New Greek Start-up Alexandair

[quickturnaround]

A new airline is being set up in Greece, one of the co-founders of the late Cronus Airways is involved.
Does this new airline has a chance in the highly competentive market and will it expand over as many countries as its illustrous name suggests, or will it follow Axon's faith...............???
An MD-80 series is not the most obvious way to make it in the market....

Greetz QTA

[Konkordski]

Alexandair's been kicking about as a wannabe startup for ages...their website hasn't changed in a couple of years though.

[barry lloyd]

Unless they're moving into the holiday market (i.e.serving N European destinantions), I don't give much for their chances. Aegean are struggling, Olympic is well - Olympic! Most Greeks fly with another carrier on international flights, especially since they became non-smoking!
Cronus and Axon have been and gone (despite having been given peppercorn leases by Boeing), and despite it's name Hellas Air is based in Cyprus.
The problem is that Greece has only 10 million inhabitants, and many of them are poor. Only a small percentage of Greeks travel outside Greece for holidays (logical), and there is very little business traffic. Not a great recipe for any airline, let alone a start-up!

[Kalium Chloride]

...and despite its name Hellas Air is based in Cyprus


Hellas Jet is actually based in Athens, Greece. It was only started by Cyprus Airways.

[locust]

Where do you come from"barry lloyd" ? Many of them are poor???

[barry lloyd]

Kaluim Chloride:

Check where their head office really is. It may operate out of Greece/Athens, but the money came from Cyprus, and the owners are Cypriot. At the time they wanted to set up, there was fierce resistance in Athens, not least by Olympic, but by Aegean too. I was there at the time, and whilst not directly involved in it, was privvy to much of what was going on, and it revolved principally around the fact that the owners were not seen to be Greek. Of course with Greece being an EU member, and Cyprus about to become one at that time, there was little the Greek government could do to prevent it, much as they wanted to protect Olympic.

Locust:

Where I come from is clearly stated in my post, but I have just spent four years working in Greece, so I feel qualified to know a little about the country. Yes, there are glittering gin palaces in the marinas at Glyfada and Vouliagmenis, to name but two, but that doesn't mean everyone in Greece is a millionaire. Many of the yachts are owned by wealthy foreigners, particularly from the Middle East.
Go outside Athens a little, and you will see subsistence farming, and many other people in manual jobs who can just about exist on their salaries. The country's economy is based on agriculture and tourism - hardly a recipe for making fortunes for the average worker.
On what, precisely, do you base your comment?

[SK]

The main contributors to Greece's GDP are:
70% Services (20% of which is tourism)
22% Industry
7% Agriculture/forestry/fishing
The country's economy is based on agriculture and tourism

[Konkordski]

Hellas Jet was "officially" Greek, being 51% owned by two banks until Cyprus joined the EU, and then was taken over by CY. But its head office is still on Mihalacopoulou in Athens, unless they've knocked it down since I was last there, and in any case I don't see CY hanging on to it for much longer given the state they're in...

[barry lloyd]

Konkordski - Yes two Greek banks, and which? please - and please state their interests in Cyprus.
Yes, the Head Office may be in Athens, but I'm not impressed. GB Airways' Head Office is in Gatwick, But where is the brass plate? I know where the GB Airways plate is and I know where the Hellas Air plate is. Do You?
Would agree with your assertion that CY may dump Hellas Air in the not-too-distant future - charity begins at home...

SK:
So what are the other 50% of 'services'? This word has always covered a multitude of sins.
Banking - maybe, though few of the international banks are widely represented in Greece - the Greeks won't let them in! Try finding Deutsche Bank/HSBC/Banque Lyonnais branches in Athens where you can obtain money!
Shipping? Yes, to a point, but on both counts the figures which are reported are - how shall I put this - distorted? Check out the Greek tanker fleet which is laid up in Piraeus.
22% hardly makes it the workshop of Europe, and in any case I would dispute those figures. What is their source? Not government I trust!
I'm not being negative, simply realistic - I lived and worked in Greece for five years (1998-2002), so I saw and learned a lot...

[rmo757]

So any more info on these boys ? what do they plan to op MD82 or MD83

[bafanguy]

MD82 by their job posting.