Air Albania operated the first commercial flight on 14 September 2018
On 14 September 2018, Air Albania operated the first commercial test flight between Tirana and Istanbul. Officially, Air Albania has been launched!
In August 2018 I told you about Air Albania, the new airline of Albania. It is owned by 51% of Albcontrol and MDN Investment, while Turkish Airlines holds the remaining 49%.
On 14 September 2018, Air Albania operated the first commercial test flight between Tirana and Istanbul. The launch event was attended by: Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama; Turkish ambassador to Tirana, Murat Ahmet Yöruk and some Albanian ministers and Turkish officials.
The inauguration ceremony took place at Tirana's Nënë Tereza International Airport. The flight was honored with Airbus A319 aircraft, chartered with Turkish Airlines crew. Initially, the plan was for Air Albania to debut operationally with 2 A319 aircraft.
Air Albania's first commercial flight
A Tirana-Istanbul-Tirana rotation followed on Saturday, and 80 Albanian students were also on board. According to the Turkish ambassador, Air Albania is seen as a bridge company between Albania and Turkey. Albania's Prime Minister, Edi Rama, also praised the launch of the airline and publicly thanked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Mithat Görkem Aksoy, a member of Turkish Airlines, said investments in Albania will be much higher. Including Air Albania will expand its fleet with a further 2 Airbus A320 aircraft. The plan also includes flights to Prishtina, Skopje, Zagreb, Podgorica, Sarajevo and other major European destinations such as: London, Brussels, Athens, Milan, Munich and Barcelona.
Returning to this Airbus A319 Air Albania aircraft, it bears the TC-JLR marker, but is painted in the new Albanian livery. It is configured in a class with 132 seats. The propulsion is provided by 2 V2500 engines. She is 11.3 years old.