Meridiana
Encyclopedia
Meridiana fly is an airline
with its head office on the grounds of Olbia - Costa Smeralda Airport
in Olbia
, Sardinia
, Italy
. It is Italy's second largest airline operating domestic and Europe
an services, as well as intercontinental flights. The airline mainly operates out of Cagliari-Elmas Airport
, Milan Malpensa Airport and Rome Fiumicino Airport. Meridiana fly also holds numerous operations at Catania-Fontanarossa Airport
, Florence Airport
, Olbia - Costa Smeralda Airport
, Palermo International Airport
and Verona Airport
.
on March 29, 1963 by the Aga Khan
, Prince Karīm al-Hussaynī
, as an air-taxi and charter operator to promote tourism
to Sardinia
. Scheduled services began in 1964 from Olbia. In 1989, 35% of new stock was released to new shareholders to strengthen the company and the name Meridiana was adopted on 3 May 1991. The first international services were operated later in 1991 to Barcelona
, Paris
, London
and Frankfurt
. A 29.95% stake in Eurofly was acquired in December 2006. The name then changed to Meridiana Fly, following the Meridiana-Eurofly merger. Meridiana fly is owned by Interprogramme (57.19%), SA AgaKhan (17.59%), employees (16.08%), Airfin (in liquidation) (4.51%), Fondazione Cariplo (3.39%) and other shareholders (1.24%). It has 1,358 employees (at March 2007).
During 2004, Meridiana replaced four BAe 146-200
s with four leased Airbus A319-100s, and has plans for a fifth. In January 2004 it was reported that Meridiana was planning to replace its McDonnell Douglas MD-82 fleet with 17 Airbus A320-200
s.
In 2006 it transported over 4.6 million people, a 15.7% increase compared to 2005 figures.
merged to create Italy's second biggest airline, Meridiana fly. The aircraft of both airlines are being repainted with a new interim livery. However Eurofly's GJ code will be replaced by Meridiana's IG code. The new airline will serve a total of 7 intercontinental, 16 European and Mediterranean, and 18 domestic destinations.
reported that Alitalia
and Meridiana are in merger talks. The airlines’ boards have yet to make a decision about combining. A merger may take place through a share
swap and give the Aga Khan who controls Meridiana between 5 percent and 7 percent of Alitalia, according to Il Messaggero. That would correspond to a valuation of Meridiana of about 100 million euros ($135 million), the paper said.
.
The new group will become the main charter operator in the Italian market and more prominent in Europe. Post merger, the airline group will scale down the fleet by 13 aircraft.
Air Berlin
(future Oneworld
member) Air Malta
Air Moldova
British Airways
(Oneworld
) Finnair
(Oneworld
) Iberia (Oneworld
) Wind Jet
Fleet Notes:
1 A number of A320 and A319 aircraft are being painted in an all white interim livery until a new design is completed.
2 Meridiana Fly will be eliminating nine MD-8x aircraft as part of its restructuring plan.
Airline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...
with its head office on the grounds of Olbia - Costa Smeralda Airport
Olbia - Costa Smeralda Airport
Olbia - Costa Smeralda Airport is an international airport in Olbia, Sardinia .-Airlines and destinations:-External links:*-External links:...
in Olbia
Olbia
Olbia is a town and comune of 56,231 inhabitants in northeastern Sardinia , in the Gallura sub-region. Called Olbia in the Roman age, Civita in the Middle Ages and Terranova Pausania before the 1940s, Olbia was again the official name of the town after the period of Fascism.-Geography:It is the...
, Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. It is Italy's second largest airline operating domestic and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an services, as well as intercontinental flights. The airline mainly operates out of Cagliari-Elmas Airport
Cagliari-Elmas Airport
Cagliari-Elmas Airport is an international airport located in the territory of Elmas, near Cagliari, on the island of Sardinia, Italy. The airport was upgraded in 2003 and the terminal was expanded and provided with 6 loading bridges for passenger boarding, with a capacity of 4 millions...
, Milan Malpensa Airport and Rome Fiumicino Airport. Meridiana fly also holds numerous operations at Catania-Fontanarossa Airport
Catania-Fontanarossa Airport
-See also:*Palermo Airport Falcone e Borsellino - also known as Punta Raisi Airport, another of Sicily's international airports* Trapani Birgi Airport Vincenzo Florio - another of Sicily's international airports...
, Florence Airport
Peretola Airport
Peretola Airport, Florence Airport or Amerigo Vespucci Airport is an airport located close to Florence, Italy, but administratively located within the territory of Sesto Fiorentino...
, Olbia - Costa Smeralda Airport
Olbia - Costa Smeralda Airport
Olbia - Costa Smeralda Airport is an international airport in Olbia, Sardinia .-Airlines and destinations:-External links:*-External links:...
, Palermo International Airport
Palermo International Airport
-The Company:GESAP S.p.a. is the airport management company of "Falcone e Borsellino" Airport in Palermo. It has a fully paid-up share capital of € 15,912,332.00 divided between the Regional Province of Palermo, the Comune of Palermo, the Chamber of Commerce, the Comune of Cinisi and other minor...
and Verona Airport
Verona Airport
Verona Airport , also known as Valerio Catullo Villafranca Airport or simply Verona-Villafranca Airport is an airport located southwest of Verona, Italy...
.
History
The airline was founded as AlisardaAlisarda
Alisarda was an Italian airline based in Olbia, Sardinia.-Company history:Alisarda was founded as an Air Taxi operations in March 1963. Scheduled flights began in 1965 and the airlined used Nord 262 aircraft between Olbia and Rome. The 262s were replaced in 1969 by the Fokker F27 Friendship and...
on March 29, 1963 by the Aga Khan
Aga Khan
Aga Khan is the hereditary title of the Imam of the largest branch of the Ismā'īlī followers of the Shī‘a faith. They affirm the Imamat of the descendants of Ismail ibn Jafar, eldest son of Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq, while the larger Twelver branch of Shi`ism follows Ismail's younger brother Musa...
, Prince Karīm al-Hussaynī
Aga Khan IV
Prince Karim, Aga Khan IV, NPk, NI, KBE, CC, GCC, GCIH, GCM is the 49th and current Imam of the Shia Imami Nizari Ismaili Muslims. He has held this position under the title of Aga Khan since July 11, 1957, when, at the age of 20, he succeeded his grandfather, Sultan Mahomed Shah Aga Khan...
, as an air-taxi and charter operator to promote tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
to Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
. Scheduled services began in 1964 from Olbia. In 1989, 35% of new stock was released to new shareholders to strengthen the company and the name Meridiana was adopted on 3 May 1991. The first international services were operated later in 1991 to Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
. A 29.95% stake in Eurofly was acquired in December 2006. The name then changed to Meridiana Fly, following the Meridiana-Eurofly merger. Meridiana fly is owned by Interprogramme (57.19%), SA AgaKhan (17.59%), employees (16.08%), Airfin (in liquidation) (4.51%), Fondazione Cariplo (3.39%) and other shareholders (1.24%). It has 1,358 employees (at March 2007).
During 2004, Meridiana replaced four BAe 146-200
BAe 146
The British Aerospace 146 is a medium-sized commercial airliner formerly manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2002. Manufacture of an improved version known as the Avro RJ began in 1992...
s with four leased Airbus A319-100s, and has plans for a fifth. In January 2004 it was reported that Meridiana was planning to replace its McDonnell Douglas MD-82 fleet with 17 Airbus A320-200
Airbus A320 family
The Airbus A320 family is a family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger jet airliners manufactured by Airbus Industrie.Airbus was originally a consortium of European aerospace companies, and is now fully owned by EADS. Airbus's name has been Airbus SAS since 2001...
s.
In 2006 it transported over 4.6 million people, a 15.7% increase compared to 2005 figures.
Merger with Eurofly
On 28 February 2010, Meridiana and EuroflyEurofly
Eurofly was a privately owned airline based in Milan, Italy. Listed on MTA Stock Exchange and controlled by Meridiana, it was Italy’s leading carrier in leisure flights market and mainly operated international, medium to long haul, point-to-point flights....
merged to create Italy's second biggest airline, Meridiana fly. The aircraft of both airlines are being repainted with a new interim livery. However Eurofly's GJ code will be replaced by Meridiana's IG code. The new airline will serve a total of 7 intercontinental, 16 European and Mediterranean, and 18 domestic destinations.
Possible merger with Alitalia
On 12 February 2011, Il MessaggeroIl Messaggero
Il Messaggero is an Italian newspaper based in Rome, Italy, founded in 1878.It is owned by the Italian publishing company Caltagirone Editore, and its leaders include Azzurra Caltagirone, the partner of the political leader Pierferdinando Casini, on its board...
reported that Alitalia
Alitalia
Alitalia - Linee Aeree Italiane S.p.A. , in its later stages known as Alitalia - Linee Aeree Italiane S.p.A. in Extraordinary Administration, was the former Italian flag carrier...
and Meridiana are in merger talks. The airlines’ boards have yet to make a decision about combining. A merger may take place through a share
Share (finance)
A joint stock company divides its capital into units of equal denomination. Each unit is called a share. These units are offered for sale to raise capital. This is termed as issuing shares. A person who buys share/shares of the company is called a shareholder, and by acquiring share or shares in...
swap and give the Aga Khan who controls Meridiana between 5 percent and 7 percent of Alitalia, according to Il Messaggero. That would correspond to a valuation of Meridiana of about 100 million euros ($135 million), the paper said.
Merger with Air Italy
On 18 July 2011, Meridiana fly announced the merger with Air ItalyAir Italy
Air Italy S.p.A. is an airline based in Gallarate, Italy, operating scheduled services for tour operators within Europe, to Brazil and Kenya, as well as independent short-haul flights...
.
The new group will become the main charter operator in the Italian market and more prominent in Europe. Post merger, the airline group will scale down the fleet by 13 aircraft.
Loyalty programme
Hi-Fly is the loyalty programme of Meridiana Fly. The program consists of two levels. The Hi-Fly level allows for the accumulation of miles for the redemption of travel and merchandise. The Fly Pass Club can be earned by flying 12,000 miles or purchased.VIP Lounge
Meridiana operates a VIP lounge at Olbia Airport. The airline also contracts lounge access for Flypass members at various destinations served by the carrier.Destinations
Codeshare agreements
Meridiana fly has codeshare agreements with the following airlines:Air Berlin
Air Berlin
Air Berlin PLC & Co. Luftverkehrs KG is Germany's second largest airline, after Lufthansa, and Europe's sixth largest airline in terms of passengers....
(future Oneworld
Oneworld
Oneworld , branded as oneworld, is one of the world's three largest global airline alliances with its central management team, oneworld Management Company, based in New York City, New York, USA. Oneworld was founded in 1999 by American Airlines, British Airways, Canadian Airlines, Cathay Pacific...
member) Air Malta
Air Malta
Air Malta plc is the national airline of Malta, headquartered in Luqa. It operates services to 36 destinations in Europe, Middle East and North Africa. The airline's hub and base is at Malta International Airport.- History :...
Air Moldova
Air Moldova
Air Moldova is an airline with its head office on the grounds of Chişinău International Airport in Chişinău, Moldova. It is the national airline of Moldova and operates scheduled services to 17 destinations in Europe. Its main base is Chişinău International Airport. The Air Moldova air operators...
British Airways
British Airways
British Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
(Oneworld
Oneworld
Oneworld , branded as oneworld, is one of the world's three largest global airline alliances with its central management team, oneworld Management Company, based in New York City, New York, USA. Oneworld was founded in 1999 by American Airlines, British Airways, Canadian Airlines, Cathay Pacific...
) Finnair
Finnair
Finnair Plc is the flag carrier and largest airline of Finland, with its headquarters on the grounds of Helsinki Airport in Vantaa, Finland, and its main hub at Helsinki Airport. Finnair and its subsidiaries dominate both the domestic and international air travel markets in Finland. The largest...
(Oneworld
Oneworld
Oneworld , branded as oneworld, is one of the world's three largest global airline alliances with its central management team, oneworld Management Company, based in New York City, New York, USA. Oneworld was founded in 1999 by American Airlines, British Airways, Canadian Airlines, Cathay Pacific...
) Iberia (Oneworld
Oneworld
Oneworld , branded as oneworld, is one of the world's three largest global airline alliances with its central management team, oneworld Management Company, based in New York City, New York, USA. Oneworld was founded in 1999 by American Airlines, British Airways, Canadian Airlines, Cathay Pacific...
) Wind Jet
Fleet
The "new" Meridiana fly company has a fleet of 34 aircraft:| Aircraft | Total | Passengers | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J | Y | Total | |||
| Airbus A319 | 4 | 12 | 116 | 128 | In Meridiana Livery1 Used for flights to/from Florence Peretola Airport |
| Airbus A320-200 | 12 | 0 | 180 | 180 | In Eurofly and Meridiana livery1 |
| Airbus A330-200 | 3 | 26 | 256 | 282 | In Eurofly livery |
| McDonnell Douglas MD-82 | 15 | 0 | 165 | 165 | In Meridiana livery2 |
| Total | 36 | ||||
Fleet Notes:
1 A number of A320 and A319 aircraft are being painted in an all white interim livery until a new design is completed.
2 Meridiana Fly will be eliminating nine MD-8x aircraft as part of its restructuring plan.