Air Cairo
{{Short description|Egyptian airline}}
{{Distinguish|Cairo Aviation}}
{{Infobox airline
| airline = Air Cairo
| logo = Air Cairo logo.svg
| logo_size = 250
| image = Berlin Brandenburg Airport Air Cairo Airbus A320-251N SU-BUL (DSC01927).jpg
| caption = Air Cairo Airbus A320neo landing at Berlin Brandenburg Airport
| IATA = SM
| ICAO = MSC
| callsign = AIR CAIRO
| parent =
- Egyptair
- 360 INVESTMENTS
| company_slogan =
| founded = {{Start date and age|2003}}
| key_people = Ahmed Shanan (CEO)
| hubs =
| secondary_hubs =
| focus_cities =
| bases =
| frequent_flyer =
| lounge =
| alliance =
| website = {{official website|http://www.aircairo.com|aircairo.com}}
}}
Air Cairo is an airline based in Cairo, Egypt.{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=Air Cairo |url=http://www.aircairo.com |access-date=2 May 2010 |website=www.aircairo.com |publisher=Air Cairo}} The airline is part owned by Egyptair. Air Cairo operates scheduled flights to the Middle East and Europe and also operates charter flights to Egypt from Europe on behalf of tour operators. Its bases are Cairo International Airport, Sharm El Sheikh International Airport and Hurghada International Airport with the company head office located in the Sheraton Heliopolis Zone.{{cite news | title= Directory: World Airlines | work= Flight International | pages= 53–54 | date= 2007-03-27}}
History
File:Airbus_A320_Air_Cairo_SU-BPW_PRG_April_2008.jpg in the previous livery]]
The airline was established in 2003. It is owned by Egyptair (60%) and 360 INVESTMENTS (40%).{{citation needed|date=June 2022}}
Recently, the company is re-modeling towards the low fare model which is planned to be the strongest low fare airline in Egypt. On 1 June 2012 Air Cairo launched its first ever scheduled flight from Borg El Arab Airport Alexandria to Kuwait International Airport, Queen Alia International Airport, King Abdulaziz International Airport, Tripoli International Airport, Sabha Airport,
Misrata Airport and King Khaled International Airport. Air Cairo also launched its scheduled flights from Hurghada International Airport to Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport. But those flights were suspended in the end of December 2015.{{cite web |title=Er Kairo otkazao sve letove iz BG |trans-title=Air Cairo canceled all flights from BG |url=http://www.b92.net/biz/vesti/srbija.php?yyyy=2015&mm=12&dd=24&nav_id=1078157 |website=b92.net |language=sr-Latn-RS}}
On 5 November 2018, it was reported that the German aviation authority had banned Air Cairo - along with FlyEgypt - from flying to Germany, where it operated on behalf of German tour operators, due to regulatory violations.[http://www.airliners.de/zwei-aegypten-carrier-deutschland/47965 airliners.de - "Two Egypt carriers banned from landing in Germany"] 5 December 2018 Shortly afterward major European tour operators such as Thomas Cook Group and TUI Group announced they would end their contracts with Air Cairo and FlyEgypt.{{Cite web |date=11 December 2018 |title=TUI Group, Thomas Cook drop use of FlyEgypt, Air Cairo |url=https://www.ch-aviation.com/news/73594-tui-group-thomas-cook-drop-use-of-flyegypt-air-cairo |access-date=2024-02-19 |website=ch-aviation}} Germany lifted their ban on 21 December.{{Cite web |title=Ägypten: Auch Air Cairo darf wieder ab Deutschland fliegen |trans-title=Egypt: Air Cairo is also allowed to fly from Germany again |url=https://www.airliners.de/aegypten-auch-air-cairo-deutschland/48281 |access-date=2024-02-19 |website=airliners.de |language=de}}
In March 2019, it was reported that the airline would be leasing Embraer 170 aircraft for operations on the airline's domestic routes within Egypt.{{cite web|url=https://www.ch-aviation.com/portal/news/76333-egypts-air-cairo-to-add-wet-leased-embraer-capacity-in-2q19|title=Egypt's Air Cairo to add wet-leased Embraer capacity in 2Q19|date=18 March 2019|website=ch-aviation.com}}
In March 2021, Air Cairo announced it was to make a major push into the German-speaking market, having signed a sales cooperation agreement with SunExpress to market and manage up to 30 flights per week to the Red Sea resort of Hurghada from 14 airports in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Under the agreement, SunExpress will take care of all flight planning, revenue management, and sales; with Air Cairo operating the flights. In the course of the partnership, SunExpress and Air Cairo planned to expand the venture to other airports outside of German-speaking countries, SunExpress said in a statement. Air Cairo Chairman and chief executive officer Hussein Sherif said the Benelux countries would be targeted next. The aim of the sales push was to boost tourism to Egypt to pre-COVID-19 levels.{{cite web|url=https://www.ch-aviation.com/portal/news/101255-egypts-air-cairo-sunexpress-ink-cooperation-agreement|title=Egypt's Air Cairo, SunExpress ink cooperation agreement|date=8 March 2021|website=ch-aviation.com}}
Destinations
{{As of|August 2024}}, Air Cairo operates scheduled services - without leisure charters - to the following airports:{{cite web|url=http://www.aircairo.com/|title=Air Cairo}}
Fleet
{{As of|January 2025}}, the Air Cairo fleet consists of the following aircraft:{{cite web|url=https://www.flightradar24.com/data/airlines/sm-msc/fleet|title=Air Cairo fleet|website=flightradar24.com}}
| class="wikitable" style="border-collapse:collapse;text-align:center;margin:auto;"
|+Air Cairo fleet |
| Aircraft
!In service !Orders !Passengers !Notes |
|---|
| Airbus A320-200
|10 |— |174 | |
| Airbus A320neo
|— |186 | |
| ATR 72-600
|— |70 | |
| Embraer 190
|— |110 | |
| Total
!37 !— !colspan="3"| |
{{clear}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{commons-inline}}
{{Airlines of Egypt}}
{{Arab Air Carriers Organization}}
{{IATA members|mideast}}
{{Portalbar|Egypt|Aviation}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Air Cairo}}
Category:Airlines established in 2003
Category:Arab Air Carriers Organization members
Category:Companies based in Cairo