Somali Airlines
Encyclopedia
Somali Airlines was the flag carrier
of Somalia
.
s. Aden
was the airline's first international route; it started flying there in March 1965.
Somali Airlines became a fully state-owned company in 1977.
Due to the political unrest in Somalia
, all operations came to a halt in 1991. The void created by the collapse of the airline has been partially filled more recently by carriers such as Jubba Airways
, as well as Daallo Airlines
and Djibouti Airlines
of Djibouti
. However, not since the demise of Somali Airlines have scheduled passenger flights from Mogadishu landed in Europe.
Friendship. Somali Airlines used a fleet of leased Boeing 707
s. Historically, Somali Airlines used a total of 17 Boeing 707
. A firm order for an Airbus A310-300 was placed in late 1987, with an option for another one; the aircraft was aimed at replacing the 707 fleet on routes to Europe and the Middle East.
Somali Airlines does not currently register any jet aircraft or operations, or any other presence as of June 2008.
6O-SAZ, during initial climbout, at Hargeisa International Airport. A crew
of 7 and 23 passengers lost their lives in the incident.
6O-SAC, crashed shortly after take-off from Bossaso Airport, following a failure on the port engine.: A Boeing 707-330B
, registration 6O-SBT, overran the wet runway at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport
following an aborted take-off.
Flag carrier
A flag carrier is a transportation company, such as an airline or shipping company, that, being locally registered in a given country, enjoys preferential rights or privileges, accorded by the government, for international operations. It may be a state-run, state-owned or private but...
of Somalia
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
.
History and destinations
The carrier was formed in March 1964 as the national airline of the country with the aid of Alitalia, which initially held a 50% controlling stake in the company, and the Somali government held the balance. The airline began operations in July the same year, initially serving domestic destinations with three DC-3s and two Cessna 180Cessna 180
The Cessna 180 is a four- or six-seat, fixed conventional gear general aviation airplane which was produced between 1953 and 1981. Though the design is no longer in production, many of these aircraft are still in use as personal aircraft and in utility roles such as bush...
s. Aden
Aden
Aden is a seaport city in Yemen, located by the eastern approach to the Red Sea , some 170 kilometres east of Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000. Aden's ancient, natural harbour lies in the crater of an extinct volcano which now forms a peninsula, joined to the mainland by a...
was the airline's first international route; it started flying there in March 1965.
Somali Airlines became a fully state-owned company in 1977.
Due to the political unrest in Somalia
Somali Civil War
The Somali Civil War is an ongoing civil war taking place in Somalia. The conflict, which began in 1991, has caused destabilisation throughout the country, with the current phase of the conflict seeing the Somali government losing substantial control of the state to rebel forces...
, all operations came to a halt in 1991. The void created by the collapse of the airline has been partially filled more recently by carriers such as Jubba Airways
Jubba Airways
-History:It was founded in 1998 by two Calgary-based Somali entrepreneurs, Said Nur Qailie and Abdi Hashi Dalel.On May 1998, a month after the company had been established, the airline embarked on its first voyage...
, as well as Daallo Airlines
Daallo Airlines
Daallo Airlines is an airline, headquartered in the Dubai Airport Free Zone in Al Garhoud, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. With its main base at Djibouti-Ambouli International Airport, the airline operates scheduled services in East Africa and the Middle East...
and Djibouti Airlines
Djibouti Airlines
Djibouti Airlines was an airline based in Djibouti, Djibouti. It operated regional scheduled and ad-hoc charter services using wet leased aircraft out of its base at Djibouti-Ambouli International Airport. Additionally, the airline was engaged in relief operations in East Africa.-History:Djibouti...
of Djibouti
Djibouti
Djibouti , officially the Republic of Djibouti , is a country in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Eritrea in the north, Ethiopia in the west and south, and Somalia in the southeast. The remainder of the border is formed by the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden at the east...
. However, not since the demise of Somali Airlines have scheduled passenger flights from Mogadishu landed in Europe.
Destinations
Following is a list of destinations the airline flew all through its history:- Djibouti
- DjiboutiDjibouti (city)The City of Djibouti is the capital and largest city in the Republic of Djibouti, a nation in the Horn of Africa. The biggest settlement on the Gulf of Tadjoura, it lies on a peninsula that separates that basin from the Gulf of Aden.-History:...
- Djibouti
- Egypt
- CairoCairoCairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
- Cairo
- Germany
- FrankfurtFrankfurtFrankfurt 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...
- Frankfurt
- Italy
- RomeRomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
- Rome
- Kenya
- NairobiNairobiNairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The city and its surrounding area also forms the Nairobi County. The name "Nairobi" comes from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nyirobi, which translates to "the place of cool waters". However, it is popularly known as the "Green City in the Sun" and is...
- Nairobi
- Qatar
- DohaDohaDoha is the capital city of the state of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf, it had a population of 998,651 in 2008, and is also one of the municipalities of Qatar...
- Doha
- Saudi Arabia
- JeddahJeddahJeddah, Jiddah, Jidda, or Jedda is a city located on the coast of the Red Sea and is the major urban center of western Saudi Arabia. It is the largest city in Makkah Province, the largest sea port on the Red Sea, and the second largest city in Saudi Arabia after the capital city, Riyadh. The...
- Jeddah
- Somalia
- Chisimaio
- HargeisaHargeisaHargeisa is a city in the northwestern Woqooyi Galbeed region of Somalia. With a population of approximately 2 million residents, it is the second largest city in the country. Hargeisa is the capital of Somaliland, a self-declared republic that is internationally recognized as an autonomous region...
- MogadishuMogadishuMogadishu , popularly known as Xamar, is the largest city in Somalia and the nation's capital. Located in the coastal Benadir region on the Indian Ocean, the city has served as an important port for centuries....
- United Arab Emirates
- Abu DhabiAbu DhabiAbu Dhabi , literally Father of Gazelle, is the capital and the second largest city of the United Arab Emirates in terms of population and the largest of the seven member emirates of the United Arab Emirates. Abu Dhabi lies on a T-shaped island jutting into the Persian Gulf from the central western...
- DubaiDubaiDubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
- Abu Dhabi
- Yemen
- AdenAdenAden is a seaport city in Yemen, located by the eastern approach to the Red Sea , some 170 kilometres east of Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000. Aden's ancient, natural harbour lies in the crater of an extinct volcano which now forms a peninsula, joined to the mainland by a...
- Aden
Fleet
The airline began operations using three Piper aircraft in 1961 and two DC-3. Later on these were replaced by the Fokker F27Fokker F27
The Fokker F27 Friendship is a turboprop airliner designed and built by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker.-Design and development:Design of the Fokker F27 started in the 1950s as a replacement to the successful Douglas DC-3 airliner...
Friendship. Somali Airlines used a fleet of leased Boeing 707
Boeing 707
The Boeing 707 is a four-engine narrow-body commercial passenger jet airliner developed by Boeing in the early 1950s. Its name is most commonly pronounced as "Seven Oh Seven". The first airline to operate the 707 was Pan American World Airways, inaugurating the type's first commercial flight on...
s. Historically, Somali Airlines used a total of 17 Boeing 707
Boeing 707
The Boeing 707 is a four-engine narrow-body commercial passenger jet airliner developed by Boeing in the early 1950s. Its name is most commonly pronounced as "Seven Oh Seven". The first airline to operate the 707 was Pan American World Airways, inaugurating the type's first commercial flight on...
. A firm order for an Airbus A310-300 was placed in late 1987, with an option for another one; the aircraft was aimed at replacing the 707 fleet on routes to Europe and the Middle East.
Somali Airlines does not currently register any jet aircraft or operations, or any other presence as of June 2008.
Accidents and incidents
Accidents involving fatalities
- On 6 May 1970, Vickers ViscountVickers ViscountThe Vickers Viscount was a British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs, making it the first such aircraft to enter service in the world...
6O-AAJ caught fire on approach to Mogadishu International Airport. The nosewheel collapsed in a heavy landing and the aircraft was burnt out. Five of the 30 people on board were killed.: Minutes after take-off from Mogadishu International AirportMogadishu International AirportAden Adde International Airport , formerly known as Mogadishu International Airport, is the international airport for Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia. It is named after Aden Abdullah Osman Daar, the first President of Somalia....
, a Fokker F-27-600RF, registrationAircraft registrationAn aircraft registration is a unique alphanumeric string that identifies a civil aircraft, in similar fashion to a licence plate on an automobile...
6O-SAY, that was operating a domestic scheduled MogadishuMogadishuMogadishu , popularly known as Xamar, is the largest city in Somalia and the nation's capital. Located in the coastal Benadir region on the Indian Ocean, the city has served as an important port for centuries....
–HargeisaHargeisaHargeisa is a city in the northwestern Woqooyi Galbeed region of Somalia. With a population of approximately 2 million residents, it is the second largest city in the country. Hargeisa is the capital of Somaliland, a self-declared republic that is internationally recognized as an autonomous region...
passenger service, crashed near BaladBalad, SomaliaBalad is one of the districts of Middle Shebelle region of Somalia. It is located about 36 kilometers northeast of the capital city of Mogadishu. It has an area of with an estimated population of 480,000. Most of the population is Mataan Abdulle, part of Wabudhan from Abgaal clan of Hawiye...
and burned up, killing all 50 occupants aboard. The aircraft had encountered severe turbulence on its flightpathFlightpathFlightpath is a digital-marketing agency located in New York City's Flatiron District. Jon Fox is the company’s founder and current CEO.-History:...
when it entered an area of heavy rain and started to dive. The stresses the airframe went through during the dive —up to 5.76 gG-forceThe g-force associated with an object is its acceleration relative to free-fall. This acceleration experienced by an object is due to the vector sum of non-gravitational forces acting on an object free to move. The accelerations that are not produced by gravity are termed proper accelerations, and...
— exceeded the ones it could possibly withstand, and parts of the starboard wing got detached. - On 28 June 1989, All twenty-four passengers and six crew died in the crash of a Fokker F-27 Fokker F-28 Friendship approximately ten minutes after it took off from Hargeisa International Airport.
Incidents involving fatalities
: Rebels claimed to have shot down a Fokker F-27, tail numberAircraft registration
An aircraft registration is a unique alphanumeric string that identifies a civil aircraft, in similar fashion to a licence plate on an automobile...
6O-SAZ, during initial climbout, at Hargeisa International Airport. A crew
Aircrew
Aircrew are the personnel who operate an aircraft while in flight. The composition of the crew depends on the type of aircraft as well as the purpose of the flight.-Civilian:*Aviator** Pilot-in-command** First officer** Second officer** Third officer...
of 7 and 23 passengers lost their lives in the incident.
Non-fatal hull-losses
: A Douglas C-47A-90-DL, registrationAircraft registration
An aircraft registration is a unique alphanumeric string that identifies a civil aircraft, in similar fashion to a licence plate on an automobile...
6O-SAC, crashed shortly after take-off from Bossaso Airport, following a failure on the port engine.: A Boeing 707-330B
Boeing 707
The Boeing 707 is a four-engine narrow-body commercial passenger jet airliner developed by Boeing in the early 1950s. Its name is most commonly pronounced as "Seven Oh Seven". The first airline to operate the 707 was Pan American World Airways, inaugurating the type's first commercial flight on...
, registration 6O-SBT, overran the wet runway at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport
Jomo Kenyatta International Airport
-Charter airlines:-Cargo airlines:-Other facilities:The Kenya Civil Aviation Authority has its head office in the KAA Complex on the airport property. African Express Airways has its head office on the airport property...
following an aborted take-off.