Bøger i Airlines serien

The story of Alitalia is one of many mergers in post-war Italy, followed by expansion and ending in a series of subsequent bankruptcies. Alitalia was set up in 1946 as Aerolinee Italiane Internazionali as a result of an Anglo-Italian agreement with the Italian government (60 per cent) and BEA (40 per cent) as shareholders. The airline took to the sky on May 5, 1947 and transported in its first year some 10,000 passengers. For domestic flights, the airline used Fiat G-12 aircraft whereas international and intercontinental routes were served with Savoia-Marchetti SM.95 aircraft. On October 31, 1957, Alitalia merged with Linee Aeree Italiane. By that time, the shares were in the hands of the Italian Ministry of the Treasury, employees of Alitalia and KLM. In 1950, the Douglas DC4 was introduced. Starting in 1964, the airline would become the 'airline of the Pope' whenever he traveled abroad. By 1970, Alitalia had become the first European airline to fly with a fleet of all jets including Boeings, Caravelles and Douglas aircraft. In 1981, Alitalia started up Aermediterranea to replace defunct Itavia on the Italian domestic scene. Notwithstanding a rapid expansion, Alitalia encountered financial problems. In 2008, a group of investors around Sylvio Berlusconi formed the Compagnia Aerea Italiana (CAI) consortium to buy bankrupt Alitalia and to merge the airline with another bankrupt Italian carrier (low cost carrier Air One). On December 12, 2008, Alitalia's profitable assets were transferred to CAI leaving the debts to the Italian tax payers. On January 13, 2009, the 'new' Alitalia launched operations. The airline entered administration in 2017 following years of unprofitability. On 24 August 2021, Alitalia announced that it would cease operations on 15 October 2021. On 15 October 2021, in a hybrid reorganization, Alitalia sold its entire operation to ITA Airways, a newly formed state-owned flag carrier.

Established 31 years ago by means of a fleet of Soviet-made Tupolev Tu-154 passenger aircraft, Mahan Air soon turned into the largest airline of Iran. Despite being highly sanctioned by the US government and many other EU countries, Mahan Air has managed to take the place of Iran Air, Iran's flag carrier, in many of the domestic and international routes to Iran in recent years. Under control of retired Generals of Islamic Revolutionary Guard of Corps (IRGC), the airline plays an important role in transportation of personnel and troops of the Quds Force (IRGCQF) branch of the force from Iran to Syria, Lebanon and Iraq. Within the past eleven years, thousands of IRGCQF members were deployed to Syria using passenger aircraft, such as the large fleet of Airbus A310s of the airline. Mahan Air also serves political interests of the Iranian government in the Middle East and Latin America. The airline has had two of its A340-303s, two Airbus A340-642s and one of its Boeing 747-3B3Ms leased to flag carriers of Syria and Venezuela. Despite being heavily sanctioned , Mahan Air has not only managed to maintain its fleet of Avro Jet RJ70/85/100s, Airbus A310s, A300s, A340s and Boeing 747s but also managed to increase their numbers to a level to become the largest airline of the country, connecting it to East and Southeast Asia by means of its large fleet of long-haul and wide-body passenger aircraft.

Following the heady years between the 1940s and 1960s, Cuba in effect, became closed off from the rest of the world. In the 1980s, the country once again began to open to tourism. Throughout all of this, Cubana has sought to keep the island connected to the rest of the world. This book will tell the story from the beginning until the present day.

In 1932, Egypt's first airline - Misr Airwork - was established, later to be named Egyptair. This wonderfully illustrated book explores the fascinating history of Africa's oldest airline, against the everchanging geopolitical climate.

For almost 80 years, Varig, Brazil's first airline, continually expanded its network, both in Brazil and around the world, introduced the Air Bridge between Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo and set up a round-the-world cargo network.

Turkish Airlines began in 1933. Initially, the route network only included domestic destinations, but in 1956, the airline was restructured into the current Turkish Airlines. From then, the airline expanded internationally. With 150 images, this book charts the airline's history, showing how it has become one of the largest airlines in the world.

In August 1961, Iranian Airways and Persian Air Services merged to form United Iranian Airlines. A few months later, however, Iran National Airline Corporation was formed by order of the Iranian government, and the new airline took over operations.

Bolivia is a large country with both mountainous and plateau regions. Traversing the mountains by road is difficult, time-consuming and dangerous, and as long ago as the 1920s, it was realized that air travel was the way forward.

Starting in 1923, Aero Oy, later rebranded as Finnair, is one of the oldest surviving airlines in the world, initially flying domestically and to the Nordic and Baltic regions. Soon, flights to Asia became its main source of income. With over 140 images, this book charts Finnair's history and shows how it has survived through the years.