Another fledgling airline is being set up to capitalise on the shortfall in capacity left by the collapse of XL Airways and other charter carriers.

Blackpool-based aviation broker Garry Farley is behind the venture, which aims to operate four 165-seat MD83 aircraft for European package holidays from next March.

Farley said he was aiming to provide seats for independent operators and agents such as those in Bristol who found they had customers wanting to book holidays from their local airports but had no capacity (TTG October 31).

His move follows the establishment of Kiss Flights, run by former bosses of XL-owned Freedom Flights, and plans for a new airline with four Boeing 737s by former Zoom UK boss Jonathan Hinkles. 

They are trying to enter the market to provide capacity that has disappeared with the collapse of XL, Air Futura and Sterling Airlines.

Farley claimed he had financial backing from oil industry investors for the airline, to be called All European, and was buying the aircraft from Alaska Airlines.
 
In September, Alaska Airlines said it was cutting up to 1,000 jobs and reducing departures by 15%.

Farley said the airline would fly from regional airports to wherever operators or agents wanted. It will charter only full aircraft rather than selling several allocations to different operators.

Farley said that would mean agents or operators joining up in groups to charter an aircraft.

“The gap in the market – no XL, no Futura, no Sterling – means more than 100 aircraft are missing from the European market for bucket and spade holidays,” he said.

Farley, who has been in aviation broking for many years and worked for airlines including now-defunct Air Scotland, said he had applied for an Air Operators’ Certificate for up to six aircraft.