Air Berlin is a oneworld alliance airline that has experienced financial difficulties for several years now. Alas, the airline is finally going out of business with the last flights occurring on 27 October. Around a dozen destinations will be lost from the alliance map as a result.
As a fitting farewell, the last long haul flight did a fly past at Düsseldorf Airport which is well worth checking out. The BBC is reporting the pilots have been suspended as a result but other reports say it was sanctioned by the airline. But why is the airline going out of business?
Losses, Losses, Losses!
A general history of Air Berlin makes for interesting reading. The airline made losses, tried to restructure, sold part of the frequent flyer programme to Etihad and various other things were attempted to turn around the business. That’s before the whole Berlin Brandenburg Airport issue comes into play, which also impacted the airlines plans.
The only good thing about the whole debacle is that Lufthansa is taking 20 aircraft along with Austrian carrier Niki and regional carrier LGW. Meanwhile, easyJet is looking at taking up to 25 aircraft and the operation from Berlin Tegel. This bodes well for the employees.
Air Berlin’s Last Long Haul Flight
The final long haul flight took place on 16 October, with an Airbus A330 flying from Miami to Düsseldorf as AB7001. In the video, the pilot levels off low over the runway then turns away and heads over the terminal building.
https://youtu.be/eKfo1We2YHE
There is footage from two different cameras, one on the apron and another from a high vantage point. It looks like it would have been a fun ride on board!
Overall Thoughts
It is never great when an airline goes under, but it is good that some pieces of the airline will remain intact. The aviation industry is in good health at the moment so hopefully the employees will be okay.
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Featured image by Pedro Aragão via Wikimedia Commons.
