Air Baltic, sometimes rendered airBaltic, is the national airline of Latvia.

History

Air Baltic's history began in 1995, after a joint venture on August 28 had been signed between the Latvian government and international interests; the Latvian government holding 51 per cent of the airline's stock. Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) was (and remains) the main foreign investor.

October 1 of that year was a double historic day for the airline. Their first plane, a SAAB 340, arrived at Riga, and that afternoon, the plane was making the first passenger flight for Air Baltic.

In 1996, the airline's first AVRO RJ70 was delivered; and Air Baltic joined SAS' frequent flier club as a partner.

1997 saw the opening of a cargo department, and in 1998, the airline's first Fokker 50 plane was delivered.

In 1999, Air Baltic became a joint stock company, and all their SAAB 340s were replaced by Fokker 50s. By September, the airline had began operating under the European Aviation Operating Standards, or JAR ops.

Air Baltic welcomed the new millennium by introducing new uniforms on its workers, and opening a cargo center at Riga's airport. In 2001, the airline was recipient of various awards.

Present day

As of October 2004, Air Baltic flies from Riga to 21 cities around Europe. Their fleet consists of two Boeing 737-500, three RJ70s and six Fokker 50s. The RJ70s' tail logo consists of a white and blue hybrid, white leading off from the fuselage, but blue taking over from the bottom part of the tail. Their logo presumably represents the air (white) and the water (blue). Their Fokker 50s have no logo on their tails, but they also carry the name Air Baltic on their fuselage.

Air Baltic has strong links with SAS Scandinavian which owns 47.2% of Air Baltic. It operates frequent flights to SAS hubs in Copenhagen and Stockholm and participiates in SAS frequent flyer program instead of having its own program. In 2003, Air Baltic carried about 336,000 passengers.

On June 1, 2004, Air Baltic started a service from Lithuanian capital, Vilnius to 5 Western European cities. As of October 2004, it flies from Vilnius to 12 European destinations.

External links

• Air Baltic (http://www.airbaltic.com/public/index.html)