Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your Olympic Airlines shopping experience:

1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the Olympic Airlines offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of Olympic Airlines at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.

2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about

3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a Olympic Airlines? Wrong! If the Olympic Airlines is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.

4. Questions - Got a question about Olympic Airlines then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....

5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling Olympic Airlines? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about Olympic Airlines and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.

6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Olympic Airlines wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.

7. Feedback - happy with your Olympic Airlines then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.

8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Olympic Airlines site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site

9. Contact - got a question about Olympic Airlines, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.

10. Payment - ready to pay for your Olympic Airlines, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.

{{Infobox_Airline|airline=Olympic Airlines|logo=Olympic_Logo1.jpg|logo_size=250px|fleet_size=40|destinations=77|IATA=OA|ICAO=OAL|callsign=OLYMPIC|parent=Olympic Airlines S.A.|founded=1957|headquarters=Athens, Greece - [CEO)]|focus_cities=Thessaloniki International Airport, "Makedonia"|frequent_flyer=Icarus Frequent Flyer Program [airline of Greece, based in Athens. It operates services to 35 domestic destinations and to 39 destinations world-wide. Its main base is Athens International Airport, with a hub at Thessaloniki International Airport, "Macedonia".

Although the logo resembles that of the Olympic Games, the airline is not named after the biggest international sporting event but rather after the Twelve Olympians, the principal grouping of gods and goddesses in Greek mythology, residing in Mount Olympus. Olympic Airlines is also accredited by International Air Transport Association with the IOSA (IATA Operations Safety Audit) for its safety practices. Olympic Airlines IOSA Operators Profile

History The Start of Olympic image:olympic.a340-300.sx-dfb.arp.jpgThe origins of Olympic Airways was in 1930, when the first predecessor airline was established. The airline was called Icarus but after just a few months went bankrupt due to financial problems and limited Greek interest in air transport. G.C.A.T./Ε.Ε.Ε.Σ. (Greek Company for Air Transport/Ελληνική Εταιρεία Εναέριων Συγκοινωνιών) took its place. At the same time, in 1935, a second airline was created, the privately owned T.A.E. (Technical and Aeronautical Exploitations/Τεχνικαί Αεροπορικαί Εκμεταλλεύσεις). Soon after the World War II, in 1947, three airlines were based in Greece: T.A.E., G.A.T./ΕΛΛ.Α.Σ. (Greek Air Transport/Ελληνικαί Αεροπορικαί Συγκοινωνίαι) and Hellenic Airlines/Α.Μ.Ε. (Αεροπορικαί Μεταφοραί Ελλάδος).



In 1951, the poor financial state of all three airlines led to a decision by the Greek state to merge them into one, Hellenic National Airlines T.A.E. The new airline faced serious financial problems so the government closed it down in 1955. There was no interest in buying the airline so the Hellenic State bought the company back. In July 1956 an agreement was made between the Hellenic State and Greek shipping-magnate Aristotle Onassis to sell the company. The company flew under the name T.A.E. until the end of the year and for the first few months of 1957, when, on 6 April 1957, Olympic Airways/Ολυμπιακή Αεροπορία was born.

Olympic in the 1960s The new company developed rapidly. In 1960 the first jet aircraft of OA entered into service, the De Havilland Comet 4B. At the same time, Olympic and United Kingdom airline British European Airways agreed to create the first codeshare flights. Later on, the companies expanded their cooperation. When Hellenic crews had to spend their night in London, British crews would fly the Greek Comets to BEA destinations, and the same with Greek crews and British Comets. On all BEA and OA Comets, there would be a "BEA-OLYMPIC" sign.

In 1965, Olympic placed its first orders for the Boeing 707-300 jet aircraft. The first was delivered in 1966, bearing the name "City of Corinth". The nonstop route Athens - New York City (JFK Airport) was the first to be launched. In 1968, the first routes to Africa were launched and OA received the Boeing 727-200 jet aircraft. In 1969, OA launched a route to Canada and phased out the Comet 4Bs.

Olympic in the 1970s In 1971, OA purchased the new NAMC YS-11 turboprop aircraft to replace the aging Douglas DC-3 and Douglas DC-6, used throughout the domestic network of the company. In 1971, Olympic Aviation/Ολυμπιακή Αεροπλοϊα was created, so that the Greek islands could be more efficiently served. In 1972 Greece was linked to Australia for the first time.

Olympic then purchased the Boeing 720 jet aircraft, a derivative of the Boeing 707, and the Boeing 747 OA was also interested in the supersonic aircraft BAC-Aerospatiale Concorde. On January 5, 1973, a Concorde landed at Athens International Airport for a demonstration.



On 22 January 1973, an incident occurred that dramatically changed the future of OA. The death of Aristotle Onassis' son, Alexander, in a plane crash came as a shock to the Greek people and a new phase began for Olympic Airways. A few months later, Onassis sold all of the OA shares to the Greek state and died shortly after (in 1975). In 1976, under state management, OA purchased the Boeing 737 jet aircraft and created Olympic Catering, which served both OA and foreign airlines. In 1977, in a cost-cutting effort, OA shut down the Australia route, followed by the Canadian one in 1978, when OA also placed its first orders for the Airbus A300.

Olympic in the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s In 1984, two more B747-200 aircraft were purchased from Singapore Airlines, and the Canada and Australia routes were reopened. A new Olympic Airways Cargo division was created, by converting the Boeing 707-300 "City of Lindos", but the plans were soon abandoned. In 1986, there were strikes at OA, and financial losses mounted.

The company has faced serious financial trouble since the 1980s, mostly because of management problems. Greek politicians and their families travelled free on the airline or for token amounts. Greek governments also made Olympic carry the press with a 97% discount. Olympic AirTours (Ολυμπιακή Τουριστική) was created as a subsidiary of OA, which issues tickets not only for OA, but for other airlines as well. Very soon, Olympic AirTours was renamed Macedonian Airlines and reestablished as a charter flight company.



In the mid-1980s a nonstop route to Tokyo was launched but soon shut down due to limited passenger interest and heavy losses. Olympic purchased Boeing 737-400 aircraft in 1993, as well as the advanced version of the A300, the A300-600R. Due to the rising losses and debts, the government decided to formulate a restructuring program in which all debts were erased. This program, as well as all the plans that followed, failed. A few years later, in an attempt to make OA profitable, its management was given to the subsidiary of British Airways, Speedwing. The result was even larger debts and rising losses. In 1999, Olympic purchased four Airbus A340 aircraft, to replace the aging B747-200.

Very soon the losses became excessive so in 2003 the government decided to restructure the Olympic Airways Group of Companies. The subsidiary, Macedonian Airlines (OA), was renamed Olympic Airlines S.A. and took over the flight operations of Olympic Airways, erasing at the same time all of the airline's debts. The remaining group companies, except for Olympic Aviation (Olympic Airways, Olympic Into-Plane Company, Olympic Fuel Company, Olympic Airways Handling and the Olympic Airways Technical Base), merged and formed a new company, called Olympic Airways - Services S.A.. In December 2004, the Greek government decided to privatise Olympic Airlines, but the sale process ended in failure as none of the buyers was eager to repay the Greek state the almost 700 million euro in state aid declared illegal by the European Commission in December 2005.

The Future of Olympic In 2005, the Greek Government looked for potential buyers to privatize OA. In April of that year, a short list of potential buyers was submitted that included Aegean Airlines, German LCC DBA and a Greek-American consortium called Olympic Investors.http://www.luchtzak.be/article8367.html Shortly after Aegean Airlines pulled out followed by DBA. In September 2005, the Greek government signed a non-binding agreement with Olympic Investors to buy the airline.http://www.greekembassy.org/Embassy/content/en/Article.aspx?office=3&folder=361&article=15768 In an interview, Olympic Investors stated that they were backed by York Capital with 6.5 billion Dollars and assured that OA's workers would not lose their jobs. They also stated that the airline would open up new long haul routes including Baltimore, hire more staff, and upgrade the fleet. They stated that OA should continue to operate as an integrated company and that they weren't interested in buying just parts of OA. By the end of the year, the offer fell through because of the huge fine imposed on the airline by the European Commission hadn't been dealt with.

According to Greek media, the government planned to relaunch the company in late 2006.http://globemerchant.com/TravelBlog/?p=42 The code name for the project was "Pantheon Airways". In June 2006, Greek media reported that "Sabre Aviation Consulting Services" was contracted by the Greek government to find investors and develop a business plan for an airline to replace Olympic Airlines, aiming to start operating in autumn 2006. Under this plan the government would be a minority shareholder of the new carrier and it will be run as a private airline. The planned re-launch date passed without anything happening, and it appears the plan has frozen. However, Pantheon Airways still exists.

In 2006 OA was thrown a life line, when the courts ordered Greece to repay them almost 564 million euro owed to the airline. The money was owed to OA from legally subsidized routes to Greek islands and costs of the relocation to the new airport. The money will be used to pay back part of the State aid declared illegal by the European Commission in December 2005.http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/12/20/business/FIN_COM_Greece_Olympic_Airlines.php Olympic Airlines have re-designed their website to introduce the e-ticket service launched on July 31st 2007 in response to the surge of online booking and online check ins. The e-ticket service introduction by EDS meant Olympic abolished their old "Hermes" booking system which had served the company for more than two decades.

image:Nk 096.jpgOn September 12, 2007, OA won a legal battle with EU Regulators. The Luxembourg-based court ruled that Greece must pay back most, but not all of the money The European Commission had demanded them to repay back. The court found that the Commission failed to prove that some of the funds violated EU state aid rules. Those funds included unpaid taxes on fuel and spare parts, as well as unpaid fees to Athens International Airport. The new amount owed by Olympic is €130 million from the original €160 million. http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/09/12/business/EU-FIN-EU-Olympic-Airlines.php

On that same day Olympic Investors, the Greek-American consortium that was interested in buying Olympic in 2005, stated re-newed interest in buying the airline.http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/b4cc33f4-6144-11dc-bf25-0000779fd2ac,dwp_uuid=e8477cc4-c820-11db-b0dc-000b5df10621.html Olympic Investors stated that the previous sale stopped because of EU penalties and that they were confident they would be resolved. They also stated that they believe that the Greek Government will move quick to privatize OA after the elections on September 16, 2007.

There have been rumors that there is major restructuring going on behind the scenes at Olympic lately. These rumors also say that there might be a fleet renewal to upgrade the product fleet wide, in an attempt to make Olympic a better company and turn a profit.

Olympic Airways Group of Companies (April 1957 - December 2003) By December 2003, the Olympic Airways Group of Companies owned Olympic Airways (Ολυμπιακή Αεροπορία), Olympic Aviation (Ολυμπιακή Αεροπλοϊα), Macedonian Airlines (OA) (Mακεδονικές Αερογραμμές), Galileo Hellas (Γαλιλλαίος Ελλάς), Olympic Fuel Company (Ολυμπιακή Εταιρεία Καυσίμων), and Olympic Into-Plane Company. Olympic Catering had been sold a few months earlier. A company formed in the 80s called Olympic AirTours (Ολυμπιακή Τουριστική) had already been transformed into Macedonian Airlines.

Incidents and accidents

Destinations Fleet The Olympic Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft as of July 2007 :{]|1|265|Short and Medium haul
Europe and Middle East|SX - BEM|Leased from GECAS|4|295|Long Haul
Europe (London and Paris), North America and South Africa|SX - DFA / DFB / DFC / DFD|Owned by O.A.|-|[ATR 42|6|50|Short Haul
Domestic and Island services|SX - BIA / BIB / BIC / BID / BIM / BIN|4 owned by O.A.,
2 leased from ATR Asset Management|7|68|Short Haul
Domestic and Island services|SX - BIE / BIF / BIG / BIH / BII / BIK / BIL|Owned by O.A.|-|[Boeing 737#737-300|4|138|Short haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|SX - BLC, EC - JQX / JTV / KHI|3 leased from Hola Airlines|15|150|Short and Medium haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|SX - BKA / BKB / BKC / BKD / BKE / BKF / BKG / BKH / BKI / BKM / BKN / BKT / BKX / BMC, EC - KBO|7 owned by O.A. (BKA-BKG),
1 leased from [Hola Airlines (KBO),
4 leased from ILFC (BKH-BKI, BKN, BKT),
1 leased from Aviation Capital Group (BKM),
1 leased from Oasis International Leasing (BMC)]|4|37|Short Haul
Domestic and Island services|SX - BIO / BIP / BIQ / BIR|Owned by O.A.|-!Total|align=center|41
|Updated July 2007|}

Previously operated Olympic Airlines has previously operated the following fleet:{| class="toccolours" border="1" cellpadding="3" style="border-collapse:collapse"|+ Olympic Airlines/Airways Retired Fleet|- bgcolor=lightblue!Aircraft!Total!Passengers!Routes!Registrations!Notes|-|Douglas DC-3|2||Short and medium haul
Domestic and Europe|SX - DAC / DAG||-|[Douglas DC-6), 95 ([1967)] (BGSK, BGTY, BGTZ)|-|De Havilland Comet|6|147 (1966), 165 (1968)] (BEA-OLYMPIC) (ARJL, APMC), 4 owned by O.A. (DAK, DAL, DAN, DAO)|-|Boeing 707|8|147 (1966), 165 (1968)]|3|105|Short and Medium haul
Greece and Europe|SX - BOA / BOB / BOC|2 leased from Bavaria (BOA, BOB), 1 leased from Pembroke Capital (BOC)]|7|160|Short and medium haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|SX - DBG / DBH / DBI / DBK / DBL / DBM / DBN|Owned by O.A.|-|Boeing 727|2||Short and Medium haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|N9233Z, N9234Z|Leased from Boeing|-|Boeing 727|10|146|Short and Medium haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|SX - CBA / CBB / CBC / CBD / CBE / CBF / CBG / CBH / CBI, ZS - NZV|9 owned by O.A. (CBA - CBI), 1 leased from Safair (NZV)]|15|123|Short and Medium haul
Greece and Europe|SX - BCA / BCB / BCC / BCD / BCE / BCF / BCG / BCH / BCI / BCK / BCL, N321XV, N322XV, N501AV, N505AV|4 leased from Aviation Sales Company, 11 owned by O.A. (BCA - BCL)]|3|138|Short and Medium haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|EC - IFV / IOR, SX - BLA|2 leased from Hola Airlines (IFV, IOR), 1 leased from Boullioun Aviation (BLA)]|4|150|Short and Medium haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|SX - BMA / BMB / BKK / BKL|1 leased from Pembroke Capital (BMA), 1 leased from Oasis International Leasing (BMB), 1 leased from ILFC (BKK), 1 leased from GECAS (BKL)]|1||Long haul
North America, Africa, Australia, Asia|EI - BRR|Leased from GPA in 1986|5|426|Long haul
North America, Africa, Australia, Asia|SX - OAA / OAB / OAC / OAD / OAE, TF - ARO|5 owned by O.A. (OAA - OAE), 1 leased from [Air Atlanta for the 2004 Olympic Torch Relay (ARO)]|15|9|Short haul
Domestic and Island services||Leased|-|[NAMC YS-11 (BBJ, BBM)|-|[Dornier Do 228 (BHA - BHB), 7 owned by O.A. (BHC - BHI)|-|[Shorts 330|4||Short haul
Domestic and Island services|SX - BBN / BBO / BBT / BBW|2 owned by O.A. (BBN, BBO), 2 leased (BBT, BBW)|}

Naming of O.A. Aircraft Naming of the aircraft of Olympic Airways (and now Olympic Airlines) is as follows:

Aircraft Registrations The registration of all Olympic aircraft is a two-letter Greek prefix SX- and three more letters. The first of the three letters shows the number of engines (B: Two engines, C: Three engines, D: Four engines). The second letter shows the type of the aircraft (A: Douglas DC-3, etc.) and the third is the number of the aircraft in letters.Some exceptions are the Boeing 747 (where the first two letters are the IATA designator of Olympic: OA) and the Learjet 25 SX-ASO (which stands for Onassis' initials: Aristotle Socrates Onassis)

The Logo of Olympic According to the Olympic Airways archives, the first logo of Olympic was a white eagle, bearing much resemblance to a propeller, featuring five rings and the name Olympic. Just two years after the first flight, Onassis asked his associates to design a new logo and the coloured rings were created. Onassis wanted to copy the five coloured rings of the Olympic Games logo, but the International Olympic Committee claimed the rights to the logo and so a new, six ring logo was introduced. The first five rings stand for the five continents, while the sixth stands for Greece. Colours used were yellow, red, blue and white.

Other

External links

References



ca:Olympic Airlinesde:Olympic Airlinesel:Ολυμπιακές Αερογραμμέςes:Olympic Airlinesfr:Olympic Airwaysid:Olympic Airlinesit:Olympic Airlineshe:אולימפיק איירליינסnl:Olympic Airlinesja:オリンピック航空pl:Olympic Airlinespt:Olympic Airlinessr:Олимпик ерлајнсfi:Olympic Airlinessv:Olympic Airlinestr:Olympic Airlines {{Infobox_Airline|airline=Olympic Airlines|logo=Olympic_Logo1.jpg|logo_size=250px|fleet_size=40|destinations=77|IATA=OA|ICAO=OAL|callsign=OLYMPIC|parent=Olympic Airlines S.A.|founded=1957|headquarters=Athens, Greece - [CEO)]|focus_cities=Thessaloniki International Airport, "Makedonia"|frequent_flyer=Icarus Frequent Flyer Program [airline of Greece, based in Athens. It operates services to 35 domestic destinations and to 39 destinations world-wide. Its main base is Athens International Airport, with a hub at Thessaloniki International Airport, "Macedonia".

Although the logo resembles that of the Olympic Games, the airline is not named after the biggest international sporting event but rather after the Twelve Olympians, the principal grouping of gods and goddesses in Greek mythology, residing in Mount Olympus. Olympic Airlines is also accredited by International Air Transport Association with the IOSA (IATA Operations Safety Audit) for its safety practices. Olympic Airlines IOSA Operators Profile

History The Start of Olympic image:olympic.a340-300.sx-dfb.arp.jpgThe origins of Olympic Airways was in 1930, when the first predecessor airline was established. The airline was called Icarus but after just a few months went bankrupt due to financial problems and limited Greek interest in air transport. G.C.A.T./Ε.Ε.Ε.Σ. (Greek Company for Air Transport/Ελληνική Εταιρεία Εναέριων Συγκοινωνιών) took its place. At the same time, in 1935, a second airline was created, the privately owned T.A.E. (Technical and Aeronautical Exploitations/Τεχνικαί Αεροπορικαί Εκμεταλλεύσεις). Soon after the World War II, in 1947, three airlines were based in Greece: T.A.E., G.A.T./ΕΛΛ.Α.Σ. (Greek Air Transport/Ελληνικαί Αεροπορικαί Συγκοινωνίαι) and Hellenic Airlines/Α.Μ.Ε. (Αεροπορικαί Μεταφοραί Ελλάδος).



In 1951, the poor financial state of all three airlines led to a decision by the Greek state to merge them into one, Hellenic National Airlines T.A.E. The new airline faced serious financial problems so the government closed it down in 1955. There was no interest in buying the airline so the Hellenic State bought the company back. In July 1956 an agreement was made between the Hellenic State and Greek shipping-magnate Aristotle Onassis to sell the company. The company flew under the name T.A.E. until the end of the year and for the first few months of 1957, when, on 6 April 1957, Olympic Airways/Ολυμπιακή Αεροπορία was born.

Olympic in the 1960s The new company developed rapidly. In 1960 the first jet aircraft of OA entered into service, the De Havilland Comet 4B. At the same time, Olympic and United Kingdom airline British European Airways agreed to create the first codeshare flights. Later on, the companies expanded their cooperation. When Hellenic crews had to spend their night in London, British crews would fly the Greek Comets to BEA destinations, and the same with Greek crews and British Comets. On all BEA and OA Comets, there would be a "BEA-OLYMPIC" sign.

In 1965, Olympic placed its first orders for the Boeing 707-300 jet aircraft. The first was delivered in 1966, bearing the name "City of Corinth". The nonstop route Athens - New York City (JFK Airport) was the first to be launched. In 1968, the first routes to Africa were launched and OA received the Boeing 727-200 jet aircraft. In 1969, OA launched a route to Canada and phased out the Comet 4Bs.

Olympic in the 1970s In 1971, OA purchased the new NAMC YS-11 turboprop aircraft to replace the aging Douglas DC-3 and Douglas DC-6, used throughout the domestic network of the company. In 1971, Olympic Aviation/Ολυμπιακή Αεροπλοϊα was created, so that the Greek islands could be more efficiently served. In 1972 Greece was linked to Australia for the first time.

Olympic then purchased the Boeing 720 jet aircraft, a derivative of the Boeing 707, and the Boeing 747 OA was also interested in the supersonic aircraft BAC-Aerospatiale Concorde. On January 5, 1973, a Concorde landed at Athens International Airport for a demonstration.



On 22 January 1973, an incident occurred that dramatically changed the future of OA. The death of Aristotle Onassis' son, Alexander, in a plane crash came as a shock to the Greek people and a new phase began for Olympic Airways. A few months later, Onassis sold all of the OA shares to the Greek state and died shortly after (in 1975). In 1976, under state management, OA purchased the Boeing 737 jet aircraft and created Olympic Catering, which served both OA and foreign airlines. In 1977, in a cost-cutting effort, OA shut down the Australia route, followed by the Canadian one in 1978, when OA also placed its first orders for the Airbus A300.

Olympic in the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s In 1984, two more B747-200 aircraft were purchased from Singapore Airlines, and the Canada and Australia routes were reopened. A new Olympic Airways Cargo division was created, by converting the Boeing 707-300 "City of Lindos", but the plans were soon abandoned. In 1986, there were strikes at OA, and financial losses mounted.

The company has faced serious financial trouble since the 1980s, mostly because of management problems. Greek politicians and their families travelled free on the airline or for token amounts. Greek governments also made Olympic carry the press with a 97% discount. Olympic AirTours (Ολυμπιακή Τουριστική) was created as a subsidiary of OA, which issues tickets not only for OA, but for other airlines as well. Very soon, Olympic AirTours was renamed Macedonian Airlines and reestablished as a charter flight company.



In the mid-1980s a nonstop route to Tokyo was launched but soon shut down due to limited passenger interest and heavy losses. Olympic purchased Boeing 737-400 aircraft in 1993, as well as the advanced version of the A300, the A300-600R. Due to the rising losses and debts, the government decided to formulate a restructuring program in which all debts were erased. This program, as well as all the plans that followed, failed. A few years later, in an attempt to make OA profitable, its management was given to the subsidiary of British Airways, Speedwing. The result was even larger debts and rising losses. In 1999, Olympic purchased four Airbus A340 aircraft, to replace the aging B747-200.

Very soon the losses became excessive so in 2003 the government decided to restructure the Olympic Airways Group of Companies. The subsidiary, Macedonian Airlines (OA), was renamed Olympic Airlines S.A. and took over the flight operations of Olympic Airways, erasing at the same time all of the airline's debts. The remaining group companies, except for Olympic Aviation (Olympic Airways, Olympic Into-Plane Company, Olympic Fuel Company, Olympic Airways Handling and the Olympic Airways Technical Base), merged and formed a new company, called Olympic Airways - Services S.A.. In December 2004, the Greek government decided to privatise Olympic Airlines, but the sale process ended in failure as none of the buyers was eager to repay the Greek state the almost 700 million euro in state aid declared illegal by the European Commission in December 2005.

The Future of Olympic In 2005, the Greek Government looked for potential buyers to privatize OA. In April of that year, a short list of potential buyers was submitted that included Aegean Airlines, German LCC DBA and a Greek-American consortium called Olympic Investors.http://www.luchtzak.be/article8367.html Shortly after Aegean Airlines pulled out followed by DBA. In September 2005, the Greek government signed a non-binding agreement with Olympic Investors to buy the airline.http://www.greekembassy.org/Embassy/content/en/Article.aspx?office=3&folder=361&article=15768 In an interview, Olympic Investors stated that they were backed by York Capital with 6.5 billion Dollars and assured that OA's workers would not lose their jobs. They also stated that the airline would open up new long haul routes including Baltimore, hire more staff, and upgrade the fleet. They stated that OA should continue to operate as an integrated company and that they weren't interested in buying just parts of OA. By the end of the year, the offer fell through because of the huge fine imposed on the airline by the European Commission hadn't been dealt with.

According to Greek media, the government planned to relaunch the company in late 2006.http://globemerchant.com/TravelBlog/?p=42 The code name for the project was "Pantheon Airways". In June 2006, Greek media reported that "Sabre Aviation Consulting Services" was contracted by the Greek government to find investors and develop a business plan for an airline to replace Olympic Airlines, aiming to start operating in autumn 2006. Under this plan the government would be a minority shareholder of the new carrier and it will be run as a private airline. The planned re-launch date passed without anything happening, and it appears the plan has frozen. However, Pantheon Airways still exists.

In 2006 OA was thrown a life line, when the courts ordered Greece to repay them almost 564 million euro owed to the airline. The money was owed to OA from legally subsidized routes to Greek islands and costs of the relocation to the new airport. The money will be used to pay back part of the State aid declared illegal by the European Commission in December 2005.http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/12/20/business/FIN_COM_Greece_Olympic_Airlines.php Olympic Airlines have re-designed their website to introduce the e-ticket service launched on July 31st 2007 in response to the surge of online booking and online check ins. The e-ticket service introduction by EDS meant Olympic abolished their old "Hermes" booking system which had served the company for more than two decades.

image:Nk 096.jpgOn September 12, 2007, OA won a legal battle with EU Regulators. The Luxembourg-based court ruled that Greece must pay back most, but not all of the money The European Commission had demanded them to repay back. The court found that the Commission failed to prove that some of the funds violated EU state aid rules. Those funds included unpaid taxes on fuel and spare parts, as well as unpaid fees to Athens International Airport. The new amount owed by Olympic is €130 million from the original €160 million. http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/09/12/business/EU-FIN-EU-Olympic-Airlines.php

On that same day Olympic Investors, the Greek-American consortium that was interested in buying Olympic in 2005, stated re-newed interest in buying the airline.http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/b4cc33f4-6144-11dc-bf25-0000779fd2ac,dwp_uuid=e8477cc4-c820-11db-b0dc-000b5df10621.html Olympic Investors stated that the previous sale stopped because of EU penalties and that they were confident they would be resolved. They also stated that they believe that the Greek Government will move quick to privatize OA after the elections on September 16, 2007.

There have been rumors that there is major restructuring going on behind the scenes at Olympic lately. These rumors also say that there might be a fleet renewal to upgrade the product fleet wide, in an attempt to make Olympic a better company and turn a profit.

Olympic Airways Group of Companies (April 1957 - December 2003) By December 2003, the Olympic Airways Group of Companies owned Olympic Airways (Ολυμπιακή Αεροπορία), Olympic Aviation (Ολυμπιακή Αεροπλοϊα), Macedonian Airlines (OA) (Mακεδονικές Αερογραμμές), Galileo Hellas (Γαλιλλαίος Ελλάς), Olympic Fuel Company (Ολυμπιακή Εταιρεία Καυσίμων), and Olympic Into-Plane Company. Olympic Catering had been sold a few months earlier. A company formed in the 80s called Olympic AirTours (Ολυμπιακή Τουριστική) had already been transformed into Macedonian Airlines.

Incidents and accidents

Destinations Fleet The Olympic Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft as of July 2007 :{]|1|265|Short and Medium haul
Europe and Middle East|SX - BEM|Leased from GECAS|4|295|Long Haul
Europe (London and Paris), North America and South Africa|SX - DFA / DFB / DFC / DFD|Owned by O.A.|-|[ATR 42|6|50|Short Haul
Domestic and Island services|SX - BIA / BIB / BIC / BID / BIM / BIN|4 owned by O.A.,
2 leased from ATR Asset Management|7|68|Short Haul
Domestic and Island services|SX - BIE / BIF / BIG / BIH / BII / BIK / BIL|Owned by O.A.|-|[Boeing 737#737-300|4|138|Short haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|SX - BLC, EC - JQX / JTV / KHI|3 leased from Hola Airlines|15|150|Short and Medium haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|SX - BKA / BKB / BKC / BKD / BKE / BKF / BKG / BKH / BKI / BKM / BKN / BKT / BKX / BMC, EC - KBO|7 owned by O.A. (BKA-BKG),
1 leased from [Hola Airlines (KBO),
4 leased from ILFC (BKH-BKI, BKN, BKT),
1 leased from Aviation Capital Group (BKM),
1 leased from Oasis International Leasing (BMC)]|4|37|Short Haul
Domestic and Island services|SX - BIO / BIP / BIQ / BIR|Owned by O.A.|-!Total|align=center|41
|Updated July 2007|}

Previously operated Olympic Airlines has previously operated the following fleet:{| class="toccolours" border="1" cellpadding="3" style="border-collapse:collapse"|+ Olympic Airlines/Airways Retired Fleet|- bgcolor=lightblue!Aircraft!Total!Passengers!Routes!Registrations!Notes|-|Douglas DC-3|2||Short and medium haul
Domestic and Europe|SX - DAC / DAG||-|[Douglas DC-6), 95 ([1967)] (BGSK, BGTY, BGTZ)|-|De Havilland Comet|6|147 (1966), 165 (1968)] (BEA-OLYMPIC) (ARJL, APMC), 4 owned by O.A. (DAK, DAL, DAN, DAO)|-|Boeing 707|8|147 (1966), 165 (1968)]|3|105|Short and Medium haul
Greece and Europe|SX - BOA / BOB / BOC|2 leased from Bavaria (BOA, BOB), 1 leased from Pembroke Capital (BOC)]|7|160|Short and medium haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|SX - DBG / DBH / DBI / DBK / DBL / DBM / DBN|Owned by O.A.|-|Boeing 727|2||Short and Medium haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|N9233Z, N9234Z|Leased from Boeing|-|Boeing 727|10|146|Short and Medium haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|SX - CBA / CBB / CBC / CBD / CBE / CBF / CBG / CBH / CBI, ZS - NZV|9 owned by O.A. (CBA - CBI), 1 leased from Safair (NZV)]|15|123|Short and Medium haul
Greece and Europe|SX - BCA / BCB / BCC / BCD / BCE / BCF / BCG / BCH / BCI / BCK / BCL, N321XV, N322XV, N501AV, N505AV|4 leased from Aviation Sales Company, 11 owned by O.A. (BCA - BCL)]|3|138|Short and Medium haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|EC - IFV / IOR, SX - BLA|2 leased from Hola Airlines (IFV, IOR), 1 leased from Boullioun Aviation (BLA)]|4|150|Short and Medium haul
Domestic, Europe and Middle East|SX - BMA / BMB / BKK / BKL|1 leased from Pembroke Capital (BMA), 1 leased from Oasis International Leasing (BMB), 1 leased from ILFC (BKK), 1 leased from GECAS (BKL)]|1||Long haul
North America, Africa, Australia, Asia|EI - BRR|Leased from GPA in 1986|5|426|Long haul
North America, Africa, Australia, Asia|SX - OAA / OAB / OAC / OAD / OAE, TF - ARO|5 owned by O.A. (OAA - OAE), 1 leased from [Air Atlanta for the 2004 Olympic Torch Relay (ARO)]|15|9|Short haul
Domestic and Island services||Leased|-|[NAMC YS-11 (BBJ, BBM)|-|[Dornier Do 228 (BHA - BHB), 7 owned by O.A. (BHC - BHI)|-|[Shorts 330|4||Short haul
Domestic and Island services|SX - BBN / BBO / BBT / BBW|2 owned by O.A. (BBN, BBO), 2 leased (BBT, BBW)|}

Naming of O.A. Aircraft Naming of the aircraft of Olympic Airways (and now Olympic Airlines) is as follows:

Aircraft Registrations The registration of all Olympic aircraft is a two-letter Greek prefix SX- and three more letters. The first of the three letters shows the number of engines (B: Two engines, C: Three engines, D: Four engines). The second letter shows the type of the aircraft (A: Douglas DC-3, etc.) and the third is the number of the aircraft in letters.Some exceptions are the Boeing 747 (where the first two letters are the IATA designator of Olympic: OA) and the Learjet 25 SX-ASO (which stands for Onassis' initials: Aristotle Socrates Onassis)

The Logo of Olympic According to the Olympic Airways archives, the first logo of Olympic was a white eagle, bearing much resemblance to a propeller, featuring five rings and the name Olympic. Just two years after the first flight, Onassis asked his associates to design a new logo and the coloured rings were created. Onassis wanted to copy the five coloured rings of the Olympic Games logo, but the International Olympic Committee claimed the rights to the logo and so a new, six ring logo was introduced. The first five rings stand for the five continents, while the sixth stands for Greece. Colours used were yellow, red, blue and white.

Other

External links

References



ca:Olympic Airlinesde:Olympic Airlinesel:Ολυμπιακές Αερογραμμέςes:Olympic Airlinesfr:Olympic Airwaysid:Olympic Airlinesit:Olympic Airlineshe:אולימפיק איירליינסnl:Olympic Airlinesja:オリンピック航空pl:Olympic Airlinespt:Olympic Airlinessr:Олимпик ерлајнсfi:Olympic Airlinessv:Olympic Airlinestr:Olympic Airlines

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