SKY Express
IATA ICAO Callsign
GQ[1] SEH AIR CRETE
FoundedFebruary 24, 2005 (2005-02-24)[2]
AOC #GR-021[3][4]
Hubs
Fleet size23
Destinations44
Parent companyAviareps Hellas[5]
HeadquartersHeraklion International Airport, Heraklion, Greece
Websitewww.skyexpress.gr

SKY Express, legal name Cretan Aviation Operations Aviation and Commercial Societe Anonyme (Greek: Κρητικές Αεροπορικές Εκμεταλλεύσεις Αεροπορική και Εμπορική Ανώνυμη Εταιρεία),[2] is a Greek airline headquartered in Heraklion International Airport.[2] It was established in 2005[6] and operates a number of flights, serving 35 domestic and eight international destinations.[7]

History

The airline was established in early 2005 by Cpt. Miltiadis Tsagkarakis, former Olympic Airlines director general and pilot, and George Mavrantonakis, former Olympic Airlines chief operating officer and accountable manager as well as advisor to the company president.[8] Operations commenced in July 2005,[9] including scheduled, charter, cargo, air taxi, emergency medical services, excursion and sightseeing flights. Sky Express Aircargo was later established as a joint venture with the Finaval Group and dedicated to cargo transport between Europe and the Far East.

In October 2020, the airline placed a firm order for four Airbus A320neo aircraft (the fleet now includes six of them). In addition, the company introduced a new design for their new Airbus aircraft.[10]

Logo controversy

The airline's initial logo was inspired by the flag of the Cretan State, a semi-independent state under the Ottoman Empire. The flag of the Cretan State was composed of a white cross extending to the edges of the flag, with the upper-hoist canton in red, featuring a white star symbolizing Ottoman sovereignty on the island, and the other squares in blue, symbolizing the Greeks of Crete. The flag has also been adopted as a symbol of the Cretan independence pseudo-movement. The logo was not well-received, and following complaints by the public in Greece, especially Cretans, the logo was changed. The company said it did not consider the flag offensive, since it represented a milestone in the unification of Crete with the Kingdom of Greece,[11] but changed the logo nonetheless to avoid any further confusion.

Corporate affairs

In 2018, Sky Express carried 1 million passengers for the first time.[12]

2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Turnover (€m) 16.299 16.616 34.068 61.475 81.340 54.940 137.569 287.690
Net profit after tax (€m) 0.169 −1.391 −0.156 0.304 −0.250 −7.655 −3.793 −1.421
Number of employees 77 86 129 193 229 263 462 577
Number of passengers 85,174 168,116 496,562 1,000,000 1,200,000 TBA 1,717,191 3,303,997
Number of aircraft (at year end) 6 11 11 11 11 20 18 21
Notes/sources [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19][20] [20]

Destinations

As of December 2023, Sky Express (Greece) serves the following destinations:[21]

Country or territory City Airport Notes Refs
 BelgiumBrusselsBrussels Airport
 BulgariaSofiaSofia Airport
 CyprusLarnacaLarnaca Airport
 FranceLilleLille AirportSeasonal
LyonLyon–Saint-Exupéry AirportSeasonal
MarseilleMarseille Provence AirportSeasonal
NantesNantes Atlantique AirportSeasonal
ParisCharles de Gaulle Airport
 GermanyDüsseldorfDüsseldorf Airport
FrankfurtFrankfurt Airport
MunichMunich Airport
 GreeceAlexandroupoliAlexandroupoli Airport
AstypalaiaAstypalaia Island National Airport
AthensAthens International AirportHub
ChaniaChania International Airport
ChiosChios Island National Airport
CorfuCorfu International Airport
HeraklionHeraklion International AirportHub
IkariaIkaria Island National Airport
KalymnosKalymnos Island National Airport
KarpathosKarpathos Island National Airport
KasosKasos Island Public Airport
KastoriaKastoria National Airport
KefaloniaKefalonia Airport
KosKos International Airport
KozaniKozani National Airport
KytheraKithira Island National Airport
LemnosLemnos International Airport
LerosLeros Municipal Airport
MilosMilos Island National Airport
MykonosMykonos Airport
MytileneMytilene International Airport
NaxosNaxos Island National Airport
ParosParos National Airport
PrevezaAktion National Airport
RhodesRhodes International Airport
SamosSamos International Airport
SantoriniSantorini International Airport
SitiaSitia Airport
SkiathosSkiathos Airport
SkyrosSkyros Island National Airport
ThessalonikiThessaloniki Airport
VolosNea Anchialos National AirportSeasonal
ZakynthosZakynthos International Airport
 ItalyMilanMilan Malpensa Airport
RomeLeonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport
 PolandWarsawWarsaw Chopin Airport
 United KingdomLondonLondon Stansted Airport

Interline agreements

Sky Express interlines with the following airlines:

Fleet

Sky Express Airbus A320neo
Sky Express ATR 72-500
Former Sky Express BAe Jetstream 41 in 2010.

Current fleet

As of July 2021, Sky Express's fleet consists of the following aircraft:[35][36][37]

Sky Express Fleet
Aircraft In service Orders Passengers Notes
Airbus A320-200 1 — 180
Airbus A320neo 8 — 186
180
174
162		 [38]
Airbus A321neo 2 2 236 [39]
ATR 42-500 4 — 48
ATR 72-500 2 — 70
ATR 72-600 6 4 72 [40]
Total 23[41] 6

Historical fleet

In the past, Sky Express also operated the following types:

Incidents and accidents

  • On 12 February 2009, a BAe Jetstream 31 registered SX-SKY experienced a right main gear collapse after landing inbound from Rhodes International Airport.[43] None of the 15 passengers or three crew members were injured, but the aircraft suffered considerable damage to its right landing gear, wing and propeller. The aircraft was deemed beyond economical repair and was written off. The accident was caused by two previous hard landings (out of the previous 27) which had gone unreported. One of the hard landings had caused a fracture in a landing gear cylinder, which spread until the cylinder failed, causing the landing gear to collapse. The aircraft was scrapped at Heraklion Airport in late February 2011.
  • On 2 February 2015, a BAe Jetstream 41 aircraft registered SX-DIA, operating flight GQ-100 from Heraklion, experienced a left main gear collapse and runway excursion after a hard landing at Rhodes Diagoras Airport caused by strong winds. None of the 16 passengers or three crew members were injured. The aircraft suffered substantial damage.[44]
  • On 21 June 2019, the 3 PM flight from Heraklion to Rhodes Diagoras Airport performed an emergency landing at Karpathos Airport after one of the engines exploded. None of the 47 passengers suffered any injuries.[45][46]

References

  1. ↑ "IATA - Airline and Airport Code Search". iata.org. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 "Στοιχεία Δημοσιότητας". Business Registry (in Greek). Union of Hellenic Chambers Of Commerce. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  3. ↑ "ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION REPORT AIRCRAFT ATR 42-500 SX-GRI AT ATHENS INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT ON OCTOBER 07, 2017" (PDF). Air Accident Investigation and Aviation Safety Board. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  4. ↑ "Action Plan on Emissions Reduction of Greece" (PDF). ICAO. Civil Aviation Authority. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  5. ↑ "ΕΝΟΠΟΙΗΜΕΝΕΣ ΧΡΗΜΑΤΟΟΙΚΟΝΟΜΙΚΕΣ ΚΑΤΑΣΤΑΣΕΙΣ ΣΥΜΦΩΝΑ ΜΕ ΤΙΣ ΔΙΑΤΑΞΕΙΣ ΤΟΥ Ν 4308/2014 (ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΑ ΛΟΓΙΣΤΙΚΑ ΠΡΟΤΥΠΑ ) «AVIAREPS ΕΛΛΑΣ Α.Ε. ΣΥΜΜΕΤΟΧΩΝ ΚΑΙ ΠΑΡΟΧΗΣ ΥΠΗΡΕΣΙΩΝ»" (in Greek). 18 November 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  6. ↑ "About us". SKY express. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  7. ↑ "Destinations". SKY express. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  8. ↑ "Profile". skyexpress.gr. Archived from the original on 23 July 2011.
  9. ↑ "Sky Express". airlinesxl.com. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
  10. ↑ "SKY express orders four A320neo and becomes a new Airbus customer". Airbus. Retrieved 2021-02-15.
  11. ↑ ΔΕΛΤΙΟ ΤΥΠΟΥ (in Greek). www.skyexpress.gr. 25 May 2007. Archived from the original on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 9 October 2011.
  12. ↑ "Sky Express Diplasiase Toys Epivates Tis". Archived from the original on 2019-10-31. Retrieved 2019-10-31.
  13. ↑ "Product Presentation" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-11-01. Retrieved 2019-11-01.
  14. ↑ Business Registry
  15. ↑ "ΙΣΟΛΟΓΙΣΜΟΣ-ΚΑΧ" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2020-09-26. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  16. ↑ "Στοιχεία Δημοσιότητας".
  17. ↑ ΑΠΟΚΛΕΙΣΤΙΚΟ: Μεγαλύτερα αεροσκάφη προμηθεύεται η Sky Express. Διακίνησε 1,2 εκατ. επιβάτες το 2019, 20 January 2020, metaforespress.gr
  18. ↑ https://assets.skyexpress.gr/assets/documents/financial-results-2019.pdf
  19. ↑ "Στοιχεία Δημοσιότητας".
  20. 1 2 Κλώντζα, Όλγα (12 December 2023). "Sky express: Αύξηση επιβατών κατά 900.000, κινήσεις για νέα αεροσκάφη". Business Daily (in Greek). Retrieved 27 December 2023.
  21. ↑ "Sky Express Route Map September 2023".
  22. ↑ "New agreement between Air France, KLM and Sky Express". 5 April 2019.
  23. ↑ "Sky Express and Air Serbia ink deal".
  24. ↑ "Sky Express and Air Transat ink deal".
  25. ↑ "Sky Express and American Airlines ink deal".
  26. ↑ "Condor Partners With Greece's SKY Express". Simple Flying. 23 January 2022.
  27. ↑ "Delta partners with SKY express to offer more travel options between the US and Greek Islands".
  28. ↑ Bodell, Luke (9 February 2022). "What The Worldwide By easyJet SKY Express Agreement Means". Simple Flying.
  29. ↑ "Cooperation with El AL".
  30. ↑ "Cooperation with Emirates".
  31. ↑ "New agreement between Air France, KLM and Sky Express". 5 April 2019.
  32. ↑ "The cooperation with Middle East Airlines continues". Retrieved 2022-10-26.
  33. ↑ "Συμφωνία Διασύνδεσης μεταξύ Qatar Airways και Sky Express". 2 November 2022.
  34. ↑ "Cooperation with Transavia".
  35. ↑ "Live Flight Tracker - Real-Time Flight Tracker Map".
  36. ↑ "SKY express". www.skyexpress.gr. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  37. ↑ "Fleet Renewal Underway as SKY express Orders Five More ATR 72s". 13 July 2021.
  38. ↑ "Airbus Order and Deliveries". Airbus. December 2021.
  39. ↑ "SKY express: Κερδίζει... ύψος στην αγορά και προσθέτει 6 νέα αεροσκάφη".
  40. ↑ "SKY express: Κερδίζει... ύψος στην αγορά και προσθέτει 6 νέα αεροσκάφη".
  41. ↑ "Sky Express Fleet Details and History".
  42. ↑ "Please verify your request".
  43. ↑ "Accident: Sky Express JS31 at Heraklion on Feb 12th 2009, right main gear collapsed on landing". www.avherald.com. 15 February 2009. Retrieved 19 April 2011.
  44. ↑ "Accident: Sky Express JS41 at Rhodes on Feb 2nd 2015, gear collapse and runway excursion on landing". www.avherald.com. 2 February 2015. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  45. ↑ "Αναγκαστική προσγείωση στην Κάρπαθο για αεροπλάνο με 46 επιβάτες". ProtoThema (in Greek). 2019-06-21. Retrieved 2019-06-21.
  46. ↑ "Αναγκαστική προσγείωση αεροσκάφους στην Κάρπαθο - Εκτελούσε το δρομολόγιο Ηράκλειο – Ρόδο | Kathimerini". www.kathimerini.gr. Retrieved 2019-06-21.

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