Some Airlines Lost: A Look At 2021’s Failed Airlines

As we prepare to say goodbye to 2021, it would not be proper to do so without acknowledging the airlines that left us over the past 12 months. While they are nowhere near the number of failed carriers in 2020, many across the globe will still feel their absence.

The year 2020 saw airlines fold in unprecedented numbers. One by one, major carriers such as Virgin Australia, LATAM, Avianca, Cathay Dragon, and THAI Airways liquidated, filed for bankruptcy protection, or are in the process of restructuring. Smaller carriers such as Flybe, Miami Air International, and RavnAir also ceased operations due to the pandemic. All in all, over 40 airlines had to call it quits in 2020.

Thankfully, the tally of failed airlines for 2021 is far less impressive. However, the year has not been without casualties. Here we take a look at what liveries did not make it into 2022 and live to fight another year of a crisis we hope to have seen the worst of. While much of aviation seems to have cleared the hump, recovery is still far from certain as COVID-19 numbers continue to reach unprecedented heights worldwide.

Africa

Air Namibia

Perhaps one of the most noteworthy casualties of 2021 was Air Namibia. On February 11th this year, a 75-year long history came to an end when the state-owned flag carrier ceased all operations. Despite attempts from unions to reverse the shutdown of the airline, the government remained firm on the decision.

When it stopped flying, Air Namibia’s fleet consisted of four Airbus A319s, two A330s, and four Embraer ERJ 135s. Regional carriers such as South African Airlink and Namibian FlyWestair have sought to fill the gap left by Air Namibia. However, their fleets consist solely of regional jets and smaller aircraft.

Air Burundi

Another African state-owned flag carrier that officially went out of business in 2021 was Air Burundi. However, this was more an official act than anything else as the carrier had not been operational in practice since 2009. The airline was based at Burundi’s only airport with a paved runway – Melchior Ndadaye International Airport (BJM), situated in the country’s former capital Bujumbura.

Europe

Atlantis European Airways

In Europe, several scheduled carriers folded. One of these was Atlantis Armenian Airlines, commonly known as Atlantis European Airways. The airline was founded on January 19th, 1999. It just passed the two-decade mark by a couple of years before ceasing operations on February 20th, 2021.

Based out of Zvartnots International Airport, the main airport for Yerevan, the airline operated a fleet of three Airbus A320-200s and one Boeing 737-500. The former remain stored since the airline canceled all flights in November last year. However, the latter is now operating for Armenia Airways.

Great Dane Airlines

Denmark’s young Embraer operator Great Dane Airlines also did not make it through the year. Great Dane was founded in 2018 but only commenced operations in the summer the year after. The airline filed for bankruptcy on October 11th, leaving over a hundred passengers stranded at Billund Airport in Southern Denmark. At the time, it had a fleet of three Embraer ERJ-195LR jets, leased from Propius and previously operating for Flybe and Stobart Air.

Stobart Air

Stobart was another carrier that did not make it through the year. The Irish regional airline ceased operations on June 12th, causing a cascade of cancellations from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland to the UK.

The airline, which operated regional routes for Aer Lingus under a franchise agreement, said it had been flying very little since March 2020. At the time of its insolvency, Stobart Air had a fleet of 12 ATR 72s and one ATR 42, having said goodbye to its Embraer ERJs a couple of years prior.

VolDirect and Thomas Cook Balearics

In France, business charter airline VolDirect ceased operations after ten years of flying. Spain’s remains of leisure specialist Thomas Cook in the form of Thomas Cook Airlines Balearics also yielded after holding out a couple of years following the collapse of its parent company.

North America

Sky Regional Airlines

Crossing the Atlantic, Canada also had to wave goodbye to a few airlines. One of these was scheduled carrier Sky Regional Airlines. It commenced operations in 2011, flying regional services under the Air Canada Express brand.

However, Sky Regional was forced to fold after the flag carrier announced it would be transferring all of its regional business to Jazz Aviation. All of the airline’s 25 ERJ-175s were transferred to Air Canada, which said it would save up to C$400 million ($316 million) over the course of 15 years due to the transition to Jazz.

First Air

Scheduled carrier veteran First Air also ceased operations under its own brand this year. The airline was founded by Canadian aviation pioneer Russel Bradley in 1946. However, it did not commence scheduled operations out of Ottawa until 1973.

Meanwhile, First Air lives on as part of Canadian North, a wholly-Inuit-owned airline with hubs in Yellowknife and Iqaluit. The carrier’s 13 ATR 42s and four Boeing 737-400s were transferred along with the company.

US charter operators

South of the border, the US lost an Idaho-based passenger charter carrier known as Stout Flying Service after it was acquired by a startup called Frontier Aviation and Jet Center after 30 years of business.

Private business jet charter company JetReady filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2020. However, the Florida-based operator with a fleet consisting of several Gulfstream GIVs and a Bombardier Challenger 600 series officially ended business this year.

Have you flown with any of these airlines? Leave a comment below and tell us about it.