Avion Express

Avion Express is a Lithuanian ACMI and aircraft leasing operator headquartered in Vilnius.

Avion Express
IATA ICAO Callsign
X9[1] NVD NORDVIND
Founded2005
Fleet size21
Parent companyEyjafjoll SAS
(owned by Avia Solutions Group)
HeadquartersVilnius, Lithuania
Key peopleDarius Kajokas (CEO)
Revenue79,9 mEUR (2017) [2]
Websiteavionexpress.aero

History

Avion Express was established in 2005 as Nordic Solutions Air Services. At that time, the airline was operating four Saab 340 cargo and passenger aircraft. In 2008 the company was re-branded to its current name Avion Express. In 2010 Avion Express was acquired by French investment company Eyjafjoll SAS, formed by Avion Capital Partners of Switzerland along with other investors.

In 2011 Avion Express introduced its first Airbus A320,[3] which was the first Airbus aircraft to be registered in Lithuania. In December, two more Airbus A320s were added to the fleet. In 2013, Avion Express successfully passed the IOSA Operational Safety Audit and consequently obtained an IATA registration. The last Saab 340 cargo aircraft was removed from operation in March 2013.[4] By summer of 2014, the airline was operating a fleet of 9 Airbus A320s and 2 Airbus A319s. That same year Avion Express established a subsidiary company Dominican Wings,[5] a low-cost airline based in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. In summer 2017 Avion Express introduced Airbus A321 aircraft to the company's fleet.[6]

In June 2017, Avion Express announced that it had sold its 65% stake in Dominican Wings to the President of the Company, Mr. Victor Pacheco.[7][8]

In 2019 Avion Express established Avion Express Malta, a subsidiary company based in Malta.[9] The company started operations in May and currently operates 1 Airbus A320 aircraft.[10]

Crew training

In August 2017, Avion Express signed partnership agreement with the Lithuanian Aviation Academy (VGTU A. Gustaitis’ Aviation Institute). The main focus of the partnership is providing students of Aircraft Piloting and technical programmes with opportunities to learn more about aviation and the company, to gain experience while doing internships and to join the airline after their studies.[11] Since autumn 2017 Avion Express has also been collaborating with BAA Training on the cadet programme[12] for people with little or no flying experience. According to this partnership, BAA Training is training and providing pilots to fill the vacancies for the expanding fleet of Avion Express.[13] In April 2019, Avion Express announced the launch of its first MPL Training Programme with BAA Training.[14]

Destinations
Country City Airport Notes Refs
LithuaniaPalangaPalanga International AirportSeasonal[15]
VilniusVilnius AirportSeasonal[16]

Fleet
Avion Express Airbus A320-200

As of August 2019, Avion Express operates the following fleet:[17][18]

Aircraft In Service Passengers
Total
Airbus A320-200 14 180
Airbus A321-200 7 220
Total 21

References
  1. "IATA - Airline and Airport Code Search". Iata.org. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
  2. Archived 2014-02-23 at the Wayback Machine
  3. "Avion Capital Partners - News - Avion Express launches Airbus 320 Passenger Operation". acp.aero. Archived from the original on 2018-06-12. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  4. "Avion Express retires its third and final Saab 340(F) freighter". ch-aviation. Retrieved 2018-05-13.
  5. 2018, UBM (UK) Ltd. "Dominican Wings Receives First Airbus". Routesonline.com. Retrieved 25 May 2018.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  6. "Airline for Airline: Avion Express". Flyavex.com. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  7. "Avion Express sells its Shares in Dominican Wings". Newsroom.aviator.aero. 30 June 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  8. "Dominican Wings relaunched as a ULCC". Ch-aviation.com. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  9. "Avion Express established subsidiary airline in Malta - Avion Express". Flyavex. Retrieved 2019-05-29.
  10. "Global Airline Guide 2019 (Part One)". Airliner World. October 2019: 20.
  11. Gaumina, e-solution: VGTU ITSC &. "Vilniaus Gedimino technikos universitetas - VGTU". Vgtu.lt. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  12. "BAA Training collaborates with Avion Express on cadet programme". Civilaviation.training. 3 October 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  13. "Join Avion Express Cadet Programme". Baatraining.com. 16 November 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  14. "Avion Express to launch its first MPL Training Programme with BAA Training". Flyavex. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
  15. https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/1190026/lithuanian-airline-to-launch-vilnius-palanga-flights
  16. https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/1190026/lithuanian-airline-to-launch-vilnius-palanga-flights
  17. "Global Airline Guide 2019 (Part One)". Airliner World. October 2019: 19.
  18. "Fleet Archive - Flyavex". Flyavex. Retrieved 29 May 2019.

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