BULGARIA AIRBenedict Gombocz

Overview

• Bulgaria Air (България Ер) is the airline carrier of Bulgaria, with its headquarters at Sofia Airport in Sofia, Bulgaria.

• The corporation is owned by Chimimport, Inc.; it is a leader with respect to local market share.

• In 2008, according to the corporation’s annual report, the airline carried a total of 1,185,430 passengers.

• Its fleet is comprised of ten aircraft for short and medium-range flights.

Overview (cont.)

• IATA FB

• ICAO LZB

• Callsign FLYING BULGARIA

• Founded November 2002

• Commenced operations 4 December 2002

• Hubs Sofia Airport

• Focus cities Bourgas Airport, Varna Airport

• Frequent-flyer program FLY MORE

• Airport lounge Vitosha Lounge Sofia, Business Lounge Sofia, VIP Lounge Sofia

• Subsidiaries Hemus Air

• Fleet size 12

• Destinations 26

• Parent company Balkan Hemus Group EAD

• Headquarters Sofia Airport, Sofia, Bulgaria

Overview (cont.)

• Key people Yanko Georgiev (CEO), Hristo Todorov (CEO)

• Website www.air.bg

History

• Founded in 2002, Bulgaria Air is a successor to the defunct Balkan Bulgarian Airlines (767-200ER, shown right), Bulgaria’s flag carrier from 1947-2002.

• In November 2002, it was named the new flag carrier of Bulgaria by order of the Minister of Transport and Communications; it officially began operations on 4 December 2002.

• A public contest determined the name and initial logo.

• In 2006, Bulgaria Air was privatized; despite rumors that the government wanted to sell the airline to a major foreign shareholder, a union of locally-owned corporations under Hemus Air emerged as the purchaser with Italian Air One as the only other competitor.

• Hemus Air was reported to have paid €6.6m, and agreed to capitalize an additional €86m during the subsequent five years; since then, operations of Hemus Air and its subsidiary Viaggio Air are registered under the name and supervision of the merged corporation, Bulgaria Air.

• Bulgaria Air became a full member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) on 20 November 2008.

• Bulgaria Air originally started operations under the name of “Balkan Air Tour”, but it was only temporarily known by that name.

• In mid-2011, Bulgaria Air announced that following a detailed examination of their destinations, they had chosen to acquire seven new Embraer E-190 aircraft, which probably will include a 108-seat structure (eight business, 100 economy).

• The first planes were delivered to Bulgaria Air in early 2012; the remaining aircraft were delivered later in 2013.

Bulgaria Air Airbus A319, Sofia Airport

Livery

• Public contests were held in Bulgaria in November 2002 that determined a name and logo for the new flag carrier of post-communist Bulgaria; thousands of Bulgarian citizens used their imagination and voiced their opinions.

• The name and logo were chosen after a search for numerous suggestions.

• The design was used for the next four years until 2006, when the airline introduced an upgraded, more proficient design.

• A new livery had to be created once again following the full fleet merger of Hemus and Viaggio Air.

• Finally, the first Bulgaria Air Airbus A319 wearing the completed colour pattern began flying in mid-2010.

Bulgaria Air Airbus A320 taxiing at London Heathrow Airport

Destinations

• Bulgaria Air operates 22 flight routes from its only hub at Sofia Airport; this includes two domestic routes to Bourgas and Varna.

• It also operates flights to and from Burgas and Varna during the summer season.

Codeshare agreements

• Bulgaria Air has codeshare agreements with these airlines: • Aeroflot (SkyTeam)

• Air Berlin (Oneworld)

• Air France (SkyTeam)

• Air Serbia

• Alitalia (SkyTeam)

• Czech Airlines (SkyTeam)

• Iberia (Oneworld)

• KLM (SkyTeam)

• LOT Polish Airlines (Star Alliance)

• TAROM (SkyTeam)

Interline agreements

• Bulgaria Air also has special interline agreements with these airlines: • Brussels Airlines (Star Alliance)

• Emirates

• Finnair (Oneworld)

• Jet Airways

• TAM Airlines (Oneworld)

• US Airways (Oneworld)

• Virgin Atlantic

Charter flights

• Bulgaria Air currently serves more than 60 leading tour operators, air transport brokers, airlines, and other corporations of the aviation and tourist industries, with charter flights to more than 80 destinations in Europe, Africa, and Asia.

Fleet

• Bulgaria Air, as of September 2014, operates three Airbus A319, three Airbus A320, and four Embraer ERJ-190; the normal age of the active Bulgaria Air fleet is 5.3 years.

Aircraft Total Orders Notes

Airbus A319-111

1 0

Airbus A319-112

2 0

Airbus A320-214

3 0

Avro RJ70 1 0 VIP

BAe 146-200

1 0

Embraer E-190

4 0

Total 12 0

Bulgaria Air British Aerospace 146-300 (now retired) landing at Zurich Airport

Bulgaria Air Embraer 190 LZ-SOF at Frankfurt Airport

Retired fleet

• ATR 42-300

• BAe 146-300

• Boeing 737-300

• Boeing 737-500

Private business flights

• The airline offers service for business and VIP customers with an Avro RJ70 Business Jet, the passenger section of which is furnished with 26 armchairs, couches, dining tables, and numerous LCD displays, as well as on-board Wi-Fi.

Services: Frequent flyer

• Bulgaria Air’s frequent flyer programme is “Fly More”; it includes three levels of membership: • Basic - first level, where the gathering of points begins. The member is given a momentary card with an identification code.

• Silver Standard Card - After the member flies on five Bulgaria Air flights, he/she is given a permanent membership card. Silver Card holders may spend their bonus points in exchange for free tickets and additional services.

• Gold Privilege Card - The level is attained after winning 30,000 points within eighteen months of registration for the programme. Gold cardholders acquire a bigger number of points on each flight and are entitled to a wider range of benefits.

• Co-branded cards with Central Cooperative Bank: Central Cooperative Bank is giving Visa Classic and Visa Gold co-branded credit cards with Bulgaria Air; these cards are providing several discounts and privileges to their owners.

Catering

• Bulgaria Air and LSG Sky Chefs founded a new airline catering company called Silver Wings in 2010.

• The airline’s total investment reaches US$1.3 million.

• Future investment plans predict a new restaurant to serve the airport staff at Sofia Airport.

Bulgaria Air Media

• Bulgaria On Air, a business media product, was founded on 9 September 2011.

• It is owned by Bulgaria Air and M-SAT cabel.

• The media is made up of two magazines, website, radio, and TV channel:

• Bulgaria On Air: The Inflight Magazine: Bulgaria Air's inflight magazine. Its first issue was released in 2003. The magazine is a widely read business and lifestyle version.

• Bulgaria On Air: The Business Magazine: In April 2011, the inflight magazine was extended with a version which is distributed in some hotels and shopping centers.

The End

• YouTube links: • Bulgaria Air - The National Symbol of Flying:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUATTZJG42o

• Bulgaria Air Airbus A319 Take Off Sofia Airport: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-N9awIzAEY

• Bulgaria Air Embraer 190 landing at Sofia Airport: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HhV8inp3X4

• Bulgarian Air Charter landing in Berlin-Schönefeld: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHcevvonkts