Austrian Airlines

Austrian Airlines AG

, often shortened to Austrian, is the flag carrier of Austria and a subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group. The airline is headquartered on the grounds of Vienna International Airport in Schwechat where it also maintains its hub. As of July 2016, the airline flew to six domestic and more than 120 international year-round and seasonal destinations in 55 countries[8] and is a member of the Star Alliance.

The airline was formed in 1957 by the merger of Air Austria and Austrian Airways, but traces its history back to 1923 at the founding of Austrian Airways. Throughout much of the company's existence, it was a state-owned entity. On 31 March 1958, the airline performed its scheduled service, flying a leased Vickers Viscount from Vienna to Zurich and London; it subsequently purchased its own Viscount fleet. On 18 February 1963, Austrian ordered its first jet-powered airliner, the Sud Aviation Caravelle. It subsequently introduced various models and derivatives of the Douglas DC-9 jetliner; by the end of 1971, Austrian was an all-jet operator. During the 1980s, it introduced the DC-9-80, otherwise known as the McDonnell Douglas MD-80, to its fleet. Various airliners produced by Airbus, Boeing, Fokker and other manufacturers were introduced across the 1980s and 1990s.

Throughout the 1990s, the airline sought out new strategic alliances, as well to expand its presence in the long-haul market, launching new services to China and South Africa. In 2000, Austrian became a member of Star Alliance; a few years prior, it had also joined the Qualiflyer Group. During the 2000s, the airline expanded through the acquisitions of Rheintalflug and Lauda Air and adopted the shortened Austrian name in 2003. Throughout the 2000s, Austrian sustained several years of losses; during 2008, the airline's then-owner, the Austrian government, was advised to privatise Austrian via its sale to a foreign company. During 2009, the Lufthansa Group purchased Austrian after receiving approval from the European Commission following an investigation into the tendering process.

Following its privatisation, both fleet expansion and cost-saving initiatives were enacted as the business was restructured; visible changes included route alterations, a new corporate design, and a revised aircraft livery. Following labour disputes over several of the cost cutting measures, all Austrian Airlines' flights were transferred on 1 July 2012 to its subsidiary, Tyrolean Airways, which operated under the Austrian name. On 1 April 2015, after a new labour agreement had been reached, all flights transferred back to Austrian, and Tyrolean Airways was merged into its parent. During the late 2010s, restructuring of both its fleet and route network continued. On 17 March 2020, the airline temporarily suspended operations as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Privatization and takeover by Lufthansa

In June 2008, Merrill Lynch advised the Austrian government to sell the airline to a foreign company. Interest was shown by Lufthansa, Air France-KLM, Royal Jordanian, Air China, Turkish Airlines, Aeroflot, S7 Airlines, and Singapore Airlines. Of those, Lufthansa, Air France-KLM, and S7 emerged as potential bidders.

On 13 November 2008, state holding ÖIAG announced that Lufthansa was selected. The German company was to enter Austrian's capital with a 41.6% share, for which it would pay €366,268.75.[18] AUA CEO Alfred Ötsch and OIAG chairman Peter Michaelis were heavily criticised for revealing to Lufthansa that it had to take over the €500 million debt only when the deal had been made binding. Michaelis refused a new tendering procedure, but was made a scapegoat with his shareholder rights removed, and Ötsch resigned on 29 January 2013.

On 1 July 2009, the European Commission initiated investigation on the acquisition for breach of free-trade rules, suspecting that the tendering process was a fake one, everything being already decided in favour of Lufthansa. Finally, following approval from the European Commission, Lufthansa purchased Austrian Airlines during September 2009. Shares in Austrian Airlines AG were suspended on the Vienna Stock Exchange on 4 February 2010. After a time of uncertainty following the demission of appointed CEO Thierry Antinori, the arrival of Jaan Albrecht as the new CEO in 2011 signalled the beginning of a new era for the airline, with improving passenger numbers and a more strategic position within the Lufthansa framework. The completion of extension works at the Vienna International Airport will give the airline more room for expansion. As a result, in January 2012, a new strategy was implemented, with the addition of 11 new aircraft in the next three years, leading to a renewal of the fleet on the long term, with Airbus planes serving medium-haul routes and Boeings serving long-haul routes.

During December 2011, a new cost-saving plan was revealed, as the company was still losing money despite eliminating 2,500 jobs. Lufthansa refused to provide financial support. In March 2012, Austrian called once more for recapitalisation. Lufthansa approved a capital increase of €140 million, providing effective measure to be taken to address the structural deficiencies.

The Lauda Air subsidiary was merged into Austrian Airlines on 1 July 2012.

Ownership and subsidiaries Austrian Airlines Group is wholly owned by Lufthansa. Austrian owns shares in 24 companies, including:

Austrian Technik Bratislava, a maintenance company located at Bratislava Airport equipped for overhauls on Fokker and Embraer regional jets and the Airbus A320 family.
Gulet-Touropa-Touristik
AVS-Versicherungen
TUI Austria
Traviaustria
AirPlus Kreditkarteninstitut
Wiener Börse AG
SCA Schedule Coordination Austria
ACS AirContainerService GmbH
Avicon Aviation Consult GmbH
Austrian Lufthansa Cargo GmbH
Austrian Airlines Tele Sales & Service GmbH

Service The Business Class cabin on one of Austrian's long-haul aircraft.

Austrian's long-haul Economy Class seats.
Austrian operates several lounges at its hub in Vienna. There are three Business, two Senator and two HON-Circle lounges. It also operates a Business lounge at Domodedovo International Airport in Moscow. In other cities, business class passengers are welcome to use Star Alliance business class lounges.

Do & Co has handled catering for Austrian Airlines since 2007. On long-haul flights, Business Class meals are prepared by a chef on board.

As of 2011 all Austrian planes of the Airbus A320 family are equipped with new seats and a new cabin design. By September 2013, Austrian's entire long-haul-fleet (Boeing 767 and Boeing 777) also got new seats and a new cabin design. It contains full-flat-beds with a pneumatics-system and aisle access from nearly every seat in Business Class, and new seats with video-on-demand for every passenger in Economy Class.

myAustrian Holidays

Austrian myHoliday replaced Lauda Air as Austrian Airlines' holiday brand in April 2013 and was renamed into myAustrian Holidays in mid-2015. It operates seasonal charter flights at own risk and in co-operation with tour operators as well as exclusive ad hoc charter flights. All charter flights are operated by Austrian Airlines aircraft and crew. A Do & Co board service is served on all flights.

Seasonal holiday flights in 2017–18 were offered to 40 destinations in ten countries.

myAustrian Holidays flights cover a dedicated range of flight numbers:



Destinations

Albania Tirana Tirana International Airport Nënë Tereza
Armenia Yerevan Zvartnots International Airport
Aruba Oranjestad Queen Beatrix International Airport Terminated
Australia Melbourne Melbourne Airport Terminated
Sydney Sydney Airport Terminated
Austria Graz Graz Airport
Innsbruck Innsbruck Airport
Klagenfurt Klagenfurt Airport
Linz Linz Airport Terminated
Salzburg Salzburg Airport Terminated
Vienna Vienna International Airport Hub
Azerbaijan Baku Heydar Aliyev International Airport Terminated
Belarus Minsk Minsk National Airport Terminated
Belgium Brussels Brussels Airport
Benin Cotonou Cadjehoun Airport Terminated
Bosnia and Herzegovina Banja Luka Banja Luka International Airport Terminated
Mostar Mostar International Airport Terminated
Sarajevo Sarajevo International Airport
Brazil Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro/Galeão International Airport Terminated
São Paulo São Paulo/Guarulhos International Airport Terminated
Bulgaria Burgas Burgas Airport Terminated
Sofia Sofia Airport
Varna Varna Airport
Burkina Faso Ouagadougou Ouagadougou Airport Terminated
Cameroon Yaoundé Yaoundé Nsimalen International Airport Terminated
Canada Montreal Montréal–Trudeau International Airport
Toronto Toronto Pearson International Airport Terminated
Vancouver Vancouver International Airport Terminated
Chad N'Djamena N'Djamena International Airport Terminated
China Beijing Beijing Capital International Airport Terminated
Guangzhou Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport Terminated
Nanjing Nanjing Lukou International Airport Terminated
Shanghai Shanghai Pudong International Airport
Xiamen Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport Terminated
Colombia Bogotá El Dorado International Airport Terminated
Medellín José María Córdova International Airport Terminated
Côte d'Ivoire Abidjan Port Bouet Airport Terminated
Croatia Dubrovnik Dubrovnik Airport Seasonal
Split Split Airport Seasonal
Zadar Zadar Airport Resumes 6 May, 2023
Zagreb Zagreb Airport
Cuba Havana José Martí International Airport Terminated
Holguin Frank País Airport Terminated
Varadero Juan Gualberto Gómez Airport Terminated
Cyprus Larnaca Larnaca International Airport
Czech Republic Prague Václav Havel Airport Prague
Denmark Billund Billund Airport Seasonal
Resumes 4 April, 2023
Copenhagen Copenhagen Airport
Dominican Republic Punta Cana Punta Cana International Airport Terminated
Egypt Alexandria Alexandria International Airport Terminated
Cairo Cairo International Airport
Hurghada Hurghada International Airport Seasonal Charter
Equatorial Guinea Malabo Malabo International Airport Terminated
Estonia Tallinn Tallinn Airport Terminated
Finland Helsinki Helsinki Airport Terminated
Kittilä Kittilä Airport Seasonal Charter
France Lyon Lyon–Saint-Exupéry Airport
Marseille Marseille Provence Airport Seasonal
Begins 31 March, 2023
Nice Nice Côte d'Azur Airport
Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport
Strasbourg Strasbourg Airport Terminated
French Guiana Cayenne Cayenne – Félix Eboué Airport Terminated
Gabon Libreville Libreville International Airport Terminated
Georgia Tbilisi Tbilisi International Airport Terminated
Germany Berlin Berlin Brandenburg Airport
Berlin Tegel Airport Airport Closed
Bremen Bremen Airport Terminated
Cologne/Bonn Cologne Bonn Airport
Dortmund Dortmund Airport Terminated
Dresden Dresden Airport Terminated
Düsseldorf Düsseldorf Airport
Frankfurt Frankfurt Airport
Hamburg Hamburg Airport
Hanover Hannover Airport
Heringsdorf/Usedom Heringsdorf Airport Seasonal Charter Terminated
Leipzig/Halle Leipzig/Halle Airport
Munich Munich Airport
Nuremberg Nuremberg Airport
Rostock Rostock–Laage Airport Seasonal Charter Terminated
Stuttgart Stuttgart Airport
Greece Athens Athens International Airport
Chania Chania International Airport Seasonal Charter
Chios Chios Island National Airport Terminated
Corfu Corfu International Airport Seasonal Charter
Heraklion Heraklion International Airport Seasonal Charter
Kalamata Kalamata International Airport Seasonal Charter
Karpathos Karpathos Island National Airport Seasonal Charter
Kavala Kavala International Airport Seasonal Charter
Kephalonia Kephalonia International Airport Seasonal Charter
Kos Kos International Airport Seasonal Charter
Mykonos Mykonos Airport Seasonal Charter
Mytilene Mytilene International Airport Terminated
Patras Patras Araxos Airport Seasonal Charter
Preveza Aktion National Airport Seasonal Charter
Rhodes Rhodes International Airport Seasonal Charter
Samos Samos International Airport Seasonal Charter
Santorini Santorini (Thira) International Airport Seasonal Charter
Skiathos Skiathos International Airport Seasonal Charter
Thessaloniki Thessaloniki International Airport
Volos Nea Anchialos National Airport Seasonal Charter
Zakynthos Zakynthos International Airport Seasonal Charter
Hong Kong Hong Kong Hong Kong International Airport Terminated
Hungary Budapest Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport
Iceland Keflavík Keflavík International Airport Resumes 11 January 2023
India Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport Terminated
Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport Terminated
Indonesia Denpasar Ngurah Rai International Airport Terminated
Jakarta Soekarno–Hatta International Airport Terminated
Iran Isfahan Isfahan International Airport Terminated
Shiraz Shiraz International Airport Terminated
Tehran Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport
Iraq Baghdad Baghdad International Airport Terminated
Erbil Erbil International Airport
Ireland Dublin Dublin Airport Terminated
Israel Tel Aviv Ben Gurion Airport
Italy Bari Bari Karol Wojtyła Airport Seasonal
Bologna Bologna Guglielmo Marconi Airport
Brindisi Brindisi Airport Terminated
Cagliari Cagliari Elmas Airport Resumes 14 May, 2023
Catania Catania–Fontanarossa Airport Seasonal
Florence Peretola Airport Ends 8 January 2023
Resumes 3 March 2023
Lamezia Terme Lamezia Terme International Airport Resumes 3 June, 2023
Milan Linate Airport Terminated
Milan Malpensa Airport
Naples Naples International Airport Ends 8 January, 2023
Resumes 3 March, 2023
Olbia Olbia Costa Smeralda Airport Resumes 7 May, 2023
Palermo Falcone Borsellino Airport Seasonal
Resumes 30 March, 2023
Rome Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport
Turin Turin Airport Terminated
Venice Venice Marco Polo Airport
Jamaica Montego Bay Sangster International Airport Terminated
Japan Osaka Kansai International Airport Terminated
Tokyo Narita International Airport Resumes 2 May, 2023
Jordan Amman Queen Alia International Airport
Kazakhstan Nur-Sultan Nursultan Nazarbayev International Airport Terminated
Kenya Mombasa Moi International Airport Terminated
Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta International Airport Terminated
Kosovo[a] Pristina Pristina International Airport Adem Jashari
Laos Luang Prabang Luang Prabang International Airport Terminated
Latvia Riga Riga International Airport Terminated
Lebanon Beirut Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport Terminated
Libya Tripoli Tripoli International Airport Terminated
Lithuania Vilnius Vilnius International Airport Seasonal
Resumes 26 March, 2023
Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur International Airport Terminated
George Town Penang International Airport Terminated
Kota Kinabalu Kota Kinabalu International Airport Terminated
Maldives Malé Velana International Airport Ends 28 April, 2023
Mali Bamako Bamako–Sénou International Airport Terminated
Mauritius Port Louis Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport Ends 29 April, 2023
Mexico Cancún Cancún International Airport Ends 30 April, 2023
Mexico City Mexico City International Airport Terminated
Moldova Chişinău Chişinău International Airport
Montenegro Podgorica Podgorica Airport
Tivat Tivat Airport Seasonal
Begins 13 May, 2023
Morocco Agadir Agadir–Al Massira Airport Terminated
Casablanca Mohammed V International Airport Terminated
Marrakech Marrakesh Menara Airport Ends 31 May, 2023, Resumes 30 September, 2023
Myanmar Naypyidaw Naypyidaw International Airport Terminated
Nepal Kathmandu Tribhuvan International Airport Terminated
Netherlands Amsterdam Amsterdam Airport Schiphol
Nigeria Abuja Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Terminated
Lagos Murtala Muhammed International Airport Terminated
North Macedonia Ohrid Ohrid St. Paul the Apostle Airport Terminated
Skopje Skopje International Airport
Norway Oslo Oslo Gardermoen Airport
Tromsø Tromsø Airport Seasonal
Begins 17 December 2022
Oman Muscat Muscat International Airport Terminated