Start-up German charter carrier FlyNext has started operations with an Airbus A319 as a partner of Germania this week, but the company plans to begin flights under its own brand in the medium term.
FlyNext is based on the former business aviation operator Alpha Exec in Schwabach, near Nuremberg, which was taken over by Intro Aviation Group at the end of last year.
Intro is run by airline entrepreneur Hans Rudolf Wohrl, who founded Eurowings predecessor Nurnberger Flugdienst (NFD) in 1974 and who took over Deutsche BA (DBA) in 2003 and LTU International in 2006. He sold DBA and LTU to Air Berlin in 2006 and 2007 respectively.
FlyNext has taken over two CFM International CFM56-powered Airbus A319s - serial numbers 3589 and 3818 - from Germania's fleet. The 2008- and 2009-vintage aircraft were previously operated by Hamburg International Airlines.
The first revenue flight took off from Berlin Tegel to the Greek island of Kos on 2 June on behalf of Germania. Operations with the second A319 are due to begin on 22 June.
One aircraft will be stationed in Bremen and the other at Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden airport.
Both twinjets will solely fly on behalf of Germania for the time being, but they are available for charter to tour operators and other carriers who need additional, temporary peak capacity, says FlyNext. In the medium-term, the airline also wants to conduct flights under its own brand.
The new carrier is jointly managed by Alpha Exec chief executive Marcus Kaiser and Peter Oncken, who was at the helm of LTU between 2006 and 2007.
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news