SkyStef's aviation page
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SkyStef's aviation page |
Thomas Cook Airlines Belgium
Taken at Kampenhout in June 2006, an A320 of Thomas
Cook Airlines Belgium on finals for runway 25R of Brussels Airport. (Photo: Skystef) |
| Base: Brussels |
| IATA: FQ |
| ICAO: TCW |
| Website: thomascookairlines.com (airline) and thomascook.be (touroperator) |
| Fleet: 20x A320 (OO-TCB, OO-TCC, OO-TCE, OO-TCF, OO-TCG, OO-TCH, OO-TCI, OO-TCJ, OO-TCK, OO-TCL, OO-TCM, OO-TCN, OO-TCO, OO-TCP, OO-TCQ, OO-TCR, OO-TCT, OO-TCV, OO-TCW, OO-TCX), 1x A319 (OO-TCS) |
| History: when City Bird ceased operations in October 2001 tour operator Thomas Cook Belgium decided (in participation with Holidayland) to form on January 11 2002 their own airline to provide IT charters to short & long haul destinations from four Belgian airports. Operations started on March 13 2002 using five ex JMC Airlines A320s and on the same day its inaugural flight went from Brussels to Gran Canaria. The long haul flights are provided by leasing (foreign) airliners: in 2002-2004 B757-200s of Condor and B767-300s of defunct Sobelair, followed in 2004-2005 by B767-300 of BelgiumExel. On March 10 2005 they signed a three year contract with Martinair, leasing their B767-300s starting May 1. This ended on November 1 2008, and the long haul operations are currently done with airplanes of XL Airways France. On the short haul network extra capacity is occasionally needed by leasing equipment from foreign carriers like Martinair, Iberworld, Trans Travel Service, sister companies Thomas Cook Airlines & Condor and in the past also defunct carriers Dutchbird, Futura. Due to financial troubles of the Thomas Cook group, it was decided that on March 1 2013 the Belgian branch, the German branch (Condor) and the British branch (Thomas Cook Airlines UK) would be merged under the name of Thomas Cook. On October 27 2017, it ceased operations as part of a ful integration into Brussels Airlines. |
