Air Inter

For the Colombian airline known as Inter, see Intercontinental de Aviación.
Not to be confused with Inter Airlines.
Air Inter
IATA ICAO Call sign
IT ITF AIR INTER
Founded12 November 1954 (1954-11-12)
Commenced operations16 March 1958 (1958-03-16)
Ceased operations1 April 1997 (1997-04-01)
(merged into Air France)
HubsOrly Airport
Frequent-flyer programFréquence Plus
Parent companyAir France
Headquarters

Air Inter (legally Lignes Aériennes Intérieures) was a semi-public French domestic airline in France that operated from 1954 until it merged with Air France in 1997. It was last headquartered in Paray-Vieille-Poste, Essonne.[1][2] Earlier in its life, it was headquartered in the 1st arrondissement of Paris.[3]

Air Inter was incorporated on 12 November 1954. It operated its first commercial flight between Paris and Strasbourg on 16 March 1958. However, it was 1960 when the airline started regular commercial services.[4]

The company established its operational and engineering base at Paris-Orly Airport, where its flights were concentrated at Orly Ouest, Orly Airport's West Terminal.

Air Inter was founded as a semi-public entity to provide efficient domestic air transport at the lowest cost. Its financial backers included French public and private sector transport businesses in road, rail and air transport, as well as banks.[5]

Air France and Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer Français (SNCF), the state railway company, were Air Inter's two largest public sector shareholders, each holding 25% in the airline. Union des Transports Aériens (UTA) was its largest private sector investor. UTA initially held a 15% minority stake in Air Inter. UTA subsequently increased its shareholding to 36%, becoming the largest single shareholder.[4][6][7][8]

On 12 January 1990, Air Inter, with UTA and Air France, became part of an enlarged Air France group, which in turn became a subsidiary of Groupe Air France.[7][8] Air Inter changed to Air Inter Europe following a merger with Air France and UTA. On 1 April 1997, it was absorbed into Air France. On that day, the firm ceased to exist as a legal entity within Groupe Air France.

  1. ^ World Airline Directory. Flight International. 26 March-1 April 1997. "44.
  2. ^ "World Airline Directory." Flight International. 1 April 1989. 47.
  3. ^ "Direction des Bases Aeriennes Archived 2011-07-20 at the Wayback Machine." Direction Générale de l'Aviation Civile. March 1975. 22/28. Retrieved on 26 June 2010. "la Compagnie Air Inter - 232, rue de Rivoli - 75001 Paris"
  4. ^ a b Air France (Airline, France) Archived 2011-06-29 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ "M.R. Golder, The Changing Nature of French Dirigisme - A Case Study of Air France. Thesis submitted at Trinity College, Oxford, 1997, pp.28/9" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-07-29. Retrieved 2007-10-08.
  6. ^ AF and UTA battle for Air Inter, Air Transport, Flight International, 31 October 1987, p. 7
  7. ^ a b UTA take-over makes Air France Europe's second-favourite airline, Operations: Air Transport, Flight International, 24-30 January 1990, p. 10
  8. ^ a b The New York Times, 13 January 1990, Business - Air France Buying Into 2 Carriers