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| Founded | April 1979 (1979-04) | ||||||
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| Commenced operations | May 1979 (1979-05) | ||||||
| Ceased operations | 2000 (2000) (merged into Austrian Airlines) | ||||||
| Operating bases | |||||||
| Frequent-flyer program |
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| Alliance | Star Alliance | ||||||
| Parent company | Austrian Airlines Group | ||||||
| Headquarters | Schwechat, Austria | ||||||
| Key people | |||||||
| Founder | Niki Lauda | ||||||
Lauda Air Luftfahrt GmbH, branded as Lauda Air, was an Austrian charter airline headquartered at Vienna Airport in Schwechat.1 It was owned by Niki Lauda (1949–2019) during much of its existence, later becoming a charter airline subsidiary for leisure operations of Austrian Airlines. In 2000, Lauda Air ceased operations.2
History
Development as an independent airline
Lauda Air was established in April 1979 by former Formula One world motor racing champion Niki Lauda with two Fokker F27s. Flight operations were launched in the following month of May.3 Charter operations continued until 1983, with the adoption of increasingly larger aircraft. A period of hiatus followed until 1985, when large-scale charter flights resumed.3 In that year, ITAS Austria purchased a 49% share. Scheduled services began in May 1988.3 In 1991, the fleet consisted of two Boeing 737-300s, two Boeing 767-300ERs and a Learjet 36.45
In May 1988, Lauda started its first long-haul flights from Vienna to Sydney and Melbourne via Bangkok.67 In the 1990s, it started to fly its Sydney and Melbourne flights via Kuala Lumpur and Bali. Daily flights to Dubai, Cuba, and Miami via Munich followed starting from August 1990.8
Accelerated market penetration within Europe was made by the signin of a strategic alliance with Lufthansa in 1992, consolidated in the following year. At the same time, the first Bombardier CRJ-100s were taken into service, required for intra-European connections and to Scandinavia.8 Also in 1992, Lauda established its subsidiary, Lauda Asia Airways, in legal status to Taiwan, like Japan Asia Airways.
Merger with Austrian Airlines
Lauda Air became a wholly owned subsidiary of Austrian Airlines in December 2000, filing for bankruptcy that same year.5 In 2005, the flight operations merged with Austrian Airlines, and the brand "Lauda Air" operated charter flights within the Austrian Airlines Group.
At an AAG board meeting in November 2006, plans were approved to retire the Airbus wide-bodied fleet by mid-2007 and to operate with just a Boeing 767 and Boeing 777 fleet. As a result of subsequent fleet cuts, Austrian Airlines suspended some long-haul services and Lauda Air withdrew from the long-haul charter market over the next year.9 This led to a refocus on the short/medium-haul market and led to the addition of a 737-800 to take over most of the charter routes. Lauda Air also had an Italian subsidiary, Lauda Air S.p.A.,10 which ended its operations in 2007.11
Destinations
Austrian Airlines regularly served various destinations under the Lauda Air brand until 2000.
Former destinations
These destinations were served by Lauda Air before its cessation of operations and its 2000 merge into Austrian Airlines:
Fleet
Historic fleet
Lauda Air's historic fleet included the following aircraft during its existence:
| Aircraft | Total | Introduced | Retired | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A320-200 | 2 | 2005 | 2008 | Leased from Austrian Airlines. |
| BAC 1-11-500 | 2 | 1985 | 1986 | Leased from TAROM. |
| Boeing 737-200 | 1 | 1985 | 1988 | Leased from Transavia. |
| Boeing 737-300 | 2 | 1988 | 2005 | |
| Boeing 737-400 | 3 | 1993 | 2005 | |
| Boeing 737-600 | 6 | 2000 | 2009 | Transferred to Austrian Airlines. |
| Boeing 737-700 | 2 | 2001 | 2010 | |
| Boeing 737-800 | 7 | 1998 | 2012 | |
| Boeing 767-300ER | 1 | 1989 | 1991 | OE-LAV crashed as Flight 004. |
| 10 | 2007 | Launch customer with Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engine. Six transferred to Austrian Airlines. | ||
| Boeing 777-200ER | 3 | 1997 | 2005 | Transferred to Austrian Airlines. |
| Bombardier CRJ-100 | 10 | 1994 | 2004 | Relocated to Austrian Arrows. |
| Fokker F27 Friendship | 1985 | 1994 |
Lauda Air Executive
Lauda Air also operated a fleet of three small jets, a Cessna Citation II (9 seats), a Bombardier Lear 60 (7 seats), and a Dassault Falcon 20 (12 seats). These were available for private charter flights.12
Incidents and accidents
Lauda Air suffered one fatal accident during its existence:
- On 26 May 1991, Lauda Air Flight 004, operated by a Boeing 767-300ER registered as OE-LAV, named after Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, crashed in Thailand shortly after take-off from Don Mueang International Airport in Bangkok, due to the uncommanded deployment of one of its thrust reversers. This accident resulted in the deaths of all 223 passengers and crew.13
References
References
- "Lauda Air on ch-aviation". ch-aviation. Archived from the original on 2023-10-10. Retrieved 2019-02-25.
- Lauda Air Archived 2019-02-12 at the Wayback Machine; DIE Press; retrieved .
- News Release, Lauda Air, Wien, November 1992
- World Airline Directory Flight International 27 March 1991 page 99
- "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 2007-04-03. p. 105.
- Lauda Air to serve Australia Australian Aviation issue 42 January 1988 page 15
- Lauda hit by Australian delays Canberra Times 10 May 1988 page 3
- Doug Birch, "Magic tables and service agels", Commuter World magazine, February-March 1997
- Airliner World; January 2007
- Lauda Air Annual Report 1995/1996; 24 May 1998 article; Lauda Air; retrieved 6 March 2013.
- 9 Fam 41.2 Exhibit III List of Signatory Visa Waiver Program (VWP) Carriers: INA 217(E) Signatory Transportation Lines Archived 2019-05-25 at the Wayback Machine. U.S. Department of State website; retrieved on 15 February 2013.
- "Airline memorabilia: Lauda Air (1997)". airline-memorabilia.blogspot.it. 8 August 2014. Archived from the original on 2015-06-21. Retrieved 2015-06-21.
- Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network
External links
External links
Media related to Lauda Air at Wikimedia Commons
- Official website (Archive)