Astra Airlines

Astra Airlines was a Greek regional airline headquartered in Thessaloniki and based at Thessaloniki International Airport.

Astra Airlines
IATA ICAO Callsign
A2[1] AZI[2] GREEK STAR[2]
Founded2008 (2008)
Commenced operationsJuly 5, 2008 (2008-07-05)
Ceased operations14 November 2019
HubsThessaloniki International Airport
Focus citiesAthens International Airport
Fleet size4
Destinations37
HeadquartersThessaloniki, Greece
Key peopleIoannis Zlatanis (Chairman)
Websiteastra-airlines.gr

History

The carrier was founded by Ioannis Zlatanis, founder of Interaviator Ltd, and Anastasios Zirinis, former CEO of Olympic Aviation. It launched operations on 5 July 2008, flying from Thessaloniki to Rhodes.[3]

On 9 November 2019, it was reported that Astra Airlines faced severe financial difficulties and was searching for an investor to maintain its current operations.[4] The airline grounded all flights on the same day until further notice.[5] On 14 November 2019, IATA announced that it had suspended the airline and warned Greek travel agents to stop selling tickets on the airline with immediate effect.[6][7]

On 18 November 2019, it was reported that the airline would not resume operations for good.[8]

Destinations
A former Astra Airlines Airbus A320-200. The type meanwhile has been phased out.

As of May 2016, Astra Airlines served the following destinations:[9]

Greece
Germany
Israel

Fleet
Astra Airlines BAe 146-300

As of August 2019, the Astra Airlines fleet consisted of the following aircraft:[10]

Astra Airlines fleet
Aircraft In fleet On order Passengers Notes
C Y
Total
ATR 42-300 2 — 0 48 48
ATR 72-200 1 — 0 70 70
BAe 146-300 1 — 0 112 112
Total 4 —

References
  1. "IATA - Airline and Airport Code Search". iata.org. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
  2. "CONTRACTIONS FAA JO 7340.2". faa.gov. Archived from the original on 19 April 2014.
  3. "Astra Airlines Takes Off". capital.gr. 11 July 2008. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  4. politischios.gr - ΒΙΝΤΕΟ- Τελευταία πτήση της Astra Airlines ή υπάρχει ακόμη σωτηρία (Greek) 9 November 2019.
  5. "Greece's Astra Airways' Financial Difficulties Prompt HCAA Review". 12 November 2019. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
  6. "Greece's Astra Airlines Suspended From The IATA". 15 November 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  7. "IATA Grounds Greece's Astra Airlines". 15 November 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  8. aerotelegraph.com - "Grounding: Astra Airlines ends operations" (German) 18 November 2019
  9. astra-airlines.gr - BUY TICKET retrieved 21 May 2016
  10. "Global Airline Guide 2019 (Part One)". Airliner World (October 2019): 15.

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