Air Baltic

History

A very young airline, Air Baltic's history began in 1995, after a joint venture had been signed between the Latvian government and other, international interests on August 28, the Latvian government holding 51 per cent of the airline.

October 1 of that year was a double historic day for the airline. Their first plane, a SAAB 340, arrived at Riga, and that afternoon, the plane was making the first passenger flight for Air Baltic.

In 1996, the airline's first AVRO RJ70 was delivered to the airline, and it joined SAS Scadinavian's frequent flier club as a partner.

1997 saw the opening of a cargo department, and in 1998, the airline's first Fokker 50 plane was delivered.

In 1999, Air Baltic became a 'joint stock company', and all their SAAB 340s were replaced by Fokker 50s. By September, the airline had began operating under the European Aviation Operating Standards, or JAR ops.

Air Baltic welcomed the new millennium by introducing new uniforms on its workers, and opening a cargo center at Riga's airport. In 2001, the airline was recipient of various awards.

Present day

Air Baltic flies to 15 cities around Europe. Their fleet consists of three RJ70s and 3 Fokker 50s. The RJ70s' tail logo consists of a white and blue hybrid, white leading off from the fuselage, but blue taking over from the bottom part of the tail. Their logo presumably represents the air (white) and the water (blue). Their Fokker 50s have no logo on their tails, but they also carry the name Air Baltic on their fuselage.

News

In a press release 17 December 2003, Air Baltic announced it would commence direct flights to Oslo, London, and Dublin, from March 2004, increasing their number of served cities to from 15 to 18.

External links

• Company website
• airBaltic 17 Dec 2003 press release on expansion of route net

Referenced By