passengers. By 1930, Aeroput airplanes had regular flights from Belgrade to Graz and Vienna (via Zagreb), and to Thessaloniki (via Skoplje). Thus the shortest air link between Central Europe and the Aegean area was formed across the Yugoslav territory. At that time Aeroput with several local lines connect Belgrade and Zagreb with the major centers in the interior of country and along the coast of the Adriatic. Initially the fleet consisted of three Potez 29/2 biplanes with five passenger seats. In 1932 "Aeroput" broadened its fleet with Farman F.306 aircraft, and in 1934 the company purchased three Spartan Cruiser II planes. In the company bought two Caudron C.449 Goéland planes, one de Havilland DH.89 Dragon Rapide and six mid-range Lockheed Model 10A Electra aircraft. Relying on its renewed fleet, the company greatly expanded its list of destinations in 1937 and 1938. Regular flights to Sofia, Tirana, and Budapest were introduced, as well as a seasonal-tourist flight Dubrovnik - Zagreb - Vienna - Brno - Prague. In cooperation with Italian and Romanian companies, the Bucharest - Belgrade - Zagreb - Venice - Milan - Turin line was introduced.

The impressive development of the company and of the newest transport sector was interrupted by World War Two. Aeroput suspended all services after the April War at beginning of the World War II in Yugislavia in April 1941. After occupation of Yugoslavia in April 1941, the airline effectively ceased to exist, and its aircraft seized by the Axis powers.[1] After the war, a new airline was established in 1947 as JAT Yugoslav Airlines, continuing the tradition of Aeroput as the beginning of civil aviation in Yugoslavia.[2] JAT was established with the assistant of the Yugoslav transport regiment and former Aeroput pilots and aircraft mechanics.[3]

Establishment of Aeroput Technical service

In the first three years, while in the fleet was the only Potez 29 planes, major aircraft maintenance for Aeroput is performed by aircraft factory Ikarus in Zemun, who have then the French licence for the Royal Yugoslav Air Force (JKRV) produced a similar plane Potez 25. Engine maintenance is performed at the factory Jasenica ad from Smederevska Palanka, which was produced under licence aircraft engines of Lauren brand. Early in 1931, the Aeroput buys a workshop for the repair of the aircraft from the French - Romanian company CIDNA, which was located at Zemun airport and assembly organized with the mechanics of Ikarus and the Air Force, and on that way organized its own technical aircraft maintenance service. Maintenance department was located in one of the large hangar at the civilian part of the airport, it was a modern and possessed a test stand for aero-engines. Since then, all the revisions, and airplane engines overhauling that had Aeroput was performed in they own technical service. How it was the good service, show fact that they are made ​​in the service aircraft of domestic design, the Aeroput MMS-3.

The World War II and after the war prohibition

The bombing in 1941 was destroyed almost the entire property of the company. Due to the outbreak of war never come ordered and paid load of 500 tons of fuel. Aeroput submitted to the competent court for punitive damages on 31 October 1941. In 1942 year commissar administration has banned Aeroput to work. German occupation authorities nationalized the property of the Aeroput in Knez Mihailova street 32, where they moved their national airline D. H. N. - Lufthansa.

After the war the Aeroput renewed work on 2 July 1945, when the general meeting of shareholders elected the first post-war management of the company. Meeting was attended by delegates of the new government of Democratic Federative Yugoslavia (DFY), and with the participation of then the Head of State Ivan Ribar, who was a pre-war shareholder and board member. The work permit was a farce, since April 1947 was created JAT who only started to perform air traffic. Communist government adopted a decree prohibiting private joint-stock companies, pursuant solution, on 24 December 1948 the Aeroput was liquidated.

Fleet

Aeroput MMS-3

Over the airline's history the fleet included:

In 1938, its flying personnel numbered 17: 6 pilots, 5 copilots and 6 wireless operators.[4]

Exhibits from this period can be found in the Aeronautical Museum-Belgrade (with a collection of over 200 planes, gliders and helicopters).

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Drustvo za Vazdusni Saobracaj A D – Aeroput (1927-1948)". EuropeanAirlines. 17 June 2010.
  2. ^ "The History of JAT: From Aeroput to JAT Airways".
  3. ^ "Jat Airways - History". www.jat.com. Retrieved 8 August 2013.
  4. ^ "Yugoslavia and Aviation". FlightGlobal. Retrieved 27 September 2011.
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