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Jat Airways

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Jat Airways
File:Levo 2a1.gif
IATA ICAO Call sign
JU JAT Jat
Founded1927 (as Aeroput)
HubsBelgrade Nikola Tesla Airport
Frequent-flyer programOne flight more
Fleet size17
Destinations37
HeadquartersBelgrade, Serbia, Serbia and Montenegro
Key peopleNebojša Starčević (Acting CEO), Nenad Petrović (Executive Director)
Websitehttp://www.jat.com

Jat Airways is the national carrier of Serbia and Montenegro, former national carrier of Yugoslavia, and the sixteenth-oldest airline in Europe.

History

The company was founded on 17 June 1927 as Aeroput. On 1 April 1947 the name was changed to Jugoslovenski aerotransport (JAT), then to JAT Yugoslav Airlines and finally to Jat Airways in January 2003.

After World War II Jat resumed its network with Douglas DC-3 and Junkers Ju 52 aircraft. Later Douglas DC-6 s were bought for long-haul routes, and Convair 330 and Convair 440 aircraft for short-haul routes.

In 1963, the first Caravelle jet aircraft joined Jat. In 1969 the first Douglas DC-9 (of 16) arrived and in 1974 the first two Boeing 727-200 aircraft arrived (of 9).

Long-haul routes to North America, Australia and the Far East were flown by Boeing 707s, introduced in 1970. In 1978 a widebody Douglas DC-10 was purchased to succeed the Boeing 707s on the longer-haul routes, although the 707s stayed in service into the 1980s on ad hoc charters and as scheduled-flight replacement aircraft.

File:Jat05.jpg
Jat Boeing 737-300, YU ANJ

In 1985 Jat was the first European airline to purchase Boeing 737-300s. During those years the company carried 5 million passengers annually and served 80 destinations on five continents (19 domestic, 45 medium haul and 16 long haul routes).

In 1992 the Yugoslavia broke up and Jat stopped all international services because of United Nations sanctions. During that time Jat operated only domestic services, between Belgrade, Podgorica, Tivat, Niš, Priština and for a very short time Užice-Ponikve. Finally, in 1994, Jat resumed its international services with aircraft that had been repainted with a new livery.

In 1998 Jat ordered 8 Airbus A319s. The original delivery date was June 2000 but this date has been postponed until a total of $16 million is paid off to Airbus. Jat is expecting its first A319 in Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport by June 2007.

Jat sold its last DC-10 on 24 June 2005. During 2005 the company also phased out all remaining 727 and DC-9 aircraft from its own routes. Some of its ageing Boeing 737-300 will follow in a few years time. The last airworthy DC-9 is leased in UAE. The DC-9s are due to be replaced with leased CRJ-700 aircraft in the spring of 2006.

The company had plans to restart long-haul operations to North America (New York, Toronto, Montreal and Chicago) in June 2005 with two Boeing 767-200ER aircraft that it had planned to lease, but these plans have been postponed and changed. Jat Airways now plans to receive its Boeing 767s in early 2006. Flights to New York from Jat Airways could begin in May 2006 with flights to Toronto starting in June 2006.

Jat Airways is not a member of any alliances or partnerships but does codeshare on some routes with Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Air France and Aeroflot. Jat Airways has recently started a campaign to join SkyTeam with Air France a major suporter of the campaign.

New destinations

In 2006 Jat will increase its frequencies to all its cities while it will restart services to Beirut, Cairo and Thessaloniki. In 2006 charter flights to Izmir, Hurghada, Sharm El Sheik and other holiday cities will restart and new routes will include New York, Toronto and Sofia. New aircraft will be added this year. 2 CRJ's 700 will be used for regional flights. 2 Boeing 767-200 will arrive this year. One in late March while the second in late October to be used for flights to North America.

Services

Domestic

International

Africa

Asia

Europe

North America

Former Destinations

Jat Airways (Jat Yugoslav Airlines) former destinations

Fleet

The Jat Airways fleet consists of the following aircraft:

Upcoming Aircraft

Active Fleet

Leased Out Aircraft

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