easyJet

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easyJet Airline Company PLC
EasyJet logo
EasyJet Airbus A320-200
IATA code : U2
ICAO code : EZY
Call sign : EASY
Founding: 1995
Seat: Luton , UK
United KingdomUnited Kingdom 
Home airport : London Luton
Company form: Limited
ISIN : GB00B7KR2P84
Management: Johan Lundgren
(since December 1, 2017)
Number of employees: 8446 (2012)
Sales: 5.4 billion euros (2013)
Profit: 777.3 million euros (2015)
Passenger volume: 80.2 million (2017)
Frequent Flyer Program : Flight Club
Fleet size: 341 (+ 110 orders) (including easyJet Switzerland and easyJet Europe)
Aims: National and international
Website: easyjet.com

EasyJet is a British airline and part of the easyGroup . In addition to the easyJet Airline Company based in Luton near London , there are the subsidiaries easyJet Switzerland , based in Meyrin, Switzerland, and easyJet Europe , based in Vienna . EasyJet is the second largest European low-cost airline after the Irish Ryanair .

history

1990s - foundation

EasyJet was founded on October 18, 1995 by Stelios Haji-Ioannou , whose father owns the Greek shipping company Stelios . To start the airline, Haji-Ioannou borrowed five million pounds from his family. The first two aircraft to bear the easyJet logo were two Boeing 737-200s leased from British Airways and operated on the London Luton to Glasgow and Edinburgh routes. EasyJet is still based in Luton to this day.

EasyJet founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou was named "London Entrepreneur of the Year" at the 1999 London of the Year Awards by London Electricity . In the same year, the readers of the Business Traveler magazine voted easyJet as “Best Low-Cost Airline”. In December 1999 Marketing magazine described the creation of easyJet as "one of the 100 great marketing events of the 20th century".

In the fall of 1999, easyJet's online sales reached one million flights. A year later, in October 2000, easyJet went public on the London Stock Exchange . EasyJet started its presence at London Stansted Airport , up to which point London Luton was the central base in Greater London.

2000s

EasyJet Boeing 737-700
EasyJet Airbus A321-200

In the summer of 2002, when easyJet had a fleet of 30 Boeing 737s for 40 routes, the airline took over the former British Airways low-cost subsidiary Go Fly , which at the time of the takeover was operating 27 Boeing 737-300s and thus maintained 38 routes. The Go Fly brand was completely abandoned after the takeover and fully integrated into easyJet.

Until September 2003, easyJet flew exclusively with the Boeing 737 aircraft , which many other low-cost airlines also use. In October 2002 the company announced that from now on it would give preference to Airbus and order 120 copies of the Airbus A319-100 , the first of which were delivered in autumn 2003. This type of aircraft was chosen because an Airbus of the 320 family has, among other things, a wider center aisle than a Boeing 737 and thus enables supposedly faster entry and exit. On the A319 for easyJet, the number of emergency exits above the wings has been increased from two to four in order to be able to evacuate the aircraft within the legally prescribed 90 seconds despite the tight seating.

EasyJet entered the German market for the first time in April 2004, initially offering 23 routes from Schönefeld , Cologne and Dortmund airports .

On May 28, 2004, the check-in of an entire flight at Nottingham East Midlands Airport was processed for the first time using the new and groundbreaking self-check-in machines. Another milestone in easyJet's company history is May 18, 2005, when the 100 millionth passenger was welcomed.

EasyJet was Europe's fourth largest airline in 2007 and, in terms of the number of passengers carried, the third largest low-cost airline in the world after the US Southwest Airlines and Irish Ryanair . In 2006 easyJet carried a total of 33.6 million passengers.

On October 25, 2007, easyJet announced the acquisition of the British airline GB Airways for £ 103.5 million from the British Bland Group . This acquisition expanded the fleet by 15 aircraft (9  Airbus A320-200s and 6  Airbus A321-200s ). However, the airline was not integrated into the company until March 30, 2008, as a franchise agreement with British Airways existed up to that date . With the purchase easyJet promised further expansion at London-Gatwick Airport , on which it owned 24% of all slots at the airport after the purchase . The take-off and landing rights at London Heathrow Airport were not included in the takeover.

2010s

Founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou resigned from the easyJet board of directors in May 2010 with immediate effect. The reason he gave was that he did not agree with the company's expansion strategy and wanted to concentrate entirely on the role of shareholder.

In May 2011, easyJet received its 200th aircraft from Airbus . This A320-200 was therefore given a special paint job entirely in orange.

On April 23, 2012 an Airbus A319 of the airline was christened in the name of the former Federal Chancellor Willy Brandt at Berlin-Schönefeld Airport , the future Berlin Brandenburg Airport .

In June 2012, easyJet announced the closure of its base in Madrid due to high fees and market saturation.

EasyJet A319 on the runway at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport

In February 2015 easyJet presented a new livery after 16 years. The planes now have an orange stripe on the fuselage. According to the company, the paintwork exudes “modern simplicity”.

On October 28, 2017, it was announced that easyJet will take over parts of the Air Berlin business (25 leased Airbus A320s and take-off and landing rights at Berlin-Tegel Airport ) from the insolvent Air Berlin for EUR 40 million .

Brexit

Due to the planned withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union and the risk of EasyJet losing air traffic rights as a result, the airline has applied for a European Air Operator Certificate in Austria . This will ensure that Easyjet will be able to offer “flights throughout Europe and also within EU countries” even after the planned exit from the EU, as the airline announced on July 14, 2017.

A new corporate structure is also planned. Easyjet wants to become a pan-European airline group with three airlines in Austria, Switzerland and Great Britain as well as a trade and service company based in Great Britain. All three airlines are said to be subsidiaries of Easyjet plc. Easyjet plc will continue to be listed on the London Stock Exchange and will be based in the UK, but will be at least 50% EU owned.

On July 20, 2017, the first machine of EasyJet landed with Austrian national emblem OE-IVAat the airport Vienna Schwechat . The group announced that a third of the airline should continue to operate in Vienna and did not rule out stationing part of its fleet there.

2020s

At the end of March 2020, easyjet suspended all flights for an indefinite period due to the global COVID-19 pandemic and the associated flight restrictions. According to its own information, easyjet carried out over 650 return flights for more than 45,000 stranded passengers as part of the corona pandemic.

Companies

Hangar 89 , easyJet's headquarters in Luton
Special paint job for the 100th easyJet Airbus
Special painting of the 200th easyJet Airbus

easyJet is majority owned by the Haji-Ioannou family, who currently hold 38% of the company's shares (as of May 2010). Stelios also controls other companies from the " easy group " as easyInternetcafé , easyCar, easy money and easy value. There are no mutual interests between easyJet and other companies of the "easyGroup", but some cross-company marketing initiatives are carried out. The airline is based at Luton Airport and currently has locations in the UK and mainland Europe. easyJet is therefore a purely European company.

EasyJet follows a no-frills concept . Costs are kept low by avoiding the traditional airline costs and extras. This includes, among other things, the restriction to direct sales via the Internet and call centers as well as the waiver of free meals, drinks or newspapers. easyJet was the first low-cost airline to offer online check-in, enabling customers to print out their boarding pass before leaving for the airport.

Since the end of 2009, easyJet has offered all passengers with hold baggage the option of checking in online. Online check-in for hold baggage is possible at 95 of 113 easyJet airports and on almost all flights. There are no additional check-in fees. The additional booking of Speedy Boarding during the online booking process gives passengers the opportunity to get on board before the usual groups.

EasyJet relies on an informal corporate culture with a very flat management structure. Teleworking and "hot desks" are part of the easyJet concept. All office workers can and should dress casually. The easyJet flight crew has been wearing a new uniform since the end of 2007, for which the employees first submitted design proposals and then voted.

EasyJet causes lower emissions per passenger-kilometer than most other airlines due to its younger fleet, denser aircraft seating and higher seat occupancy. According to its own information, the company emits 27 percent fewer pollutants per seat than other airlines that use the same type of aircraft. Furthermore, an environmental charter was published, which is supposed to document how the environmental impact of society is monitored and reduced. According to the company, since November 19, 2019, all CO 2 emissions caused by fuel combustion during the flight have been fully offset . However, this neglects the greenhouse effect of other exhaust gases (soot, water vapor, nitrogen oxides) and is therefore referred to as greenwashing by the Federal Environment Agency .

Profit development (after taxes)
2007 £ 152.3 million
2008 £ 83.2 million
2009 £ 71.2 million
2010 £ 121.3 million
2011 £ 248 million
2012 £ 255 million
2013 £ 398 million
2014 £ 450 million
2015 £ 548 million
2016 £ 427 million
2017 £ 305 million
2018 £ 358 million
2019 £ 349 million

Destinations

Cabin on board an Airbus A319-100 of the EasyJet
An easyJet 2007 e-ticket
EasyJet's goals in 2007

EasyJet now operates several hundred routes between numerous countries in Europe and North Africa as well as Turkey and Israel . Unlike many of its competitors, easyJet mainly uses larger international airports. In Rome, for example, it does not fly to Rome-Ciampino Airport , but rather the more important Rome-Fiumicino Airport .

Germany

In December 2003, easyJet announced that it would use Berlin-Schönefeld Airport as a base from May 2004 with initially six aircraft, where it has been using Terminal B , which was specially redesigned for it , and has plans for expansion. From 2004, Dortmund became the company's second German base; here too, the size of the fleet and route network were further expanded, but significantly reduced again from the end of 2007 until the Dortmund base was finally abandoned in October 2008. Since 2009, however, the offer to Dortmund has been increased again from other bases. This was followed by successive German destination airports: Cologne / Bonn from June 2004, Hamburg , Munich , Düsseldorf from November 2009 and Dresden from December 2010. In 2015, Stuttgart Airport was added to the route network. The first domestic flight from Berlin to Munich took place on January 5, 2018.

In 2017 easyJet took over part of the take-off and landing rights of the insolvent Air Berlin at Berlin-Tegel Airport for 40 million euros . As of 2018, 250 flights per week will be offered in addition to European destinations on the domestic German routes to Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Sylt, Stuttgart, Cologne and Munich previously flown by Air Berlin.

Switzerland

The first easyJet aircraft took off from Geneva to London-Luton as early as 1997 . In 1999 seven destinations were flown to, in summer 2009 there were already 47, which are served by eight Airbus A319-100 stationed here . EasyJet has been operating another base at the binational Basel-Mulhouse airport since summer 2004 , because the company found the costs at Zurich airport too high. Six Airbus A319-100s now serve over 30 destinations from here. Since September 18, 2007, easyJet has also been flying to and from Zurich again.

EasyJet Switzerland is an independent company and essentially consists of the former charter airline TEA Switzerland . easyJet bought 40% of TEA Switzerland in 1998, later the stake was increased to 49%. All easyJet Switzerland aircraft are registered in Switzerland (HB-…), while all easyJet aircraft up to registration in Austria (see: #Brexit ) had British aircraft registration numbers (G-….).

Austria

EasyJet's presence in Austria began on October 29, 2007 with a connection from Vienna to London-Luton, followed by flights to and from Innsbruck on December 14, 2007. New from August 4, 2018 is the connection from Berlin-Tegel to Graz, so that the 5th Austrian airport (Klagenfurt, Vienna, Innsbruck and Salzburg) serves the easyJet.

At the beginning of July 2017 it was announced that easyJet intends to set up a new subsidiary in Austria under the brand name easyJet Europe . On July 19, 2017, the operating license (AOC) was issued and just one day later the first aircraft registered in Austria with the new license plate took off OE-IVAfor a flight from Luton to Vienna. easyJet plans to re-register 110 aircraft by March 2019.

Codeshare

Under the name Worldwide , EasyJet has been offering feeder flights for Norwegian , WestJet , Aurigny Air Services , Corsair International , La Compagnie , Loganair , Neos , Thomas Cook , Scoot and Singapore Airlines since September 2017 . The partnership is not code-sharing or interlining , which means that the customer has to check in his checked baggage again on the onward flight.

fleet

Airbus A319-100 of EasyJet with current livery
Airbus A320-200 of EasyJet Switzerland
Airbus A320neo of the EasyJet
BAe 146-200 of the WDL in service with Easyjet

EasyJet

As of July 2020, the easyJet fleet consists of 171 aircraft with an average age of 8.3 years:

Aircraft type number ordered Remarks Seats
( Eco )
Average age
Airbus A319-100 071 156 13.3 years
Airbus A320-200 054 180/186 07.3 years
Airbus A320neo 036 93 * Delivery from June 2017 to 2022, with CFM International LEAP-1A ; + 83 options 186 01.6 years
Airbus A321neo 009 17 * Delivery since mid-2018, with CFM International LEAP-1A ; 235 01.2 years
total 171 110 * 08.3 years

* The orders relate to the group, it is unclear where exactly the aircraft ordered will be used.

EasyJet Switzerland

As of July 2020, the EasyJet Switzerland fleet consists of 30 aircraft with an average age of 7.2 years:

Aircraft type active ordered Remarks Seats
( Eco )
Average age
Airbus A319-100 07th 156 9.2 years
Airbus A320-200 23 186 6.6 years
total 30th 7.2 years

EasyJet Europe

As of July 2020, the EasyJet Europe fleet consists of 140 aircraft with an average age of 7.6 years:

Aircraft type active ordered Remarks Seats
( Eco )
Average age
Airbus A319-100 044 156 11.5 years
Airbus A320-200 092 180/186 6.0 years
Airbus A321neo 004th0 235 0.4 years
total 140 7.6 years
Historic fleet
Aircraft type number annotation Floating Extermination
Airbus A321-200 9 2008 2010
Boeing 737-200 2 1995 1997
Boeing 737-300 49 1996 2006
Boeing 737-700 33 2000 2011
Boeing 757-200 4th were only used during the summer 2010 2010
British Aerospace 146-200 3 were only used during the summer 2018 2018
British Aerospace 146-300 1 was only used during the summer 2018 2018

criticism

EasyJet is accused of regularly disregarding the rights of passengers according to EU Directive 261/2004. Passengers would not be informed about their rights in the event of a flight cancellation. Compensation payments under EU Directive 261/2004 would be delayed and illegally refused. Typically, written complaints are not answered. Many passengers do not assert their rights because flight cancellations are extremely frequent and are incorrectly justified by force majeure or strikes. In fact, Easyjet is not in a position to actually operate all the flights sold due to a lack of staff. There is no regular telephone number for press inquiries either, a postal address only at London-Luton Airport. Most emails would not be answered. On-site service staff belonged to external companies and could not book replacement flights. In the event of a flight cancellation, the passengers would have to make rebooking themselves via the Internet and also take care of finding a suitable Internet connection at the airport. In the event of cancellation by the customer, the flight price will not be refunded according to the terms and conditions.

Easyjet is also criticized for its handling of disabled people. In January 2012, the company was fined 70,000 euros for discrimination by a Paris court for not allowing disabled customers on board unaccompanied. EasyJet relied on a European safety regulation that allows passengers to be refused in exceptional cases. In May 2012, the company was sentenced to a fine of 14,000 euros for denying boarding of a disabled passenger.

In 2017, the gender pay gap was almost 52 percent, according to the publication of in-house data forced by the Equal Pay Act , which, according to EasyJet, is mainly due to the fact that around 70% of the 2900 flight attendants but only around 5% of the 1493 significantly better paid pilots are female. EasyJet has therefore launched the " Amy Johnson Initiative" program. This program is intended to ensure that the proportion of women among new pilots will rise to 20% as early as 2020.

See also

literature

Web links

Commons : EasyJet  - Collection of Images
 Wikinews: easyJet  - in the news
Wikivoyage: Easyjet  Travel Guide

Individual evidence

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