Air Wales
Template:Short description Template:For Template:Use British English Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox airline
Air Wales (Template:Langx) was a Welsh airline based at Cardiff International Airport in Rhoose, Vale of Glamorgan.<ref name="Caerdydd 1">Template:Cite news</ref> It operated scheduled regional services within the United Kingdom, as well as to Ireland, Belgium and France. On 23 April 2006, Air Wales ceased all operations, citing "spiralling costs" and "aggressive competition" from larger low-cost airlines.<ref name="Caerdydd 1" />
History
Air Wales was established in January 1997 with the assistance of property financier Roy Thomas and started operations in January 2000. Initially based at Pembrey Airport in west Wales and operating two Dornier 228 aircraft, Air Wales expanded to employ over 120 personnel, including 45 flight deck staff, 20 engineers and 20 cabin crew.
Operations transferred to Red Dragon House at the grounds of Swansea Airport, Fairwood Common, in October 2001.<ref>"World Airlines Directory." Flight International. 16–22 March 2004. 78.</ref><ref name="Abertawe 1">Template:Cite news</ref> Passenger numbers failed to reach the company's break-even levels and, after three years, Air Wales gave up all its Swansea routes. The airline decided to concentrate on routes out of Cardiff, moving operations to a new headquarters at Cardiff International Airport in October 2004.<ref name="Abertawe 1"/>
In December 2005, bmibaby and Air Wales had a fallout leaving bmibaby to cancel a partnership between the two airlines. The partnership covered the routes Belfast and Glasgow which were operated by Air Wales.<ref>Air Wales and bmibaby falloutTemplate:Dead link</ref>
During February 2006, Air Wales gave up all routes from Plymouth Airport to focus on more popular routes and international routes.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
On 23 April 2006, the airline ceased all scheduled services with a loss of 80 jobs to focus on charter and cargo operations, however these operations never materialized and the aircraft were all sold to other airlines.<ref>"Air Wales to cease operations on 23 April 2006" BBC News</ref>
Destinations
Air Wales served 20 destinations across Europe.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Partnership with bmibaby
Air Wales had a partnership with bmibaby to operate on the following routes:
- Paris, France
- Cork, Ireland
- Belfast, Northern Ireland [suspended in March 2006]
- Jersey
- Glasgow, Scotland [suspended in March 2006]
Fleet
Air Wales originally operated Dornier 228 aircraft. These were replaced by a fleet of ATR-42-300 aircraft:<ref>UK CAA Aircraft RegisterTemplate:Dead link</ref>
| Aircraft | Total | Routes |
|---|---|---|
| ATR-42-300 | 5 | Short haul |
In March 2006, Air Wales fleet average age was 13.4 years.
See also
References
External links
- Air Wales (Archive)
- Air Wales Photos