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Edelweiss Air

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Edelweiss Air
IATA ICAO Call sign
WK[1] EDW EDELWEISS
Founded19 October 1995; 29 years ago (1995-10-19)[2]
AOC #CH.AOC.1007[3]
Operating basesZurich Airport
Fleet size18
Destinations65
Parent companySwiss International Air Lines[4]
HeadquartersKloten, Zurich, Switzerland
Key peopleBernd Bauer (CEO)
FounderNick Grob
Employees540 (January 2015)
Websitewww.flyedelweiss.com

Edelweiss Air AG is a Swiss leisure and charter airline and the sister company of Swiss International Air Lines and a subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group. It operates flights to European and intercontinental destinations from its base at Zurich Airport.[5]

History

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Early years

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A former Edelweiss Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83 in 1997.

The airline was founded on 19 October 1995 in Bassersdorf, Switzerland, with just one aircraft, a McDonnell Douglas MD-83. The company's name is derived from the Swiss unofficial national flower, the Edelweiss, which is also painted on its aircraft.

The fleet was subsequently expanded and renewed. In 1998, new Airbus A320-200s were introduced to replace the MD-83s, and in 1999 long-haul flights were commenced using the Airbus A330-200.

For seven consecutive years between 2001 and 2008, Edelweiss Air received the golden Travelstar Award for its achievements.[6]

Until November 2008, Edelweiss Air was wholly owned by Kuoni Travel and had 190 employees,[7] when the operating rights were sold to Swiss International Air Lines, in exchange for sale rights of hotel capacities via the Swiss sales network. Following Swiss International Air Lines being acquired by the German Lufthansa Group in 2005, Edelweiss Air also became a subsidiary of Europe's largest airline group at the same time it was acquired by Swiss.[8]

Developments since 2010

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In March 2011, Edelweiss Air added the larger Airbus A330-300 to its fleet, with an order having been placed on 5 April 2010.[9] In July 2015, it was announced that Edelweiss would receive four Airbus A340-300s between 2017 and 2018 previously operated by its parent Swiss International Air Lines. The aircraft were used to expand the route network.[10]

In November 2015, Edelweiss introduced a revised livery on one of its Airbus A320-200s which was subsequently applied to the rest of the airline's fleet.[11] In December 2016, Edelweiss Air phased out its sole Airbus A330-200, which was transferred to Brussels Airlines and replaced by Airbus A340-300s inherited from parent Swiss.[12] In 2021, Lufthansa moved Edelweiss Air's two Airbus A330-300s to Eurowings Discover.[13]

Destinations

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As of August 2024, Edelweiss Air flies (or has flown) to the following destinations:[14]

Country City Airport Notes Refs
Argentina Buenos Aires Ministro Pistarini International Airport Terminated [14][15]
Brazil Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro/Galeão International Airport Terminated [14]
Salvador Salvador Bahia Airport Terminated [14]
Bulgaria Varna Varna Airport Seasonal [14]
Cape Verde Boa Vista Aristides Pereira International Airport Seasonal[16]
Sal Amílcar Cabral International Airport Seasonal [14][17]
Canada Calgary Calgary International Airport Seasonal [14]
Halifax Halifax Stanfield International Airport Begins 3 July 2025 [18]
Vancouver Vancouver International Airport Seasonal [14]
Whitehorse Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport Terminated [14]
Colombia Bogotá El Dorado International Airport Seasonal [19]
Cartagena Rafael Núñez International Airport Seasonal [19]
Costa Rica Liberia Guanacaste Airport [14]
San José Juan Santamaría International Airport [14]
Croatia Pula Pula Airport Seasonal [14]
Split Split Airport Seasonal [14]
Zadar Zadar Airport Begins 28 June 2025 [20]
Cuba Havana José Martí International Airport Seasonal [14]
Varadero Juan Gualberto Gómez Airport Terminated [14][21]
Cyprus Larnaca Larnaca International Airport [14]
Paphos Paphos International Airport Seasonal [14][21]
Dominican Republic Punta Cana Punta Cana International Airport [14]
Puerto Plata Gregorio Luperón International Airport Seasonal [14][22]
Egypt Giza Sphinx International Airport Begins 2 November 2024 [23]
Hurghada Hurghada International Airport [14]
Luxor Luxor International Airport Seasonal [24]
Marsa Alam Marsa Alam International Airport [14]
Sharm El Sheikh Sharm El Sheikh International Airport [14]
Finland Ivalo Ivalo Airport Seasonal [25]
Kittilä Kittilä Airport Seasonal [26]
Kuusamo Kuusamo Airport Seasonal [27]
Rovaniemi Rovaniemi Airport Seasonal [28]
France Figari Figari–Sud Corse Airport Seasonal [14]
Greece Araxos Patras Araxos Airport Seasonal
Corfu Corfu International Airport Seasonal [14]
Chania Chania International Airport Seasonal [14][21]
Heraklion Heraklion International Airport Seasonal [14]
Kalamata Kalamata International Airport Seasonal [14]
Kos Kos International Airport Seasonal [14]
Mykonos Mykonos Airport Seasonal [14]
Rhodes Rhodes International Airport Seasonal [14]
Samos Samos International Airport Seasonal [14][21]
Santorini Santorini International Airport Seasonal [14]
Zakynthos Zakynthos International Airport Seasonal [14]
Iceland Akureyri Akureyri Airport Seasonal [14]
Reykjavík Keflavík International Airport Seasonal [14]
Italy Cagliari Cagliari Elmas Airport Seasonal [14]
Catania Catania–Fontanarossa Airport [14]
Lamezia Terme Lamezia Terme International Airport [14]
Pisa Pisa International Airport Seasonal [29]
Olbia Olbia Costa Smeralda Airport Seasonal [14]
Jamaica Montego Bay Sangster International Airport Seasonal [14]
Jordan Amman Queen Alia International Airport Resumes 9 February 2025 [30][31]
Aqaba King Hussein International Airport Resumes 9 February 2025 [30][32]
Kosovo Pristina Pristina International Airport [14]
Maldives Malé Velana International Airport Seasonal [14]
Mauritius Port Louis Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport [14]
Mexico Cancún Cancún International Airport [14]
Morocco Agadir Agadir–Al Massira Airport Seasonal [14]
Marrakesh Marrakesh Menara Airport Seasonal [14]
North Macedonia Ohrid Ohrid St. Paul the Apostle Airport Seasonal [14]
Skopje Skopje International Airport [14]
Norway Bergen Bergen Airport [14]
Tromsø Tromsø Airport Seasonal [24]
Oman Muscat Muscat International Airport Seasonal [14]
Salalah Salalah International Airport begins 25 February 2025 [33]
Portugal Faro Gago Coutinho Airport [14]
Funchal Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport [14]
Ponta Delgada João Paulo II Airport Seasonal [14]
South Africa Cape Town Cape Town International Airport Seasonal [14]
Seychelles Mahé Seychelles International Airport Seasonal [14][34]
Spain Arrecife Lanzarote Airport Seasonal [14]
Fuerteventura Fuerteventura Airport [14]
Jerez de la Frontera Jerez Airport Seasonal [14]
Ibiza Ibiza Airport Seasonal [14]
Gran Canaria Gran Canaria Airport [14]
La Palma La Palma Airport Seasonal [14][35]
Menorca Menorca Airport Seasonal [14]
Palma de Mallorca Palma de Mallorca Airport [14]
Santiago de Compostela Santiago–Rosalía de Castro Airport Seasonal [14]
Seville Seville Airport Seasonal [14]
Tenerife Tenerife South Airport [14]
Sri Lanka Colombo Bandaranaike International Airport Seasonal [14][34]
Switzerland Zurich Zurich Airport Base
Tanzania Kilimanjaro Kilimanjaro International Airport [24]
Zanzibar Abeid Amani Karume International Airport [24]
Thailand Phuket Phuket International Airport Seasonal [14]
Tunisia Djerba Djerba–Zarzis International Airport Seasonal [14]
Turkey Antalya Antalya Airport Seasonal [14]
Bodrum Milas–Bodrum Airport Seasonal [14]
Dalaman Dalaman Airport Seasonal [14]
United Kingdom Bristol Bristol Airport Begins 9 June 2025 [36]
Edinburgh Edinburgh Airport [24]
Inverness Inverness Airport Terminated [24]
Newquay Newquay Airport Seasonal [37]
United States Anchorage Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport Terminated [14]
Denver Denver International Airport Seasonal [14][21]
Las Vegas Harry Reid International Airport Seasonal [14]
San Diego San Diego International Airport Terminated [14]
Orlando Orlando International Airport Terminated [14]
Seattle Seattle–Tacoma International Airport Begins 2 June 2025 [38]
Tampa Tampa International Airport [14]
Vietnam Ho Chi Minh City Tan Son Nhat International Airport Terminated [14][34]

Codeshare agreements

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Fleet

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Edelweiss Air Airbus A320-200
Edelweiss Air Airbus A340-300

Current fleet

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As of June 2024, Edelweiss Air operates the following aircraft:[40]

Edelweiss Air fleet
Aircraft In service Orders Passengers Notes
J Y+ Y Total
Airbus A320-200 14[41] — — — 174 174
Airbus A340-300 5[41] — 27 76 211 314 To be retired.[42]
Airbus A350-900 — 6 30 63 246 339 To replace Airbus A340-300 from 2025.[42][43]
Total 19 6

Former fleet

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In the past, Edelweiss Air has previously operated the following aircraft:

Edelweiss Air former fleet
Aircraft Total Introduced Retired Ref
Airbus A330-200 2 2000 2016 [12]
Airbus A330-300 2 2011 2021 [13]
McDonnell Douglas MD-83 3 1996 1999 [44]

References

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  1. ^ "IATA - Airline and Airport Code Search". iata.org. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
  2. ^ "Edelweiss Air Fleet Details and History". Archived from the original on 23 February 2011. Retrieved 21 October 2010.
  3. ^ "List of AOC Holders with Complex Airplanes" (PDF). Federal Office of Civil Aviation. 28 March 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 April 2018. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  4. ^ "Deutsche Lufthansa AG" (PDF). Deutsche Lufthansa AG. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  5. ^ "Ground Map". Edelweiss Air. Archived from the original on 24 September 2011. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
  6. ^ "Edelweiss Air History & Awards". Archived from the original on 5 June 2009.
  7. ^ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 3 April 2007. p. 76.
  8. ^ "Swiss International buys Edelweiss Air" (Press release).
  9. ^ "Edelweiss orders A330".
  10. ^ "Edelweiss Air to add one more A320, three Swiss A340s". ch-aviation. 9 July 2015.
  11. ^ "Edelweiss Switzerland Flugzeuge erhalten neues Design" [Edelweiss Switzerland aircraft get a new design]. ZRH-Spotter (in German). 14 November 2015.
  12. ^ a b "Switzerland's Edelweiss Air ends A330-200 operations". ch-aviation. 27 December 2016.
  13. ^ a b aerotelegraph.com (German) 1 July 2021
  14. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw ax ay az ba bb bc bd be bf bg bh bi bj bk bl bm bn bo bp bq br bs bt bu bv bw bx by bz ca "Holiday Destinations". Edelweiss Air.
  15. ^ "Media Relations | Edelweiss". Archived from the original on 21 November 2018. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  16. ^ "Zürich-Flughafen, 6. Juli 2022".
  17. ^ "Edelweiss Air adds 3 African routes in 4Q20". Routesonline. 27 August 2020.
  18. ^ "Edelweiss expands long haul network with two new destinations as of summer 2025".
  19. ^ a b "EDELWEISS AIR SCHEDULES COLOMBIA LAUNCH IN NOV 2023". aeroroutes.com. 13 April 2023.
  20. ^ "Edelweiss with five new holiday destinations in summer 2025".
  21. ^ a b c d e "Media Relations | Edelweiss". Archived from the original on 28 August 2018. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  22. ^ "Flug Zürich - Puerto Plata, Dominikanische Republik | Edelweiss".
  23. ^ "Edelweiss Air NW24 MENA Network Expansion".
  24. ^ a b c d e f "Zürich-Flughafen, 6. Juli 2022".
  25. ^ "Edelweiss Air Expands Finland Service in NW24".
  26. ^ "Edelweiss Air Expands Finland Service in NW24".
  27. ^ "Edelweiss Air Expands Finland Service in NW24".
  28. ^ "Edelweiss Air Expands Finland Service in NW24".
  29. ^ "Zürich-Flughafen, 4. Juni 2022".
  30. ^ a b "EDELWEISS AIR ADDS JORDAN SERVICE FROM FEB 2023". Aeroroutes. 9 September 2022.
  31. ^ "Flüge von Zürich nach Amman, Jordanien | Edelweiss".
  32. ^ "Flüge von Zürich nach Amman, Jordanien | Edelweiss".
  33. ^ "Edelweiss Air NW24 MENA Network Expansion".
  34. ^ a b c "Media Relations | Edelweiss". Archived from the original on 28 August 2018. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  35. ^ "Media Relations | Edelweiss". Archived from the original on 28 August 2018. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  36. ^ {{cite web|url=https://www.aviation24.be/airlines/lufthansa-group/swiss/edelweiss/edelweiss-expands-summer-2025-network-with-five-new-holiday-destinations/amp/
  37. ^ "Zurich". Cornwall Airport Newquay. Retrieved 5 July 2022.
  38. ^ "Edelweiss expands long haul network with two new destinations as of summer 2025".
  39. ^ "Air Canada Begins Edelweiss Air Codeshare in NS24".
  40. ^ "Fleet | Edelweiss". www.flyedelweiss.com. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  41. ^ a b "SWISS and Edelweiss Air - Lufthansa Group". www.lufthansagroup.com. Retrieved 26 August 2023.
  42. ^ a b "Swiss Leisure Airline Edelweiss Will Procure LATAM's Airbus A350-900 To Phase Out Its A340-300 Long-haul Fleet". FL360Aero. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  43. ^ "Edelweiss modernises its long-haul fleet with the Airbus A350-900". Edelweiss Air (Press release). Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  44. ^ "Edelweiss Air Fleet of MD80". Airfleets Aviation. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
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Media related to Edelweiss Air at Wikimedia Commons

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