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Flyglobespan was a
Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...
low-cost airline A low-cost carrier (LCC) or low-cost airline, also called a budget, or discount carrier or airline, is an airline that is operated with an emphasis on minimizing operating costs. It sacrifices certain traditional airline luxuries for cheaper fa ...
based in
Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
. It operated scheduled services from five airports across Scotland, England and Ireland to destinations in Europe, North America, North Africa and
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
. Its main bases were
Glasgow Airport Glasgow Airport, also known as Glasgow International Airport () and formerly Abbotsinch Airport, is an international airport located in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland, west of Glasgow city centre. In 2019 it handled 8.84 million passe ...
,
Edinburgh Airport Edinburgh Airport is an international airport located in the Ingliston area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located west of the city centre, just off the M8 motorway (Scotland), M8 and M9 motorway (Scotland), M9 motorways. It is owned and oper ...
,
Aberdeen Airport Aberdeen International Airport is an international airport, located in the Dyce suburb of Aberdeen, Scotland, approximately northwest of Aberdeen city centre. As of 2023, 1.9 million people used the airport. The airport is owned and opera ...
and
Liverpool John Lennon Airport Liverpool John Lennon Airport is an international airport serving Liverpool, England, on the estuary of the River Mersey south-east of Liverpool city centre. Scheduled domestic, European, North African and Middle Eastern services are oper ...
. The airline's slogan was "Award-winning airline". It went into administration due to financial problems and the airline declared bankruptcy on 16 December 2009.Flyglobespan goes into administration
/ref> Because of the administration, Flyglobespan cancelled all of its scheduled flights. On 14 December 2010, the business was declared to be in liquidation.


History

Flyglobespan (a trading name for Globespan Airways Limited) was established in November 2002 as an offshoot of the Globespan Group. Operations started in April 2003 using two
Boeing 737-300 The Boeing 737 Classic is a series of narrow-body airliners produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes, the second generation of the Boeing 737 series of aircraft. Development began in 1979 and the first variant, the 737-300, first flew in Febru ...
aircraft provided by
Channel Express Channel Express (Air Services) Limited was an airline with its head office in Building 470 at Bournemouth Airport in Christchurch, Dorset, near Bournemouth.Glasgow Prestwick Airport Glasgow Prestwick Airport (), commonly referred to as Prestwick Airport, is an international airport serving the west of Scotland, situated northeast of the town of Prestwick, and southwest of Glasgow, Scotland. It is the less busy of the two ...
and
Edinburgh Airport Edinburgh Airport is an international airport located in the Ingliston area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located west of the city centre, just off the M8 motorway (Scotland), M8 and M9 motorway (Scotland), M9 motorways. It is owned and oper ...
to five destinations in
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
,
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
and
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
. Globespan, an Edinburgh-based tour operator with over 30 years' experience, already offered scheduled and charter flights, cruise travel, rail and coach travel, motorhome and car rental, and hotel accommodation tailored for holidaymakers visiting destinations in
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
, the
USA The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...
and
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
. The scheduled flights, mainly to Canada, were operated by
Air Transat Air Transat () is a List of airlines of Canada, Canadian airline headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1986, it operates scheduled and charter flights serving 60 destinations in 25 countries. Air Transat is owned and operated by Transa ...
from airports throughout the UK, with Globespan acting as the booking agent and selling the flights under its own brand. In summer 2002 a similar arrangement was trialled between Edinburgh and
Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one millionFrance France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. This was to prove successful for Globespan, and led to the creation of its own
no-frills A no-frills or no frills service or product is one for which the non-essential features have been removed to keep the price low. The term " frills" originally refers to a style of fabric decoration. Something offered to customers for no additional ...
brand, 'Flyglobespan'. Services began in 2003 with aircraft and crews provided by Channel Express, though under the Flyglobespan brand with red and white
livery A livery is an identifying design, such as a uniform, ornament, symbol, or insignia that designates ownership or affiliation, often found on an individual or vehicle. Livery often includes elements of the heraldry relating to the individual or ...
, offering irregular flights to European holiday destinations. The offshoot proved successful and flight frequencies were increased. At this point, the operator relocated from
Prestwick Prestwick () is a town in South Ayrshire on the west coast of Ayrshire in Scotland about southwest of Glasgow. It adjoins the larger town of Ayr to the south on the Firth of Clyde coast, the centre of which is about south, and the small vi ...
to the larger
Glasgow Airport Glasgow Airport, also known as Glasgow International Airport () and formerly Abbotsinch Airport, is an international airport located in Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland, west of Glasgow city centre. In 2019 it handled 8.84 million passe ...
, which is much closer to the population centres of Central Scotland, within months of commencing operation. In 2004 so it could operate its own aircraft, the Globespan Group bought the defunct airline operator
Cougar Leasing The cougar (''Puma concolor'') (, '' KOO-gər''), also called puma, mountain lion, catamount and panther is a large small cat native to the Americas. It inhabits North, Central and South America, making it the most widely distributed wild ...
along with its
Civil Aviation Authority of the United Kingdom The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is the statutory corporation which oversees and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the United Kingdom. Its areas of responsibility include: * Supervising the issuing of pilots and aircraft engineers ...
(CAA) Aircraft
Operating Certificate Operating certificate is a category of license issued by a government agency allowing an individual or company to provide a controlled type of service. These certificates are generally issued for a limited time period. Certificates can have intr ...
. Now with its own Operating Licence, expansion was swift for the new airline. New destinations were added to the network, including
Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
, where the airline faced competition from
Czech Airlines Czech Airlines (abbreviation: ČSA, ) is a Czech Republic, Czech aviation brand and privately held holding company. Between 1923 and 2024, it operated as an independent airline and served as the flag carrier of the Czech Republic. Czech Airlines ...
, and further points in Spain, including the
Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...
. CSA withdrew its Glasgow to Prague service on 1 August 2005. By March 2005 the airline had grown to offer 15 destinations across Europe, with a fleet of nine aircraft—of which three were leased from new—and had tripled its passenger numbers to 1.5 million annually. Profits for the year ending October 2004 had risen from £2m in its first year to £3.7m, on a turnover of £98m. BBC's ''
Watchdog Watchdog or watch dog may refer to: Animals *Guard dog, a dog that barks to alert its owners of an intruder's presence * Portuguese Watchdog, Cão de Castro Laboreiro, a dog breed * Moscow Watchdog, a breed of dog that was bred in the Soviet U ...
'' programme featured the airline for a second time on 28 November 2007, where the airline was primarily featured for complaints due to a flight stopping 600 miles before its destination because the cabin crew were up to their safety limit in working hours. The CAA's suspension of the airline's
ETOPS The Extended-range Twin-engine Operations Performance Standards (ETOPS) () are safety standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) for Twinjet, twin-engine commercial passenger aircraft operations. They are a safety measu ...
licence was also featured.


Domestic services

In May 2005, the first domestic services were launched, with twice-daily flights from
Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
and
Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
to
London Stansted Stansted Airport is an international airport serving London, the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It is located near Stansted Mountfitchet, Uttlesford, Essex, northeast of Central London. As London's third-busiest airport, Stan ...
- routes that were already operated by the much larger low fares carrier
easyJet EasyJet plc (styled as easyJet) is a British multinational low-cost airline group headquartered at London Luton Airport. It operates domestic and international scheduled services on 927 routes in more than 34 countries via its affiliate airlin ...
, with much higher frequencies. However, these services were withdrawn in February 2006, together with plans to serve
Bournemouth Bournemouth ( ) is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. At the 2021 census, the built-up area had a population of 196,455, making it the largest ...
from Edinburgh.


Fuel costs

Despite high fuel costs and intense competition in the no-frills market, the airline continued to expand. Flights from London Stansted commenced in October 2005, though a new daily service between Glasgow and
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
, replacing the twice-daily easyJet service between the two cities, was withdrawn in June 2006 due to low passenger numbers. On 1 November 2005, Flyglobespan announced its first long-haul service, from Glasgow to
Orlando Sanford International Airport Orlando Sanford International Airport is a commercial, public use airport in Sanford, Florida, United States, near Orlando. It was built as Naval Air Station Sanford, a Master Jet Base for carrier-based attack and reconnaissance aircraft, ...
in
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
, US. The service commenced in June 2006 and was operated by a
Boeing 767 The Boeing 767 is an American wide-body airliner developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The aircraft was launched as the 7X7 program on July 14, 1978, the prototype first flew on September 26, 1981, and it was certified ...
aircraft in a three-class configuration. The three classes were Economy, Premium Economy and Business Class which included 50-inch sleeper seats, 'gourmet' food, and wines.
Alicante Alicante (, , ; ; ; officially: ''/'' ) is a city and municipalities of Spain, municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Alicante and a historic Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean port. The population ...
and
Málaga Málaga (; ) is a Municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 591,637 in 2024, it is the second-most populo ...
services were upgraded to twice-daily throughout the summer for 2006, and
Murcia Murcia ( , , ) is a city in south-eastern Spain, the Capital (political), capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of the Region of Murcia, and the Ranked lists of Spanish municipalities#By population, seventh largest city i ...
was served daily.
Fuerteventura Fuerteventura () is one of the Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean, geographically part of Macaronesia, and politically part of Spain. It is located away from the coast of North Africa. The island was declared a biosphere reserve by UNESCO i ...
was added to the winter 2006 schedule. Weekly services linking Glasgow with
Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
and
Heraklion Heraklion or Herakleion ( ; , , ), sometimes Iraklion, is the largest city and the administrative capital city, capital of the island of Crete and capital of Heraklion (regional unit), Heraklion regional unit. It is the fourth largest city in G ...
were launched in May 2006 for the summer season. In June 2006, the airline announced plans to operate from
Aberdeen Airport Aberdeen International Airport is an international airport, located in the Dyce suburb of Aberdeen, Scotland, approximately northwest of Aberdeen city centre. As of 2023, 1.9 million people used the airport. The airport is owned and opera ...
after 24-hour airport operation there had been confirmed. The first route to operate from Aberdeen was
Tenerife Tenerife ( ; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands, an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. With a land area of and a population of 965,575 inhabitants as of A ...
, which commenced in winter 2006. It also announced routes to Alicante, Barcelona, Faro, Murcia, Palma and Paphos, which commenced in summer 2007.


Long-haul expansion

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
was added to the Flyglobespan network from November 2006, with flights to Tenerife. The airline began Liverpool's first long-haul flight, to
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
(
JFK John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until Assassination of John F. Kennedy, his assassination in 1963. He was the first Catholic Chur ...
), using
Boeing 757-200 The Boeing 757 is an American narrow-body airliner designed and built by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The then-named 7N7, a twinjet successor for the trijet 727, received its first orders in August 1978. The prototype completed its maiden ...
aircraft, daily in May 2007. However, after a series of problems with the service, due largely to reliability problems with the route's sole aircraft which resulted in frequent major delays on the service, Flyglobespan announced in early July that they would abandon the route in October of the same year, only six months after its inception. Flights to
Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a 2021 Canadian census, population of 569,353 (2021), and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which encompasses ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
from
Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
started in November, with two of the three weekly flights. It also commenced a three times a week service from Manchester to
Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...
,
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
on 4 November 2006, but this service was withdrawn at the end of the 2007 summer season. Flyglobespan started new services in May 2007 from Hamilton/John C. Munro International Airport, Canada to destinations in the UK and Ireland, including Doncaster-Sheffield Airport; this was the first scheduled transatlantic flight to operate from the airport. Hamilton Airport is located between Toronto and nearby Niagara Falls, about 75 kilometres southwest, or an hour's drive from, Toronto's main Pearson International Airport. Hamilton Airport is about one hour away from Toronto's city centre whereas Pearson International Airport is about thirty minutes away. Flyglobespan commenced services in May 2007 from
Ireland West Airport Ireland West Airport , officially known as Ireland West Airport Knock, and formerly known as Horan International Airport, commonly known as Knock Airport, is an international airport south-west of Charlestown, County Mayo, Ireland. The villa ...
to
John F. Kennedy International Airport John F. Kennedy International Airport is a major international airport serving New York City and its metropolitan area. JFK Airport is located on the southwestern shore of Long Island, in Queens, New York City, bordering Jamaica Bay. It is ...
with three services a week, and
Boston Logan International Airport General Edward Lawrence Logan International Airport — also known as Boston Logan International Airport — is an international airport located mostly in East Boston and partially in Winthrop, Massachusetts, United States. Covering , it has ...
twice a week. Some flights from Knock to New York made unscheduled refuelling stops at a number of remote locations including Keflavik,
Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...
(though this is an exception, when they stopped at a major hub);
Bangor, Maine Bangor ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Penobscot County, Maine, United States. The city proper has a population of 31,753, making it the state's List of municipalities in Maine, third-most populous city, behind Portland, Maine, Portland ...
; Stephenville and St. John's, Newfoundland. These refueling stops were scheduled when a 737-800 was used instead of the usual 757-200. In 2007, Flyglobespan had its Skytrax rating withdrawn and suspended, owing to "product and service inconsistency". The airline did not regain its rating.


Financial difficulties

In July 2008, Globespan lost its ability to get insurance industry credit card repayment cover, before the collapse of
Zoom Zoom may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film * ''Zoom'' (2006 film), starring Tim Allen * ''Zoom'' (2015 film), a Canada-Brazil film by Pedro Morelli * ''Zoom'' (2016 Kannada film), a Kannada film * ''Zoom'' (2016 Sinhala film), a Sr ...
and XL. From that point, credit card clearing company
E-Clear E-Clear was a British payment processor that provided merchant accounts for companies, allowing them to accept credit cards. E-Clear specialized in the travel industry in the United Kingdom. Members of the company's board included Elias Elia, ...
, whose CEO was Elias Elia, rather than paying the normal amounts of cash to Globespan, argued that in certain cases passengers could make valid claims against them via the credit card companies up to six months after having taken their flight. E-Clear hence held a greater amount of money paid through them to Globespan. By October 2009, the amount of money owed by E-Clear to Globespan was in dispute; Globespan later claimed it to be £35m. After various discussions, Globespan asked E-Clear to agree to independent audit of the sums, which was turned down by E-Clear. Also at this point, Halcyon Investments—the operational arm of an August 2008
Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...
-based trust fund—offered to make a large investment in Globespan. Halcyon's investors included Elias Elia. In November 2009, ''
The Independent on Sunday ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publishe ...
'' reported that Flyglobespan had required a 'last-ditch cash injection' as a result of cash flow difficulties caused following delays in payment by a credit card clearing company, E-Clear. Concerns regarding the future of the airline resurfaced on 13 December 2009 when several newspapers reported that Flyglobespan had so far been unsuccessful in obtaining regulatory approval for the funding package from Halcyon Investments. ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' suggested that Halcyon Investments was controlled by
E-Clear E-Clear was a British payment processor that provided merchant accounts for companies, allowing them to accept credit cards. E-Clear specialized in the travel industry in the United Kingdom. Members of the company's board included Elias Elia, ...
. The company stated it had "secured a financial investment package that will see Scotland's leading airline continue to prosper and grow".


End of operation

The Globespan Group PLC, Globespan Airways Limited and Alba Ground Handling Limited ceased operations on 16 December 2009 and were placed into
administration Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal: the process of dealing with or controlling things or people. ** Administrative assistant, traditionally known as a se ...
on 17 December with
PriceWaterhouseCoopers PricewaterhouseCoopers, also known as PwC, is a multinational professional services network based in London, United Kingdom. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is one of the Big Four accounting firms, alon ...
appointed as the administrator. The last flight was GSM706 from Hurghada to Glasgow which landed at 2230 on 16 December. On 19 January 2010, a High Court judge granted an administration order, following a request from PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC), against credit card processing firm E-Clear UK which handled all of Globespan's credit card transactions. Bruce Cartwright, Joint Administrator, of PricewaterhouseCoopers stated after E-Clear UK's Administration that it was clear the funds withheld from the Globespan Group were no longer there.


Destinations

It was announced in July 2007 that the
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
to
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
and the
Ireland West Airport Ireland West Airport , officially known as Ireland West Airport Knock, and formerly known as Horan International Airport, commonly known as Knock Airport, is an international airport south-west of Charlestown, County Mayo, Ireland. The villa ...
service would be suspended for the winter season from 30 October. The company gave the reason as poor passenger figures on the Liverpool flights, particularly inbound passengers from the United States. The passenger figures for
Ireland West Airport Ireland West Airport , officially known as Ireland West Airport Knock, and formerly known as Horan International Airport, commonly known as Knock Airport, is an international airport south-west of Charlestown, County Mayo, Ireland. The villa ...
were higher than expected. The company also admitted to providing a poor operating service since the route was launched on 25 May 2007, which affected the passenger figures. The route was to recommence for the Summer 2008 season. The poor operating service was compounded by some PR failures and sub-standard customer service. It was announced on 18 October 2007 that the CAA had suspended Flyglobespan's
ETOPS The Extended-range Twin-engine Operations Performance Standards (ETOPS) () are safety standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) for Twinjet, twin-engine commercial passenger aircraft operations. They are a safety measu ...
certificate, the first time in 15 years a UK operator has lost ETOPS approval. This effectively meant Flyglobespan transatlantic flights were forced to adopt a flight path which never took the aircraft more than an hour away from the nearest airport, in case of engine problems. However, this only applied to Flyglobespan's own aircraft and leased-in aircraft could continue to follow ETOPS rules as these are operated by other airlines with their own ETOPS approval. Flyglobespan's ETOPS rating was reinstated at a CAA hearing on 26 October 2007. Flyglobespan operated services to the
Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; ), commonly referred to as The Falklands, is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and from Cape Dub ...
and
Ascension Island Ascension Island is an isolated volcanic island, 7°56′ south of the Equator in the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic Ocean. It is about from the coast of Africa and from the coast of South America. It is governed as part of the British Overs ...
on behalf of the UK Government. This was in support of the military and civilian communities of those islands, and involved long-haul flights between
RAF Brize Norton Royal Air Force Brize Norton or RAF Brize Norton is the largest List of Royal Air Force stations, station of the Royal Air Force. Situated in Oxfordshire, about west north-west of London, it is close to the village of Brize Norton and the tow ...
in Oxfordshire,
RAF Ascension Island RAF Ascension Island , also known as Wideawake Airfield or Ascension Island Auxiliary Field, is a military airfield and facility located on Ascension Island in the Atlantic Ocean. The airfield is jointly operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF) an ...
, and
RAF Mount Pleasant RAF Mount Pleasant (also known as Mount Pleasant Airport, Mount Pleasant Complex or MPA) is a Royal Air Force station in the British Overseas Territory of the Falkland Islands. The airfield goes by the motto of "Defend the right" (while the m ...
on East Falkland. These flights were taken over by Air Italy on a temporary basis, before another airline puts in for a permanent basis. The company also operated flights for the UK
Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...
between
RAF Brize Norton Royal Air Force Brize Norton or RAF Brize Norton is the largest List of Royal Air Force stations, station of the Royal Air Force. Situated in Oxfordshire, about west north-west of London, it is close to the village of Brize Norton and the tow ...
and staging posts in the Middle East in support of the operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.


Fleet

The Flyglobespan fleet included the following aircraft as of 16 December 2009 prior to ceasing operations: As of 16 December 2009, Flyglobespan's average fleet age was 6.3 years, prior to ceasing operations. Flyglobespan announced in August 2006 that it would lease two
Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is an American wide-body airliner developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. After dropping its unconventional Sonic Cruiser project, Boeing announced the conventional 7E7 on January 29, 2003, whi ...
s from the
International Lease Finance Corporation The International Lease Finance Corporation (ILFC) was an aircraft lessor headquartered in the Constellation Place in Century City, Los Angeles, California, US. It was the world's largest aircraft lessor by value, though ILFC's rival, Genera ...
for ten years, to be delivered in March and November 2011.Boeing 787 leasing
Due to the administration placed on 16 December 2009, the orders were cancelled.


Statistics


See also

*
List of defunct airlines of the United Kingdom This is a list of defunct airlines of the United Kingdom. See also * List of airlines of the United Kingdom * List of airports in the United Kingdom and the British Crown Dependencies References

* * {{List of defunct airlines ...


References


External links

{{Airlines of Scotland Defunct airlines of Scotland Defunct European low-cost airlines Airlines established in 2002 Airlines disestablished in 2009 Companies based in Edinburgh 2002 establishments in the United Kingdom 2009 disestablishments in the United Kingdom