A regional airline is a general classification of airline which typically operates scheduled passenger air service, using regional aircraft , between communities lacking sufficient demand or infrastructure to attract mainline flights. In North America , most regional airlines are classified as " fee-for-departure " carriers, operating their revenue flights as codeshare services contracted by one or more major airline partners. A number of regional airlines, particularly during the 1960s and 1970s, were classified as commuter airlines in the Official Airline Guide (OAG).
95-608: Jazz Aviation LP , commonly shortened to Jazz , is a Canadian regional airline based at Halifax Stanfield International Airport , in Enfield , Halifax , Nova Scotia , and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chorus Aviation . Jazz Aviation provides regional and charter airline services in Canada and the United States, primarily under contract to Air Canada using the brand name Air Canada Express , and also as Jazz Charters. It
190-404: A buy on board service for Air Canada called Air Canada Bistro offering snacks for purchase. On flights three hours and fifteen minutes or more in duration, sandwiches are added to the buy on board offering. Only major credit cards are accepted for payment on board. Regional airline Decades before the advent of jet airliners and high-speed, long-range air service, commercial aviation
285-456: A 1983 article about PBA, Provincetown-Boston Airlines , both Air New England and Air Florida are described as regional airlines. At the time, Air New England was a recently-failed turboprop operator in the northeast USA, while Air Florida was a jet carrier flying from Florida to the northeast, to Latin America and Europe. The two airlines had little in common. As flag carriers grew to fill
380-553: A 74-passenger, all-economy layout. The Q400s were used to replace older CRJ100/200 models which were returned to lessor. The Q400s were delivered in the new Air Canada Express paint scheme and were the first aircraft in the Jazz fleet to have the Air Canada Express branding. On April 26, 2016, Jazz Aviation announced that the remaining CRJ705 aircraft would be converted to CRJ900s. On January 14, 2019, Chorus Aviation ,
475-640: A British couple, John and Susan Cooper, aged 69 and 63 respectively, died on a Thomas Cook holiday, while staying at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada . According to the Egyptian authorities, John died of a heart attack and Susan died of shock. The couple's daughter, also present at the resort, blamed the faulty air conditioning system at the resort. Thomas Cook hurriedly evacuated around 300 holidaymakers staying in
570-546: A Greek holiday in 2006. But the firm's handling of the case has been a lesson in how not to manage a crisis". In 2016 the Co-operative Group decided that it would exercise its option to quit the branch network joint venture. Thomas Cook Group announced it would buy out the stakes in The Co-operative Travel owned by The Co-operative Group and Central England Co-operative, taking full control of
665-458: A criminal trial in Greece in 2010; both were acquitted and the company was cleared of any wrongdoing. In 2015, a UK inquest was held into the children's deaths; the jury returned a verdict of unlawful killing and concluded that the travel group had "breached its duty of care". After the inquest, The Mail on Sunday published a news story saying that Thomas Cook had received £3 million from
760-662: A deal with Octopus Media Technology to host, upload, and provide an online video player for Thomas Cook TV. In Spring 2009 Thomas Cook UK signed a deal with International Entertainment Supplier The E3 Group, to exclusively supply entertainment to the group. In June 2009, Thomas Cook's majority shareholder Arcandor filed for bankruptcy, although the group was not affected. Arcandor's shares in Thomas Cook were sold by its creditor banks in September 2009. In July 2010, Thomas Cook Group bought German tourism company Öger Tours, which
855-424: A form of a virtual airline , with the regional airline paid to staff, operate and maintain aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by a partner mainline airline. This practice allows the mainline carrier to use outsourced labor at smaller stations, to reduce costs. In 2011, 61% of all advertised flights for American, Delta, United and US Airways were operated by their regional brands. This figure
950-531: A larger carrier, similar to their American counterparts. Some of these airlines and brands include: The trend of branding regional airlines to match the mainline airlines, has led to just three major sub-brands in the United States: American Eagle , Delta Connection and United Express . They are the post-deregulation survivors of the multiple bankruptcies and mergers of the major, legacy, mainline airlines. These regional brands are
1045-458: A mainline or flagship airline's aircraft, while in actuality they are far from it. Sub-branding is pretty consistent throughout the airline industry of the United States, with all the regional airlines, mainline airlines, and the regional airline holding companies, as well as the mainline airlines holding companies participating. On Feb 12th, 2010, a year after the crash of Colgan flight 3407 , Frontline premiered its WGA Award-winning exposé on
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#17327872193481140-527: A new vision for regional mobility, based on services built out of small general aviation aircraft and VLJs (very light jets) with advanced automation. This vision failed to materialize due to its primary focus on rural mobility and a lack of clear and viable business case. With the introduction of air taxi services and very light jets , city pair links to smaller communities lacking regional connections could become more common. This opportunities could become commercially viable with advanced air mobility and
1235-629: A one-third interest in the Latin American Regional Aviation Holding Corporation (LARAH). In turn, LARAH owns a 75% interest in PLUNA , the Uruguayan flag carrier , while the remaining 25% is owned by the Uruguayan government. PLUNA said on July 6, 2012, that it was "suspending all flights indefinitely" and announced that 720 of the 900 staff would be sent on unemployment pay until a new associate for
1330-645: A public corporation, and traded as "CHR" at the Toronto Stock Exchange. In 2011, Air Canada announced it would phase out the use of the "Air Canada Jazz" name and livery, and instead brand its regional operations as "Air Canada Express", with the subtitle "operated by Jazz". In February 2006, Air Canada announced that City Centre Aviation Limited (CCAL) had served a 30-day termination notice for Jazz's month-to-month lease of terminal space at Toronto City Centre Airport . The Toronto Port Authority itself does not control any significant terminal space at
1425-408: A strong entrepreneurial sector of independents. They are based on business models ranging from the traditional full service airline to low cost carriers . Innovations include one where the passenger is required to join a membership club before being allowed to fly. Some examples of European regional airlines include: India has many regional carriers operating currently. Some of these operate under
1520-551: A tour operator and airline, and also operated travel agencies in Europe . At the time of the group's collapse, approximately 21,000 worldwide employees were left without jobs (including 9,000 UK staff) and 600,000 customers (150,000 from the UK) were left abroad, triggering the UK's largest peacetime repatriation . After the collapse, segments of the company were purchased by others, including
1615-427: Is Halifax Stanfield International Airport , with hubs at Toronto Pearson International Airport , Victoria International Airport , Vancouver International Airport , Montréal–Trudeau International Airport , and Calgary International Airport . Prior to April 2011, Air Canada's regional operations were branded as Air Canada Jazz. Following the award of a contract to Sky Regional Airlines , the Air Canada Express brand
1710-422: Is Canada's third-largest airline in terms of fleet size but not in terms of passengers carried annually, number of employees, or destinations served. Its Air Canada Express operations serve 79 destinations in Canada and the United States. Under a capacity purchase agreement, Air Canada sets the Jazz route network and flight schedule, and purchases all of Jazz's seat capacity based on predetermined rates. Its main base
1805-673: Is common in the U.S. to incorrectly associate aircraft size with the Department of Transportation's designation of major, national, and regional airline. The only corollary is the Regional Airline Association, an industry trade group, defines "regional airlines" generally as "...operat(ing) short and medium haul scheduled airline service connecting smaller communities with larger cities and connecting hubs. The airlines' fleet primarily consists of 19 to 68 seat turboprops and 30 to 100 seat regional jets." To be clear there
1900-500: Is fully owned by American Airlines Group and does business as American Eagle . Many of these large regional airlines have joined the lobbying group Regional Airline Association . This association lobbies purely for the financial interest of the corporate bodies it constitutes, not the employees of those airlines. In Canada there are a number of regional airlines. Some of them focus on Canadian Arctic and First Nations communities, while others operate regional flights on behalf of
1995-428: Is no distinction in the Department of Transportation definition of major, national and regional airlines by aircraft size. The definition is based on revenue. The clash of definitions has led to confusion in the media and the public. Beginning around 1985, a number of trends have become apparent. Regional aircraft are getting larger, faster, and are flying longer ranges. Additionally, the vast majority of regionals within
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#17327872193482090-486: Is reported to have emerged from the Group's funders, including Royal Bank of Scotland and Halifax , who insisted that the Group be sufficiently recapitalised to ensure operations were protected through to January, when bookings are traditionally quieter and liquidity would be challenging. This demand meant the group needed an extra £200 million of funding to keep the company operational. These efforts did not succeed, with
2185-554: The Thomas Cook European Timetable , along with closure of the rest of its publishing business. The final edition of the timetable was published in August 2013, but publication resumed in early 2014 under a new publishing company not affiliated with Thomas Cook. In February 2014 Thomas Cook Group sold Gold Medal Travel, including Netflights.com, to dnata for a reported £45 million. On 26 November 2014, it
2280-579: The Central England Co-operative in 2014). The merger created the UK's largest travel network. Thomas Cook's Going Places branded branches were rebranded under the Co-operative's brand. In May 2012, Harriet Green was appointed as the chief executive officer of Thomas Cook Group, succeeding Manny Fontenla-Novoa , who was CEO from 2003 until August 2011. On 1 July 2013, Thomas Cook announced that it would cease publishing
2375-687: The Civil Aeronautics Board from 1943 to 1950 include: A history and study of regional airlines was published by the Smithsonian Institution Press in 1994 under the title Commuter Airlines of the United States , by R.E.G. Davies and I. E. Quastler . Since the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978, the US federal government has continued support of the regional airline sector to ensure many of
2470-616: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) announced that the Thomas Cook Group had entered liquidation and ceased operations with immediate effect, leaving around 600,000 tourists overseas. The collapse of the company marked the end of a brand name that had been in continuous use since 1841. The collapse triggered an operation initiated by the CAA, aiming to repatriate 150,000 British citizens from abroad. The operation
2565-559: The United Kingdom . Thomas Cook Retail Limited was the UK travel agent, and successor to Thomas Cook & Son stores. It was a subsidiary of the Thomas Cook Group, who operated a total of 555 travel stores all over the United Kingdom. The agents primarily sold package holidays under the in-house British tour operator Thomas Cook Tour Operations, and flight-only bookings with Thomas Cook Airlines . On 23 September 2019,
2660-410: The aircraft livery for the company they are operating flights for. These airlines can be subsidiaries of the major airline or fly under a code sharing agreement or operating through capacity purchase agreements, with the mainline parent company financing the aircraft for the regional airline, and then placing the aircraft with the regional for very little cost. An example would be Envoy Air , which
2755-425: The 19 passenger Embraer/FMA CBA 123 Vector and the 34 seat Dornier 328 were undertaken, but met little financial success, partly due to economic downturn in the airline industry resulting from the outbreak of hostilities when Iraq invaded Kuwait . Many of the regional airlines operating turboprop equipment such as Delta 's regional sister Comair airlines in the United States set the course for bypassing entirely
2850-530: The Aldiana hotel brand, which it jointly owned with Thomas Cook, by buying Thomas Cook's 42% minority shareholding. Fosun International purchased the Thomas Cook name and logo, along with the Casa Cook and Cook's Club hotel brands, for £11 million on 1 November 2019. Then, on 8 November 2019, it was announced that Thomas Cook's airport slots had been sold to easyJet and Jet2holidays for £36 million, with
2945-554: The CRJ-900s do not feature seat back screens. Seating is 2 × 2 abreast. In May 2024, Jazz and Expliseat announced that it will be retrofitting 25 Dash 8-400s with TiSeat 2V seats, replacing the NextGen interior. All Jazz flights operating for Air Canada offer a complimentary hot and cold beverage service as well as sweet or savoury snacks, with alcoholic beverages available for purchase. On flights over 90 minutes, Jazz operates
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3040-481: The Sentido hotel brand, with the deal subject to antitrust approval, on 4 December 2019. Thomas Cook Balearics had closed down after becoming insolvent on 26 December 2019. On 24 January 2020, it was announced that Polish carrier LOT Polish Airlines had acquired German airline Condor, with the acquisition expected to be completed by April 2020 once antitrust approval had been secured. However, on 13 April 2020, it
3135-655: The Thomas Cook brand in the Middle East and Asia from the Dubai Investment Group for an amount estimated to be around 249 million euros. In April 2008 Thomas Cook bought the luxury travel firm Elegant Resorts from its founders Geoff Moss and Barbara Catchpole for an undisclosed figure. The company took over Preston -based Gold Medal International, owner of NetFlights , in a deal worth £87 million in December 2008. On 8 March 2009, Thomas Cook signed
3230-587: The UK Government Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps rejecting any discussion of UK intervention. Media reports had earlier indicated that a group, including the Turkish government and a group of Spanish hoteliers backed by Spanish ministers, had offered financial support in order to assist their domestic industries, but that rescue had failed because "the British government said it
3325-410: The UK, and planned to re-employ a "significant number" of former employees. Hays, which already operated 190 of their own stores, expected to retain over 25% of the retail staff, saving roughly 2,500 jobs. Meanwhile, on 30 October 2019, an investment consortium consisting of Norwegian property tycoon Petter Stordalen and private equity firms Altor and TDR Capital announced that they had acquired
3420-606: The United States with more than ten aircraft within their fleet, have lost their individual identities and now serve only as feeders, to Alaska Airlines , American Airlines , Delta Air Lines , or United Airlines major hubs. Regional aircraft in the US have been getting slightly more comfortable with the addition of better ergonomically designed aircraft cabins , and the addition of varying travel classes aboard these aircraft. From small, less than 50-seat "single-class cabin" turboprop , to turbofan regional jet equipment, present day regional airlines provide aircraft such as
3515-429: The United States, are: Mainline carrier-owned Independent contractors The evolution and chronological history of the commuter side of the regional airline industry can be defined by a number of dates prior to the end of the era of airline regulation by the Civil Aeronautics Board of the United States. Among these significant dates are: List of Commuter Airlines in 1977 Prior to Airline Deregulation: Some of
3610-404: The airline hub. Initially these tie ups tended to use small 15 -19 seat aircraft, which did not have a reputation of passenger comfort, or safe reliable operations, by small often under capitalized tiny airline operators. To create a common tie and what appeared to be seamless to the air traveler, major carriers marketed in advertising and soon had much smaller airlines paint their small and what
3705-598: The airline is the only reasonable link to a larger town. Examples of this are PenAir , which links the remote Aleutian Islands to Anchorage, Alaska , and Mokulele Airlines , which operates in the Hawaiian islands. As an affiliated airline , contracting with a major airline , operating under their brand name (for example, Endeavor Air operates flights under the Delta Connection brand name for Delta Air Lines ), and filling two roles: delivering passengers to
3800-570: The airline, passengers are to use floating seat cushions in the event of an emergency over water. The airline also stated that the probability of a water landing on the regional airline routes was almost zero, as no operation over great bodies of water occurs except for the Great Lakes and the Gulf of St. Lawrence , and that in all circumstances, the airline always remains within 50 nautical miles (93 km; 58 mi) from land, as stipulated in
3895-475: The airport, but it extended permission for Jazz to continue using the airport; however, since the airline could not find terminal space, they cancelled service to the airport at the end of February 2006. CCAL had been bought by REGCO Holdings, (now Porter Aviation Holdings), the owners of Porter Airlines , which launched service from the airport later that year. In August 2008, Jazz Aviation removed all life jackets from its aircraft to lower fuel costs. According to
Jazz Aviation - Misplaced Pages Continue
3990-644: The assets of Thomas Cook Northern Europe (also known as the Ving Group) including the Ving, Spies and Tjäreborg travel agencies, Thomas Cook Airlines Scandinavia, and the Sunwing and Sunprime hotel brands, with Stordalen and Altor owning 40% each and TDR Capital owning the remaining 20%. Thomas Cook Airlines Scandinavia was then rebranded as Sunclass Airlines . There were reports on 31 October 2019 that Swiss-based investment firm LMEY Investments intended to re-acquire
4085-522: The business entered compulsory liquidation , like all other UK entities in the group. Thomas Cook In Destination Management Limited was an overseas management company, operating on behalf of its British sister tour operator and airline. The business was in charge of managing bus transfers to hotels and providing hotel 'reps' for Thomas Cook customers. It ceased operations on 23 September 2019 after Thomas Cook Group and its UK entities entered compulsory liquidation . Thomas Cook Hotels and Resorts Limited
4180-437: The capability of "far and wide" air travel among the traveling public. "Regional airline" is a flexible term whose meaning has changed substantially over time. What it means today is different than how it has been used in the past. For instance, in the United States, around 1960, the term “regional carrier” denoted the smaller eight of the 12 largest carriers, then known as trunk carriers (or trunk airlines or simply trunks). At
4275-472: The chairman of Turkish tour operator Anex Tours, acquired Russian tour operator Intourist from Thomas Cook's liquidators on 15 November 2019. Meanwhile, Anex Tours acquired Thomas Cook Germany's tour operators Öger Tours and Bucher Reisen, saving 84 jobs, on 21 November 2019. Anex Tours also acquired the trademark rights for tour operator Neckermann Reisen from Thomas Cook Germany's liquidators on 2 January 2020. The German travel group DER Touristik acquired
4370-476: The collapse: a high debt load of £1.6 billion ($ 2 billion) combined with a changing travel market and online competition, events such as terrorist attacks in tourist destinations including Tunisia, the European heat wave in 2018 , uncertainty caused by Brexit , and high fuel costs. On 9 October 2019, independent travel agent Hays Travel announced that it had acquired all 555 former Thomas Cook travel stores in
4465-1061: The company from Sky Regional Airlines . Business Class is Air Canada's premium product in North America, and is offered by Jazz (doing business as Air Canada Express) on the CRJ-900 and E175. There are 12 leather covered seats, each equipped with a 120 V power outlet and personal audio/video on demand featuring Air Canada's enRoute ҽ inflight entertainment system by Thales. The newest 14 CRJ-900s are not equipped with audio/video on demand. Jazz's Dash 8-400 and CRJ-200 fleet feature all Economy Class cabins. The Dash 8-400s feature Bombardier's NextGen interior. The Dash 8-400s, CRJ-200s, and CRJ-900s (Economy Class) feature B/E Aerospace's Premium Economy Spectrum seat. The Economy Class seats on 21 CRJ-900 are equipped with personal audio/video on demand featuring Air Canada's enRoute ҽ inflight entertainment system by Thales , with seats from rows 12 to 18 having 120 V power outlets. 14 of
4560-469: The company is found or the airline is definitively sold. Jazz serves 71 destinations across Canada and the United States. The Jazz Aviation fleet listed with Transport Canada (TC) as of July 2024: Bombardier Aerospace delivered the first of its new regional jet variant, the 75-passenger Bombardier CRJ705 to Jazz Aviation on May 27, 2005. The aircraft was the first of 15 CRJ705 and 15 Bombardier CRJ200 aircraft ordered in September 2004. Originally,
4655-497: The creation of a new brand: Air Canada Jazz . In 2006, ACE Aviation Holdings , the owners of Air Canada, sold off all of its Air Canada Jazz assets. Air Canada Jazz was then an independent company known as Jazz Air Income Fund, which launched an initial public offering in February 2006; units of the income trust traded as JAZ.UN. On November 15, 2010, the airline was restructured and changed its name to Chorus Aviation , became
4750-534: The demand of long-range passenger traffic, new and small airlines found niches flying between short and under-served routes to-and-from major airports and more rural destinations. Through the 1960s and 1970s, war surplus designs (notably, the Douglas DC-3 ) were replaced by higher-performance turboprop or jet -powered designs like the Fokker F27 Friendship and BAC One-Eleven . This extended
4845-461: The financial records of the Thomas Cook Group plc between 2008 and 2018 and the combination of Thomas Cook AG and MyTravel Group in 2007. Sam Weihagen (Interim) Harriet Green Peter Fankhauser At the time of the 2007 merger, 52% of the shares in the new company were held by the German mail-order and department store company Arcandor (the former owner of Thomas Cook AG) and 48% owned by
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#17327872193484940-421: The former acquiring Gatwick and Bristol and the latter acquiring Birmingham, London Stansted and Manchester. Thomas Cook Germany announced that it would close down on 1 December 2019, after having failed to find a buyer, with administrators in talks to sell Thomas Cook Germany's tour operators Öger Tours, Bucher Reisen, Neckermann and Air Marin and find buyers for hotel brands Sentido and Smartline. Neset Kockar,
5035-553: The government's UDAN (Regional Connectivity Scheme) . Note:- Alliance Air is still a state-owned airline, whereas Air India is private. Australia has an association for regional airline, the Regional Aviation of Australia. More than 2 million passengers and 23 million kg of cargo are involved each year. Post airline deregulation, airlines sought added market share and to do this they sought partnerships with regional and small airlines to feed traffic into
5130-416: The higher capacity CRJ700 , CRJ900 , CRJ1000 series of aircraft and the somewhat larger fuselage Embraer E-Jets . Some of these newer aircraft are capable of flying longer distances with comfort levels that rival and surpass the regional airline equipment of the past. In the early 1990s, much more advanced turboprop-powered, fuel efficient, and passenger friendly DC-3 type replacement projects such as
5225-532: The industry entitled "Flying Cheap". In the program, reporter Miles O'Brien questioned how the impact of low salaries are having on pilot psyches and how safe this could be for the flying public. When asked to respond to the question, Roger Cohen, president of the Regional Airline Association, told Frontline that, "...there are many other people who earn less money than that and work more days in these communities that can afford it and do it and do it responsibly." The Small Aircraft Transportation System outlined
5320-461: The introduction of electric aircraft. In some parts of the world, regional airlines face competition from high-speed rail and also coach (bus) services with airlines sometimes replacing feeder services through air rail alliances and contracts with bus companies (e.g., Landline between Philadelphia International Airport and Atlantic City International Airport ). In North America , regional airlines are operated primarily to bring passengers to
5415-509: The lack of distinction among carriers soon began to change with the 1929 launch of Transcontinental Air Transport (T-A-T) in the United States. T-A-T's transcontinental "Lindbergh Line" became America's first contiguous coast-to-coast air service, and it ushered in a new era of major airlines expanding to operate networks with large footprints. The development of long-range aircraft operated by flag carriers like British Overseas Airways Corporation and Trans-Canada Airlines further normalized
5510-403: The law, which removes the obligation from carrying any flotation devices. In April 2010, Jazz Aviation LP had reached an agreement with Thomas Cook Group to operate a fleet of at least six Boeing 757-200 aircraft during the winter 2010 / 2011 season. The deal with Thomas Cook Group followed the collapse of Canadian airline Skyservice , which previously operated aircraft for Thomas Cook during
5605-583: The lesser known smaller brands used by the regional airlines and their parent companies were: European regional airlines serve the intra-continental sector in Europe . They connect cities to major airports and to other cities, avoiding the need for passengers to make transfers. For example, BA CityFlyer a regional subsidiary of British Airways uses the basic Chatham Dockyard Union Flag livery of its parent company and flies between domestic and European cities. Some of Europe's regional airlines are subsidiaries of national air carriers, though there remains
5700-679: The livery of Air France . NLM 's KLM style branding does however pre-date the Air France efforts though by a number of years. The success of the "rebranding" or "pseudo branding" of a much smaller airline into the name recognition of a much larger one soon became clear as passenger numbers soared at Air Alpes, and it was soon decided to paint other aircraft such as the Fokker F-27 into full Air France colours as well. Many airline passengers find sub-branding very confusing, while many other airline passengers are content to think they are on
5795-680: The mainline airline's sub-brand livery. For example, United Express regional airline partner CommutAir branded its entire fleet as United Express. On the other hand, regional airline Gulfstream International Airlines did not brand their aircraft. When Colgan Air was still operating, they branded a handful of aircraft as Colgan Air, but most were branded as Continental Connection , US Airways Express or United Express , with whom it had contractual agreements. 21st century regional airlines are commonly organized in one of two ways. Operating as an independent airline under their own brand, mostly providing service to small and isolated towns, for whom
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#17327872193485890-410: The mainline airlines, in terms of revenue, many would be designated major airline carrier status based on the only actual definition of "major airline," in the United States, the definition from the U.S. Department of Transportation. This definition is based solely on annual revenue and not on any other criterion such as average aircraft seating capacity, pilot pay, or number of aircraft in the fleet. It
5985-439: The major airline's hubs from surrounding towns, and increasing frequency of service on mainline routes during times when demand does not warrant use of large aircraft, known as commuter flights . One of the first independently owned and managed airlines in the world that rebranded its aircraft to match a larger airline's brand was Air Alpes of France. During 1974, Air Alpes painted its newly delivered short range regional jets in
6080-485: The major airlines. Thomas Cook Group Thomas Cook Group plc was a global travel group, headquartered in the United Kingdom and listed on the London Stock Exchange from its formation on 19 June 2007 by the merger of Thomas Cook AG — successor to Thomas Cook & Son — and MyTravel Group until 23 September 2019, when it went into compulsory liquidation . The group operated as
6175-501: The major hubs, where they will connect for longer-distance flights on the national airlines also known as flagship carriers . The smallest regional carriers have become known as feeder airlines. The separate corporate structure allows the company to operate under different pay schedules, typically paying much less than their mainline owners. Many large North American airlines, have established operational relationships with one or more regional airline companies. Their aircraft often use
6270-778: The order had been for 30 CRJ705s and 15 CRJ200s but was changed to 15 and 15, subsequently, 15 Embraer 175 aircraft were added to the Air Canada mainline fleet. A 16th CRJ705 was added to replace a CRJ100 which was written off. The new aircraft undertook its first revenue-earning flight on June 1, 2005, from Calgary to Houston . In mid-2006, the last Air Canada CRJ100 was transferred to Jazz. On February 9, 2010, Jazz Aviation announced that it had finalized an agreement with Bombardier Commercial Aircraft for 15 Q400 NextGen turboprops , with options for an additional 15 aircraft with deliveries to start in May 2011. They were to be configured in
6365-435: The owners of the hotel where the children's deaths had occurred. In response, Thomas Cook made a charitable donation of £1.5m to UNICEF . However, the children's family said that they had not been consulted about this donation, which became the subject of criticism. In UK newspaper The Independent Joanna Bourke wrote: "Nothing Thomas Cook could ever do would bring back the two children killed by carbon monoxide poisoning on
6460-477: The parent company of Jazz Aviation, announced an extension to its Capacity Purchase Agreement (CPA) with Air Canada until 2035. Along with the extension of the CPA, 14 additional CRJ900 aircraft would be acquired, the first five of which would be sourced by Air Canada from SkyWest Airlines . In 2021, Air Canada Express consolidated all of its regional flying to Jazz and transferred a fleet of Embraer 175 regional jets to
6555-408: The process. In February 2007, it was announced that Thomas Cook AG and MyTravel Group plc were to merge. The companies announced they expected to make savings of over £75 million a year, following the integration of the two businesses. Under the terms of the merger, the owners of Thomas Cook AG, KarstadtQuelle (later Arcandor ), owned 52% of the new group. The shareholders of MyTravel Group owned
6650-494: The range of the regionals dramatically, causing a wave of consolidations between the now overlapping airlines. In the United States, regional airlines were an important building block of today's passenger air system. The U.S. Government encouraged the forming of regional airlines to provide services from smaller communities to larger towns, where air passengers could connect to a larger network. The original regional airlines (then known as " Local service carriers ") sanctioned by
6745-444: The redundancy of 300 staff, justifying the decision with the fact that 64% of bookings had been made online in 2018. In May 2019, the company reported that it had secured £300 million of emergency funding from its banks. Then in May 2019, the company announced a loss of £1.5 billion for the first half of its financial year, with £1.1 billion of the loss being attributable to goodwill write-downs. In June 2019, Thomas Cook said that it
6840-840: The regional turboprops as they became the first to transition to an all-jet regional jet fleet. To a lesser extent in Europe and the United Kingdom this transition, to notably the Embraer or Canadair designs, was well advanced by the late 1990s. This evolution towards jet equipment, brought the independent regional airlines into direct competition with the major airlines, forcing additional consolidation. To improve on their market penetration, larger airline holding companies rely on operators of smaller aircraft to provide service or added frequency service to some airports. Such airlines, often operating in code-share arrangements with mainline airlines, often completely repaint [1] their aircraft fleet in
6935-536: The remaining 48% share. The merger was completed in June 2007, and took place through the formation of 'NewCo' which effectively purchased MyTravel and Thomas Cook and was then listed on the London Stock Exchange under the name of Thomas Cook Group plc. On 14 February 2008, Thomas Cook bought booking website Hotels4U.com for £21.8 million. On 6 March 2008, the company bought back its licence to operate
7030-498: The remaining three years of the five-year flight services agreement with Jazz, and the service ended on April 30, 2012. For the 2011 / 2012 season, flights departed from the Canadian airports at Toronto , Halifax , Calgary , and Vancouver . Destinations included Aruba , Nassau , Puerto Plata , Punta Cana , Montego Bay , Cancún , Cozumel , Puerto Vallarta , Los Cabos , and Curaçao . In April 2010, Jazz Aviation purchased
7125-475: The retail network and re-branding the high street travel stores that had operated under the Co-operative brand gradually during 2017–18. In March 2017, Thomas Cook announced the sale of its Belgian airline operations to Lufthansa . As a result, Thomas Cook Airlines Belgium was shut down by November 2017 with two aircraft and all traffic rights being handed to Brussels Airlines . Its three remaining aircraft were relocated to sister companies. In August 2018,
7220-507: The same hotel after other guests started to fall ill. In November 2018, business analysts suggested that Thomas Cook should split the business to help recover its financial health. In February 2019, the Financial Times newspaper said that the Thomas Cook Group had received bids for its airline business, which included Condor , and also the company as a whole. In March 2019, Thomas Cook UK announced 21 travel office closures and
7315-454: The shareholders of MyTravel Group. Arcandor filed for bankruptcy in June 2009, and its shares in Thomas Cook were sold in September 2009. As of June 2016, Thomas Cook Group plc's three major shareholders were Invesco (19%), Standard Life Investments (10%), and the business magnate and investor Guo Guangchang (7.03%). The remainder of the stock floated freely. Thomas Cook Group employed approximately 21,000 staff worldwide, with 9,000 in
7410-471: The smaller and more isolated rural communities remain connected to air services. This is encouraged with the Essential Air Service program that subsidizes airline service to smaller U.S. communities and suburban centers, aiming to maintain year-round service. Although regional airlines in the United States are often viewed as small, not particularly lucrative "no name" subsidiaries of
7505-478: The time the four biggest airlines in the United States were known as the Big Four, comprising American , United , TWA and Eastern Air Lines . The other eight trunk carriers were Braniff , Capital , Continental , Delta , National , Northeast , Northwest and Western . Since, at the time, none of these eight had a network approaching the scale of the Big Four, they were known as the regional carriers. This
7600-414: The travel stores in the UK, the airlines, the Thomas Cook name and logo, the hotel brands and the tour operators. Thomas Cook India has been an entirely separate entity since August 2012, when it was acquired by Fairfax Financial and thus was not affected. In September 2020, Fosun International launched Thomas Cook Holidays as the successor to the company, hiring some former Thomas Cook Group staff in
7695-522: The winter season. The aircraft, which were leased from British operator Thomas Cook Airlines , were used on flights to destinations in the Caribbean, Mexico, and Central America. On September 30, 2010, it was announced that the deal had been extended until 2015. Sunquest charter service to sun destinations operated by Jazz Aviation, doing business as Thomas Cook Canada, began on November 5, 2010. However, on April 13, 2012, Thomas Cook Canada had terminated
7790-458: Was "in last minute negotiations" with bondholders, in order to approve the Fosun takeover. Less than a week later, Thomas Cook asked HM Government to fund a £200 million gap in the company's finances to prevent the firm falling into administration . The company had by that point secured £900m in funding as part of a debt-for-equity swap, including £450m from Fosun. Despite this, a late demand
7885-531: Was a main sponsor of Manchester City and Peterborough United football clubs. On 22 May 2009, Manchester City announced that its six-year partnership with Thomas Cook would conclude at the end of the 2008–09 Premier League season. Thomas Cook was a sponsor of the London 2012 Summer Olympics . As one of the UK's biggest and most popular providers of package holidays, Thomas Cook was appointed to provide "affordable and accessible" holidays and accommodation throughout
7980-582: Was announced that Green was leaving with immediate effect, and that COO Peter Fankhauser would take over as CEO. In October 2006, two young British children, Christianne and Robert Shepherd aged seven and six years old respectively, died from carbon monoxide poisoning caused by a faulty boiler while on a holiday in Corfu booked through Thomas Cook. They were the first such deaths in the company's history. Two Thomas Cook employees were subsequently amongst 11 defendants facing manslaughter by negligence charges at
8075-496: Was announced that LOT Polish Airlines had withdrawn its offer to acquire German airline Condor, with the German government agreeing to support Condor with emergency liquidity. The German airline Thomas Cook Aviation filed for bankruptcy due to the COVID-19 pandemic on 2 April 2020. On 16 September 2020, Fosun International relaunched Thomas Cook as Thomas Cook Holidays , an online travel company with 50 employees. Below are
8170-537: Was codenamed 'Operation Matterhorn' and overtook the 2017 collapse of Monarch Airlines as the UK's biggest peacetime repatriation. Around 40 aircraft from various airlines, including easyJet and Virgin Atlantic , as well as at least one Airbus A380 from Malaysia Airlines , were chartered. Insurance companies took care of customers from Germany, one of the former company's biggest markets. David McHugh of CTV News reported that there were many factors that led to
8265-409: Was despite the existence, at the time, of 13 smaller United States scheduled carriers known as local service carriers whose service was arguably far more regional than the “regional” trunks. So when reading historical sources, it’s important to understand that the term "regional airline" has migrated greatly over time. Sometimes the term has been stretched beyond the point of utility. For instance, in
8360-463: Was in talks with the Chinese company Fosun International with regard to the possible sale of its tour operator business. On 28 August 2019, Thomas Cook announced that Fosun would pay £450 million for 75% of the firm's tour business and 25% of its airline. By September 2019, Thomas Cook Group was "the most shorted company on the London Stock Exchange", and reports began to emerge that the company
8455-481: Was introduced as an umbrella for all regional operations. The Jazz brand is now entirely managed by Jazz Aviation LP. Air Canada Regional Inc. was established in 2001 from the consolidation of the Air Canada Connector carriers Air BC , Air Nova , Air Ontario , and Canadian Regional Airlines (shortly after the merger between Canadian Airlines and Air Canada). The merger was finalized in 2002 with
8550-409: Was not prepared to provide any financial guarantees to underpin the funding package." A final failed attempt to prevent the Thomas Cook Group from administration or liquidation took place the evening of 22 September 2019. At around midnight on 23 September, airports in the UK began to impound Thomas Cook aircraft upon arrival, citing "default in payment of airport charges". Shortly after 02:00 BST ,
8645-401: Was often described as puddle-jumper aircraft, in the image and branding colors of the much larger mainline partner. This was to give the appearance of reliability. Over time these regional aircraft grew in size as airline hubs expanded and competition dwindled among the major carriers. Below is a list of many of the regional brands that evolved when regional airlines were advertised to look like
8740-592: Was only 40% in 2000. The formerly small regional airlines have grown substantially, through mergers or by the use of a holding company, as pioneered by AMR Corporation in 1982. AMR created the AMR Eagle Holding Corporation which unified its wholly owned American Eagle Airlines and Executive Airlines under one division, but still maintained the regional airlines' operating certificates and personnel separate from each other and American Airlines . The most significant regional airlines in
8835-545: Was owned by Vural Öger . In 2010, the Thomas Cook Group reached an agreement with The Co-operative Group to merge its branch network with that of The Co-operative Travel . The merger was approved by the Competition Commission in 2011, and the joint venture was 66.5% owned by the Thomas Cook Group, 30% owned by The Co-operative Group and 3.5% owned by the Midlands Co-operative (renamed
8930-527: Was structured similarly to rail transport networks. In this era, technological limitations on air navigation and propeller-driven aircraft performance imposed strict constraints on the potential length of each flight; some routes covered less than 100 miles (160 km). As such, airlines structured their services along point-to-point routes with many stops between the originating and terminating air terminals. This system of air transportation effectively forced most airlines to be "regional" in nature, but
9025-542: Was the Thomas Cook Group's wholly owned hotel business. The majority of hotels were located in Europe , primarily in countries within the European Union . Brands included Casa Cook, Sentido, Sunprime, Cook's Club, Aldiana, Sunwing, SunConnect, and Smartline. The Thomas Cook Group's airline division operated as one operating segment, the Thomas Cook Group Airlines (TCGA). Thomas Cook
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