Condor (airline)

For the 1920s German-Brazilian airline, see Condor Syndikat.

Condor Flugdienst GmbH
IATA ICAO Call sign
DE[1] CFG CONDOR
Founded21 December 1955; 68 years ago (1955-12-21)
(as Deutsche Flugdienst GmbH)
Commenced operations29 March 1956; 68 years ago (1956-03-29)
Operating bases
Frequent-flyer program
Fleet size56[2]
Destinations94[3]
Parent companyAttestor Capital
HeadquartersNeu Isenburg, Hesse, Germany
Key peoplePeter Gerber [de] (CEO)
Employees4,900+
Websitewww.condor.com

Condor, legally incorporated as Condor Flugdienst GmbH, is a German airline based in Neu Isenburg, Hesse. It was established in 1955 with Frankfurt Airport as its main base. Condor offers scheduled and charter flights and operates, from Germany, medium-haul flights to the Mediterranean Basin and the Canary Islands as well as long-haul flights to destinations in Africa, Asia, North America, South America and the Caribbean. Whereas medium-haul flights are operated from many German airports and Zurich, long-haul flights usually depart from Frankfurt, with a few charter services operated from Düsseldorf and Munich.[4]

The airline was originally established as Deutsche Flugdienst GmbH on 21 December 1955. Its initial fleet consisted of three 36-passenger Vickers VC.1 Viking aircraft, the airline's first tourist-oriented flight commenced on 29 March 1956. In 1961, Deutsche Flugdienst took over its rival Condor-Luftreederei and subsequently adopted Condor Flugdienst GmbH as its operating name. During 1966, Condor launched its first long-haul flights. By this time, the airline had a majority market share of Germany's tourism air travel market. During the 1990s, Condor was restructured and merged with other businesses to become an integrated tourism concern known as C&N Touristik.

In 2000, the Condor shares held by Lufthansa were acquired by both Thomas Cook AG and Thomas Cook Group. On 4 February 2013, Thomas Cook Group announced that Thomas Cook Airlines, Thomas Cook Airlines Belgium, and Condor would be merged into a single operating segment of the Thomas Cook Group, Thomas Cook Group Airlines.

On 23 September 2019, Condor's parent company Thomas Cook Group filed bankruptcy; however, Condor received a bridge loan from the German government to remain in operation, as a subsidiary of Thomas Cook.[5][6] In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, a planned acquisition of the airline by Polish Aviation Group, owner of LOT Polish Airlines, fell through.[7][8][9] In May 2021, a majority stake in the airline was acquired by Attestor, a British investment firm.[10]

  1. ^ "IATA – Airline and Airport Code Search". iata.org. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference condorfleetofficial was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Condor on ch-aviation". ch-aviation. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  4. ^ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 3 April 2007. p. 68.
  5. ^ "The German leisure airline Condor continues flight operations". Condor Newsroom (Press release). 23 September 2019. Retrieved 23 September 2019.
  6. ^ Buyck, Cathy (25 September 2019). "Condor Secures Government-Backed Bridging Loan". Air Transport News: Aviation International News. The Convention News Company, Inc. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  7. ^ "LOT Polish Airlines owner buys Condor". CH-Aviation. 24 January 2020. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
  8. ^ "Owner of Poland's LOT airline buys Thomas Cook unit Condor". Associated Press. 24 January 2020. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference aerotime was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference newowners was invoked but never defined (see the help page).