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Malév Hungarian Airlines
- Malev redirects here. For the military unit, see Malev (military unit)
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| Founded | 1946 (as Hungarian-Soviet Civil Air Transport Joint Stock Company) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ceased operations | 3 February 2012 | |||
| Hubs | Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport | |||
| Frequent-flyer program | Duna Club | |||
| Alliance | Oneworld | |||
| Fleet size | 22 (+19 orders) | |||
| Destinations | 50 | |||
| Company slogan | Wings to fly | |||
| Parent company | MNV | |||
| Headquarters | Budapest, Hungary | |||
| Key people | Limburger Lóránt (CEO) | |||
| Website | http://malev.com | |||
Malév Ltd. (Hungarian: Malév Zrt.), doing business as Malév Hungarian Airlines (Hungarian: Magyar Légiközlekedési Vállalat, abbreviated Malév), is an airline that has been the flag carrier and principal airline of Hungary between 1946 and 2012. It had its head office in the Lurdy House in Budapest, with its main operations at Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport. From there, the airline flew to 50 cities in 34 countries worldwide using a fleet of 22 aircraft. Malév was a member of the Oneworld alliance until it ceased operations, having joined 29 March 2007.[1] Malév - the accent indicates that the E is long, and the first syllable is always stressed in Hungarian, so the name is pronounced MAH-lev. The company's logo was designed by László Zsótér in 1989. Malev grounded all planes and cancelled all flights at 6am on 3 February 2012, due to a lack of cash and most providers requesting advance payment. Currently, the fate of the passengers or the company itself remains unknown.
Contents |
History
| This section requires expansion. |
Beginnings
Companies like Aero Rt. (founded 1910), Magyar Ćeroforgalmi Rt. (MAEFORT) and Magyar Légiforgalmi Rt. (Malert) were spiritual forebears, but the devastation of World War II temporarily suspended all Hungarian civil aviation and these companies with it. The company's official founding date was 29 March 1946, when the Hungarian-Soviet Civil Air Transport Joint Stock Company (Magyar-Szovjet Légiforgalmi Rt. also known as Maszovlet) was formed. The initial fleet consisted of 21-seat Li-2 passenger aircraft (the Soviet-licensed DC-3) and 3-seat Po-2 "taxis", used for precision air mail: sacks of mail were dropped from the aircraft when flying over its destination. In 1950, Malév's operating base moved from Budaörs to the newly opened airport at Ferihegy, where it has remained.
On 25 November 1956, Hungary acquired all the Soviet shares of Maszovlet, and Malév was born. Operations expanded, with flights extending to nearby countries and, following the 1968 purchase of jet-powered Tupolev Tu-134s from the Soviet Union, across Europe and the Middle East. Even before the political changes of 1989 and the arrival of democracy, Malév had begun phasing out its Soviet-era planes with the introduction of the first western aircraft, a Boeing 737-200 on 18 November 1988.
1990s-2007: Modernisation
The last Soviet-built Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft was withdrawn from service in 2001. In 2003, Malév began replacing its Boeing 737 Classic aircraft with 737 Next-Generation planes. It now runs a fleet of 18 Boeing 737 Next Generations, as well as 4 Bombardier Dash 8 Q-400s for short-haul routes.[2]
From 1999 to 2007, the Hungarian State Privatization Company ÁPV Rt. (Állami Privatizációs és Vagyonkezel Rt.) owned 99.5% of Malév shares. The other 0.5% were in the hands of small shareholders. ÁPV Rt repeatedly tried to privatise Malév, finally selling it to AirBridge Zrt, one of whose stockholders was Boris Abramovich who backed KrasAir and AiRUnion.
2007-present: In private hands
AirBridge acquired 99.9% of the airline in February 2007. It had 1,785 staff members, as of 31 December 2007.[3]
Despite Czech Airlines' offer to sponsor Malév as an associate member of the SkyTeam alliance, and Malév's codeshare agreements with several SkyTeam carriers, Malév joined Oneworld as a fully-fledged member on 29 March 2007.
On 12 July 2007 Lloyd Paxton was appointed CEO of Malév. Paxton replaced János Gönci, who will remain on the board of directors as an adviser. Mr Paxton was with British Airways for over 35 years and most recently was with Air Astana. Mr Paxton was the first Malév CEO to come from the airline industry. Two months later, on 14 September 2007, Lloyd Paxton resigned as CEO of Malév, replaced by Péter Leonov.[4] From January 2009, the present chairman is Ballo Anatoly Borisovich.[5]
On 18 March 2009 the Russian state-owned Vneshekonombank took a minority stake of 49% in AirBridge Zrt which holds the shares of the struggling airline. The bank owed it Ft8,100 (Ft8,100 (30))m from a loan taken out last autumn. The majority, 51%, remained in Hungarian ownership. The managing control would be taken by Russia's Aeroflot - Russian Airlines[citation needed]. Martin Gauss, former CEO of DBA and Cirrus Airlines as well as a Boeing 737 pilot was elected as CEO on 15 April 2009.[6]
The airline was renationalized in February 2010, with Hungarian Government state holding company MNV acquiring a 95 per cent stake in the airline. The remaining 5 per cent remained with AirBridge.[7] In December 2010, the European Commission began an investigation into illegal government subsidies of Malév.[8] On January 9, 2012, the European Union declared the state aid received by Malev illegal and ordered Hungary to recover from the company nearly Ft 100 billion ( $406 million). [9]
At the end of January 2012, Malév announced that it could no longer fund its own operations, and requested more subsidies from the Hungarian government.[10] On 3rd February 2012, Malev ceased all operations.
2012 - Financial Collapse and Ceasing of operations
On the 3rd of February 2012, Malev ceased all flight activity after 66 years of continuous operation. It came after the European Commission ordered Malev to repay various forms of state aid received from 2007 to 2010, totalling 38 billion forints (130m euros; $171m; Ł108m), a sum equal to its entire 2010 revenue.[11]
The airline's total debts were 60 billion forints ($270.5 million USD) at the time of shutdown.[12]
Company affairs and identity
Before its closure, the airline had 2,600 employees and had almost half of all of the air traffic at Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport.[11]
Ownership
After the Hungarian government renationalised Malév effective 26 February 2010, the government held 95% of the airline while AirBridge Zrt held 5%.[13] AirBridge Zrt was 51% owned by Kálmán Kiss and Magdolna Költ, two Hungarian individuals, and 49% owned by Boris Abramovich, a Russian businessperson. Prior to 26 February 2010, AirBridge Zrt held 99.95% of Malév and minor shareholders held .05%.[14]
Head office
Malév's head office is located inside the Lurdy House (Lurdy Ház) in Budapest.[15][16] Lurdy Ház, an office and shopping complex, opened in the autumn of 1998.[17] Previously the airline head office was located in another area in Budapest.[18][19]
The airline signed a lease agreement in the spring of 2011 with Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport agreeing to relocate its headquarters to the airport by the end of 2012. The intention is to accommodate 600 airline staff in three office buildings between Terminal 1 and Terminal 2.[20]
Destinations
Malév Hungarian Airlines' flight network of 50 destinations covers much of Europe and the Middle East. In the past, flights went to Africa and Southeast Asia, but have now been terminated. On 12 September 2011 Malév announced plans to fly to Tripoli; this would be Malév's only scheduled African destination. Apart from scheduled services, the airline also flies to charter destinations.
On 29 October 2007, Malév announced the suspension of its trans-Atlantic routes for the winter season. Services on the Budapest-Toronto and Budapest-New York-JFK routes were suspended in mid-November. Passenger loads on these routes are considerably lower in winter, making them uneconomical to operate.[21] Then, on 23 July 2008, Malév announced the cancellation of the New York and Toronto flights. Malév operated flights to Toronto and New York since the early 1990s but the recent increases in operational costs, especially fuel costs, made the flights unprofitable. Malév had no plans to reinstate its trans-Atlantic flights but would instead focus on expanding its European network.
Malév Hungarian Airlines has codeshare agreements with the following airlines, beside Oneworld members:
Fleet
Current
The Malév Hungarian Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft with an average age of 7.1 years (at November 2010):[22][23][24]
| Aircraft | In Fleet | Orders | Options | Passengers | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J | Y | Total | |||||
| Boeing 737-600 | 6 | 14 | 95 | 109 | |||
| Boeing 737-700 | 7 | 14 | 107 | 121 | |||
| Boeing 737-800 | 5 | 29 |
139 180 |
168 180 |
HA-LOU painted in Oneworld livery | ||
| Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 72 | 72 | HA-LQD wears retro-scheme colors | |
| Sukhoi Superjet 100 | 0 | 15 | 15 |
|
98 | Deliveries TBA (originally expected 2011) | |
| Total: | 22 | 19 | 19 | ||||
Services are operated for the airline by Budapest Aircraft Service, primarily using 30-seat Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia to regional destinations.
Malév leased the first of three Boeing 767-300ERs in early 2007, with the intention of adding one aircraft per year, and the last joining the fleet in 2009. These aircraft would have replaced the two Boeing 767-200ERs in Malév's fleet.
At the Farnborough Air Show in July 2008, Malév signed a contract with Canada's Bombardier for the delivery of eight Q400 turboprop aircraft with an option for a further four at a cost of Ft61,330 (Ft61,330 (226))m to replace the regional CRJ-200 and Fokker 70 fleet.[25]
Malév returned its leased Boeing 767-300ER (HA-LHC) to ILFC by October 2008. Airline S7 of Russia will then lease this former KLM Boeing 767 for a 6-year period. The fate of Malév's other Boeing 767, a 200ER is unknown but it will most likely be sold.[26]
On 15 June 2009, SuperJet International and Malév Hungarian Airlines signed a letter of intent for the purchase of 30 Sukhoi Superjet 100-95 aircraft. The first aircraft, in a two-class configuration, will join the Malév fleet from 2011 with the delivery of six aircraft per year.[27]
Retired
- Aeritalia G.222
- Bombardier CRJ200
- Boeing 737-200
- Boeing 737-300 replaced by Boeing 737-700
- Boeing 737-400 replaced by Boeing 737-800
- Boeing 737-500 replaced by Boeing 737-600
- Boeing 767-200ER
- Boeing 767-300ER
- Fokker 70
- Ilyushin Il-14
- Ilyushin Il-18
- Ilyushin Il-62
- Lisunov Li-2
- Polikarpov Po-2
- Tupolev Tu-134
- Tupolev Tu-154
- Yakovlev Yak-40
Incidents and accidents
- On 23 November 1962, Malév Airlines Flight 355, an Ilyushin Il-18V (HA-MOD), crashed at Paris - Le Bourget Airport, probably as the result of a stall; all 21 on board died.[28]
- On 28 August 1971, a scheduled Malév Airlines flight, an Ilyushin Il-18V (HA-MOC) crashed into the sea on approach to Copenhagen Airport, killing 32; 2 survived.[29]
- On 16 September 1971, Malév Airlines Flight 110, a Tupolev Tu-134 (HA-LBD) crashed near Boryspil International Airport, Kiev in bad weather, following two missed approaches, after a generator failure caused the crew to switch to batteries; all 49 on board died.[30]
- On 30 September 1975 a Malév Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft on the Budapest to Beirut route crashed near the Lebanese shoreline. See Malév Flight 240.
- On 21 September 1977, a Malév Tupolev Tu-134 aircraft (HA-LBC), flying from Istanbul to Bucharest struck level ground on approach, probably as a result of flying at reduced power, unnoticed by the crew. Of the 53 on board, 23 died.[31]
- On 29 March 1989, two teenagers from Czechoslovakia armed with grenades and shotguns hijacked Flight 640 at Prague Ruzyn Airport, and flew the Tupolev Tu-154B with 15 hostages to Frankfurt Airport before surrendering.[32]
- On 4 July 2000, Flight 262, a chartered Malév Tu-154 HA-LCR, landed on its belly in Salonica in Greece. The crew had not successfully lowered the undercarriage and the plane skidded 400 metres (440 yards) on the runway. The plane was able to become airborne again as the pilots applied full throttle. It circled until the crew managed to lower the undercarriage and landed safely. There were no injuries, but the aircraft was written off.
- On Friday 13 February 2009 Malév flight 440 from Budapest made an emergency landing at its destination Skopje Airport in the Republic of Macedonia. At 16:05 the pilot reported right engine failure of the Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 whilst on final approach. The pilot safely landed the airplane and there were no injuries to the 64 passengers. The General Manager of Skopje Airport confirmed the incident.[33][34][35]
- On Friday 3 February 2012 Based on the Board of Directors decision Hungarys National Airline ceased its operation to minimize its losses. According to this statement, after nearly 66 years of continuous operation, Malév aircrafts will not depart from 6 am 03 February.
See also
References
- ^ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International: pp. 4647. 10 April 2007.
- ^ "Malév history". Malév.com. http://www.malev.com/companyinformation/malev-history/short-history-malev-1946-2008. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
- ^ "Annual Report 2007". Malév Ltd.. http://www.malev.com/Root/MalevDocuments/ceginformaciok/annual_reports/2007_ANNUAL_REPORT.pdf. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
- ^ "Lloyd Paxton Leaves Malév After Two Months, Peter Leonov Is New CEO". Airliner world. 14 July 2007. http://airlineworld.wordpress.com/2007/09/14/lloyd-paxton-leaves-malev-after-two-months-peter-leonov-is-new-ceo/. Retrieved 31 July 2010.
- ^ "Focus on Europe" (Press release). Malév Hungarian Airlines. 27 August 2008. http://www.malev.com/CompanyInformation/PressReleases/Article?Content=/Root/MalevContents/En/company-information/pressreleases/press-releases/2009/2/new-chairman-at-head-of-malev. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
- ^ "Experienced Germaan airline manager" (Press release). Malev.com. 16 April 2009. http://www.malev.com/companyInformation/pressreleases/article?Content=/Root/MalevContents/En/company-information/pressreleases/press-releases/2009/4/experienced-german-airline-manager. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
- ^ [url=http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/02/27/338886/troubled-malev-is-renationalised.html%7C title=Flightglobal: Troubled Malév is renationalised] 27 Feb 10
- ^ "Sceptical EU opens state-aid probe into Malév's financing". http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/12/21/351180/sceptical-eu-opens-state-aid-probe-into-malevs-financing.html. Retrieved 2011-01-02.
- ^ Reals, Kerry. "EC orders struggling Malev to pay back 'illegal' state aid". Flightglobal. Reed Elsevier. http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/ec-orders-struggling-malev-to-pay-back-illegal-state-aid-366672/. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
- ^ "Malev begs Hungary's govt for help as it runs out of cash". Flightglobal. http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/malev-begs-hungarys-govt-for-help-as-it-runs-out-of-cash-367577/. Retrieved 31 January 2012.
- ^ a b "Hungarian airline Malev collapses." BBC. 3 February 2012. Retrieved on 3 February 2012.
- ^ "Hungarian National Airline Halts Flights." The New York Times. 4 February 2012. Retrieved on 3 February 2012.
- ^ "Malév ownership structure." Malév Hungarian Airlines. 26 May 2011. Retrieved on 4 February 2012.
- ^ "Malév ownership structure." Malév Hungarian Airlines. 11 February 2009. Retrieved on 4 February 2012.
- ^ "Terms & Conditions." Malév Hungarian Airlines. Retrieved on 28 February 2010.
- ^ "Communicating change." Europe Intelligence Wire. 12 January 2004. Retrieved on 28 February 2010. "Varadi spoke recently with reporter Anita Benko at Malév's head office in the Lurdy Haz shopping and..."
- ^ "About Us." Lurdy Ház. Retrieved on 28 February 2010.
- ^ "World Airline Directory." Flight International. 26 March 1 April 1997. 86.
- ^ "Offices in Hungary." Malév Hungarian Airlines. 13 June 1998. Retrieved on 28 February 2010.
- ^ "Property development." Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport. Retrieved on 11 December 2011.
- ^ "New York and Toronto flights suspended for winter" (Press release). Malév Hungarian Airlines. http://www.malev.hu/BP/ENG/I_NEWS_ENG/2007-1029-1551-07PGDK.asp.
- ^ Malev official fleet page
- ^ Airfleets for Malév
- ^ Horizon. Malév. 2009-9. http://www.malev.hu/Root/MalevDocuments/horizon/2009/horizon_junius_2009_webre.pdf. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
- ^ "Malév to buy new aircraft". Caboodle.hu. 16 July 2008. http://www.caboodle.hu/nc/news/news_archive/single_page/article/11/malev_to_buy/?cHash=e3cb2c627c. Retrieved 31 July 2010.
- ^ CH-Aviation - Airline News, Fleet Lists & More
- ^ Kaminski-Morrow, David (15/06/09). "PARIS AIR SHOW: Superjet 100 takes off with Malév order". FlightGlobal. http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2009/06/15/328081/paris-air-show-superjet-100-takes-off-with-malev-order.html/.
- ^ "ASN Aircraft accident Ilyushin 18V HA-MOD Paris-Le Bourget". Aviation-safety.net. http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19621123-0. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
- ^ "ASN Aircraft accident Ilyushin 18V HA-MOC Saltholm Island". Aviation-safety.net. http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19710828-0. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
- ^ Accident description for HA-LBD at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 13 February 2010.
- ^ "ASN Aircraft accident Tupolev 134 HA-LBC Urziceni". Aviation-safety.net. http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19770921-1. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
- ^ "2 Czech Youths Hijack Jetliner to West Germany". Los Angeles Times. 30 March 1989. http://articles.latimes.com/1989-03-30/news/mn-878_1_west-germany. Retrieved 19 August 2010.
- ^ posten (14 February 2009). "AUA-Maschine musste nach Start in Skopje umkehren - Flugzeugunglücke - derStandard.at " Panorama". Derstandard.at. http://derstandard.at/?url=/?id=1234507062719. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
- ^ "Dva prinudna sletanja u Skoplju" (in Serbian). B92. 13 February 2009. http://www.b92.net/info/vesti/index.php?yyyy=2009&mm=02&dd=13&nav_category=167&nav_id=344891. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
- ^ " " (in Macedonian). A1.com.mk. 13 February 2009. http://www.a1.com.mk/vesti/default.aspx?VestID=104381. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
External links
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