SWISS' short-haul fleet to fly as Swiss European
10 October 2005
The SWISS Board of Directors has decided to transfer European regional services to a fully-owned company within the SWISS Group before the end of the year. The entire current regional segment will take off as “Swiss European Air Lines” once the Swiss Federal Office for Civil Aviation has delivered an operating permit. The move will make a further contribution to enhancing SWISS’s competitiveness, and should provide a basis for growth in the European services sector.
As a fully-owned subsidiary of SWISS, Swiss European will function as an operating company, providing “wet lease” flights in the European market on behalf of its parent company. Swiss European will naturally work to the same high standards of quality, safety and training already adopted by the parent company. It will trade under the SWISS brand, and commercial responsibility will remain with SWISS.
The new airline will inherit all the aircraft in the current regional fleet (Avro RJ 85/100 and Embraer 145). Likewise, all regional pilots will transfer to Swiss European. The cabin crews will initially be provided by Swiss International. In the medium-term, Swiss European will recruit its own cabin staff and build up its own workforce.
Own Management Team
The new subsidiary will be managed by an own Executive Board and Board of Directors: Peter Koch (Managing Director), Rolf Brand (Head of Flight Operations), Heinz Marti (Head of Training), Diego Ochsner (Head of Ground Services) and Felix Koster (Head of Technical Maintenance). Manfred Brennwald (Chairman), Gabriele Hofmann-Schmid and Reto von Atzigen will sit on the Board of Directors.
Swiss European will start out with a fleet of seven Embraer 145s and eighteen Avro RJ85/100s, but will subsequently operate with a uniform fleet of twenty-four Avro RJ85/100s once the 2006 summer timetable comes into effect.
Swiss European will make an important contribution to increasing its competitive strength and to securing jobs in the long-term. Ensuring transparency in terms of both structures and costs will also lend support to forthcoming investment in fleet modernisation and provide a solid basis for future growth.
Editorial note:
SWISS will present the management team to the media after an operating permit has been obtained from the Swiss Federal Office for Civil Aviation.