XL Leisure Group
Encyclopedia
The XL Leisure Group was a major tour operating company in the UK, consisting of charter and scheduled airlines, holiday companies and flight-only tour operators. It also has operations in France
, Germany
, Ireland
, Australia
and Cyprus
. The group's UK companies were placed into administration on 12 September 2008.
, until it went into administration. West Ham United terminated the partnership with immediate effect on 12 September.
in November 2004, previously being owned by the Icelandic Flugfelagid Atlanta HF. It bought Kosmar Village Holidays in May 2006. In October 2006, there was a $450m management buyout
of the company, although the Avion Group retained 49% of the company. It became XL Leisure Group on 22 December 2006. The French subsidiary used to be Star Airlines and the German subsidiary was called Star Europe. At its height, it flew from 12 UK airports. The Irish airline began in May 2006.
XL Leisure Group confirmed on their website that 11 companies associated with the group had been put into administration on 12 September 2008. This includes XL Airways UK Limited, Excel Aviation Limited, Explorer House Limited, Aspire Holidays Limited, Freedom Flights Limited, The Really Great Holiday Company plc, Medlife Hotels Limited, Travel City Direct
, and Kosmar Villa..
This is the biggest collapse of a British tour operator
since 1974 when Court Line
became insolvent, affecting 50,000 travellers.
Nevertheless, both of its former members, XL Airways Germany and France remained in service.
and Turkey
.
It was founded by Kostas Markou in 1981, taking holidaymakers to his home-town of Tolon
, Peloponese. Kosmar continued to travel to Tolon, but its programme also grew to feature a large number of destinations across the Mediterranean and the Middle East. From its roots, Kosmar became the UKs largest operator to Greece
'. The name 'Kosmar' comes from Kostas - Markou. Kosmar's slogan was 'Making Holiday Dreams Come True.....it's what Kosmar did best. The company was acquired by the XL Leisure Group, and used XL Airways
, Astraeus
and Air Malta
for its flights. On flights to Crete and Rhodes, Kosmar gave the option to fly with British Airways
. On 10 April 2006, Excel Airways
, representing the Avion Group
, purchased Kosmar Villa Holidays plc for an undisclosed sum. The founder Kostas Markou stayed with the company.
The XL Leisure Group, of which Kosmar was part of, eventually split away from Avion and was retrieved under a management buy-out.
In early June 2007, Kosmar removed Bulgaria, Majorca, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, Tenerife and The Algarve from its website. It was thought that Kosmar was to revert back to being a specialist to more 'exotic' destinations.
On 11 September 2008, Kosmar's parent company XL Leisure spectacularly collapsed, and Kosmar Villa Holidays was placed in administration.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
. The group's UK companies were placed into administration on 12 September 2008.
Market share
XLLG claimed it was the third largest tour operating company in the UK. It was the main (shirt) sponsor of West Ham United F.C.West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
, until it went into administration. West Ham United terminated the partnership with immediate effect on 12 September.
History
The company began as Excel Airways Group. It was bought by the Icelandic Avion GroupEimskipafélag Íslands
Hf. Eimskipafélag Íslands is a large Icelandic investment company, focused on investments in the transportation industry. The company was formed on January 1, 2005, from several long standing companies. In 2005, Eimskipafélag Íslands was ranked the second fastest growing business in Europe by the...
in November 2004, previously being owned by the Icelandic Flugfelagid Atlanta HF. It bought Kosmar Village Holidays in May 2006. In October 2006, there was a $450m management buyout
Management buyout
A management buyout is a form of acquisition where a company's existing managers acquire a large part or all of the company.- Overview :Management buyouts are similar in all major legal aspects to any other acquisition of a company...
of the company, although the Avion Group retained 49% of the company. It became XL Leisure Group on 22 December 2006. The French subsidiary used to be Star Airlines and the German subsidiary was called Star Europe. At its height, it flew from 12 UK airports. The Irish airline began in May 2006.
Administration
Travel City Direct
Travel City Direct is a brand owned by Virgin Holidays. It was previously the trading name of the Really Great Holiday Company PLC, a British holiday company based in Crawley , specialising in holidays to the United States...
, and Kosmar Villa..
This is the biggest collapse of a British tour operator
Tour operator
A tour operator typically combines tour and travel components to create a holiday. The most common example of a tour operator's product would be a flight on a charter airline plus a transfer from the airport to a hotel and the services of a local representative, all for one price. Niche tour...
since 1974 when Court Line
Court Line
Court Line was a prominent British holiday charter airline during the early 1970s based at Luton Airport in Bedfordshire. It also provided bus services in Luton and surrounding areas....
became insolvent, affecting 50,000 travellers.
Nevertheless, both of its former members, XL Airways Germany and France remained in service.
Member companies
As of November 2006, the companies which form XLLG were:| Tour Operators | Airlines | Commercial |
|---|---|---|
| XL.com Kosmar Holidays Travel City Direct Travel City Direct Travel City Direct is a brand owned by Virgin Holidays. It was previously the trading name of the Really Great Holiday Company PLC, a British holiday company based in Crawley , specialising in holidays to the United States... Freedom Flights XL Holidays Aspire Holidays CrystalTO Heliades |
XL Airways UK XL Airways France XL Airways France XL Airways France is a French airline with its head offices on the grounds of Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport and in Tremblay-en-France. It operates scheduled flights mainly to long-haul destinations in Africa, the Middle East and the Caribbean as well as charter flights to medium-haul destinations... XL Airways Germany Xtra Airways Xtra Airways Xtra Airways is a charter airline based in Boise, Idaho, USA. The airline is certificated by the FAA to conduct Domestic, Flag and Supplemental operations with Boeing 737 aircraft.-History:... * Skywest Airlines Skywest Airlines Skywest Airlines Pty Ltd is a regional airline company based in Perth, Western Australia, Australia; servicing key towns in the state of Western Australia, Darwin, Northern Territory and Melbourne, Victoria; as well as charter flights to Bali, Indonesia.... * |
XL Aviation XL24 |
- XLLG holds significant interest in Xtra AirwaysXtra AirwaysXtra Airways is a charter airline based in Boise, Idaho, USA. The airline is certificated by the FAA to conduct Domestic, Flag and Supplemental operations with Boeing 737 aircraft.-History:...
and Skywest AirlinesSkywest AirlinesSkywest Airlines Pty Ltd is a regional airline company based in Perth, Western Australia, Australia; servicing key towns in the state of Western Australia, Darwin, Northern Territory and Melbourne, Victoria; as well as charter flights to Bali, Indonesia....
, although these airlines are managed independently.
Holdings and Branding
- Kosmar Holidays - A British holiday brand offering package holidays to Greece and Turkey.
- Travel City DirectTravel City DirectTravel City Direct is a brand owned by Virgin Holidays. It was previously the trading name of the Really Great Holiday Company PLC, a British holiday company based in Crawley , specialising in holidays to the United States...
- A UK holiday company specialising in low-cost family holidays to Florida, other parts of the U.S. and the Caribbean. Flights are operated on behalf of Travel City Direct by XL Airways, using aircraft bearing dual-branded liveries. - Freedom Flights - A seat-only tour operator which primarily sells airline seats to UK tour operators. The majority of its seats are with XLLG's own XL Airways, although Freedom Flights also deal with seat sales on other airlines.
- XL Holidays and Aspire Holidays - XL Holidays is the main tour-operating division of XLLG in the UK, offering holidays worldwide and is fully ATOL bonded. Aspire Holidays is a division of XL Holidays specialising in luxury bespoke holidays and was sold to Jeffersons Limited on 28 October 2008.
- CrystalTO and Heliades - CrystalTO is a French tour operator fully affiliated to XL Airways France, offering French travelers package holidays worldwide. Heliades is a tour operator in France, specialising primarily in holidays to Greece.
- XL AirwaysXL AirwaysXL Airways may refer to:* XL Airways France* XL Airways Germany* XL Airways UK, which is defunct following XL Leisure Group's insolvency...
- Was a charter airline with brands in the UK, France and Germany. It began as Sabre Airways in 1994, and was renamed Excel Airways in 2001. It was later rebranded XL Airways in November 2006 after it was found that the airline was more commonly known by the British public as simply XL Airways. Following the acquisition of the French and German airlines Star Airlines and Star Europe, XLLG rebranded these as XL Airways France and XL Airways Germany in November 2006, creating a pan-European airline consisting of at least 34 BoeingBoeingThe Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...
and AirbusAirbusAirbus SAS is an aircraft manufacturing subsidiary of EADS, a European aerospace company. Based in Blagnac, France, surburb of Toulouse, and with significant activity across Europe, the company produces around half of the world's jet airliners....
aircraft. - XL Aviation and XL24 - XL Aviation is the commercial sales arm of XLLG. It sells charter capacity on flights operated by XL Airways and also buys and sell charter capacity on numerous other airlines. XL24 is a dealer in "relief" aircraft in the airline-to-airline market, providing sub-chartered aircraft from the XL Airways and other fleets to other airlines who require the extra capacity on short notice.
- Interests in:
- Xtra AirwaysXtra AirwaysXtra Airways is a charter airline based in Boise, Idaho, USA. The airline is certificated by the FAA to conduct Domestic, Flag and Supplemental operations with Boeing 737 aircraft.-History:...
and Skywest, Inc. - Established in 1987, Xtra Airways is a charter airline based in Nevada, USA. It now has bases at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International AirportCincinnati/Northern Kentucky International AirportCincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport , sometimes called the Greater Cincinnati Airport is located in Hebron, unincorporated Boone County, Kentucky, United States and serves the Greater Cincinnati metropolitan area. Despite being located in Boone County, the airport operations are...
, Louisville, KentuckyLouisville, KentuckyLouisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
, New York (John F. Kennedy International AirportJohn F. Kennedy International AirportJohn F. Kennedy International Airport is an international airport located in the borough of Queens in New York City, about southeast of Lower Manhattan. It is the busiest international air passenger gateway to the United States, handling more international traffic than any other airport in North...
)and BostonBostonBoston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. It is owned by CXP Management, and XLLG holds a 19% share of the airline. Prior to XLLG's acquisition of 19% interest in Xtra Airways in summer 2005, the airline was known as Casino Express. The rebranding to Xtra Airways reflects a close relationship between Xtra and XL, which also includes similar aircraft liveries. - Skywest is an Australian regional airline, which began operations in 1963 as part of Ansett Airlines. It is now owned by Advent Air, in which XLLG hold a 5% share.
- Xtra Airways
Kosmar Villa Holidays
Kosmar Villa Holidays was a British holiday company specializing in holidays to GreeceGreece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
and Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
.
It was founded by Kostas Markou in 1981, taking holidaymakers to his home-town of Tolon
Tolon
Tolon may refer to:*Toulon , a city in southern France*Tolon village , a village in northwest Iran*Tolo, Greece , a village near Nafplio in the Peloponnese*Tolon, Russia, name of several rural localities in Russia...
, Peloponese. Kosmar continued to travel to Tolon, but its programme also grew to feature a large number of destinations across the Mediterranean and the Middle East. From its roots, Kosmar became the UKs largest operator to Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
'. The name 'Kosmar' comes from Kostas - Markou. Kosmar's slogan was 'Making Holiday Dreams Come True.....it's what Kosmar did best. The company was acquired by the XL Leisure Group, and used XL Airways
XL Airways
XL Airways may refer to:* XL Airways France* XL Airways Germany* XL Airways UK, which is defunct following XL Leisure Group's insolvency...
, Astraeus
Astraeus
In Greek mythology, Astraeus or Astraeos was an astrological deity and the Titan-god of the dusk. In Hesiod's Theogony and in the Bibliotheca, Astraeus is a second-generation Titan, descended from Crius and Eurybia. However, Hyginus wrote that he was descended directly from Tartarus and Gaia, and...
and 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 :...
for its flights. On flights to Crete and Rhodes, Kosmar gave the option to fly with 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...
. On 10 April 2006, Excel Airways
Excel Airways
XL Airways was a British low-cost charter and scheduled airline, which ceased operations when it went into administration on 12 September 2008. Its headquarters were in Crawley, West Sussex, near London Gatwick Airport. It was part of the XL Leisure Group. XL Airways is a trading name for XL...
, representing the Avion Group
Avion Group
Hf. Eimskipafélag Íslands is a large Icelandic investment company, focused on investments in the transportation industry. The company was formed on January 1, 2005, from several long standing companies. In 2005, Eimskipafélag Íslands was ranked the second fastest growing business in Europe by the...
, purchased Kosmar Villa Holidays plc for an undisclosed sum. The founder Kostas Markou stayed with the company.
The XL Leisure Group, of which Kosmar was part of, eventually split away from Avion and was retrieved under a management buy-out.
In early June 2007, Kosmar removed Bulgaria, Majorca, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, Tenerife and The Algarve from its website. It was thought that Kosmar was to revert back to being a specialist to more 'exotic' destinations.
On 11 September 2008, Kosmar's parent company XL Leisure spectacularly collapsed, and Kosmar Villa Holidays was placed in administration.
Online booking services
XL.com was the website portal for the XL Leisure Group, the fifth largest travel company in the UK, consisting of:- XL AirwaysXL AirwaysXL Airways may refer to:* XL Airways France* XL Airways Germany* XL Airways UK, which is defunct following XL Leisure Group's insolvency...
in the UK, France and Germany - The 'XL.com web portal in the UK, France, Ireland, Germany and Australia
- Travel City Direct - the UK's largest Florida specialist
- Kosmar
- CrystalTO - a French holiday company
- Freedom Flights - a seat-only flight company
- Aspire Holidays and XL Holidays
Other XL Leisure Group firms
The full XL Leisure Group comprised these subsidiaries:- Holli'Tobago plc
- Explorer House Limited
- Aspire Holidays Limited
- Freedom Flights Limited
- Freedom Flights (Aviation) Limited
- The Really Great Holiday Company plc
- Medlife Hotels Limited
- Medlife Limited
- Travel City DirectTravel City DirectTravel City Direct is a brand owned by Virgin Holidays. It was previously the trading name of the Really Great Holiday Company PLC, a British holiday company based in Crawley , specialising in holidays to the United States...
Limited - Travel City Flights Limited
- Kosmar Villa Holidays plc
- Kosmar Holidays plc
- Kosmar plc
- XL Airways UK Limited
- XL Airways Ireland Limited
- XL Airways FranceXL Airways FranceXL Airways France is a French airline with its head offices on the grounds of Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport and in Tremblay-en-France. It operates scheduled flights mainly to long-haul destinations in Africa, the Middle East and the Caribbean as well as charter flights to medium-haul destinations...
Limited - XL Airways Germany Limited
- XL Airways Egypt Limited
- Excel Aviation Limited
- XL.com plc
- XL Holidays plc
- CrystalTO Limited
- HeliadesHeliadesIn Greek mythology, the Heliades were the daughters of Helios and Clymene the Oceanid.According to one source, there were three of them: Aegiale, Aegle, and Aetheria. According to another source, there were five: Helia, Merope, Phoebe, Aetheria, and Dioxippe...
Limited - Xtra AirwaysXtra AirwaysXtra Airways is a charter airline based in Boise, Idaho, USA. The airline is certificated by the FAA to conduct Domestic, Flag and Supplemental operations with Boeing 737 aircraft.-History:...
Limited - SkywestSkywestSkywest may refer to:*Skywest Airlines, an airline serving Western Australia.*SkyWest Airlines, an airline serving the United States, Canada and Mexico.**SkyWest, Inc., SkyWest Airlines' and Atlantic Southeast Airlines' parent company....
Limited - XL Aviation Limited
- XL24 Limited