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The return of Flybe to the skies has moved a step closer with its new owner registering its first aircraft.
Thyme Opco – the company that bought the Jersey-founded airline’s name in October – last week added a Bombardier Dash 8-Q400 to the Civil Aviation Authority’s register.
According to the CAA’s database, the 22-year-old former Austrian Airlines aircraft is now registered as G-CLXC, having been previously registered as OE-LGA.
Flybe’s new owner is backed by Cyrus Capital, the hedge fund that together with Virgin Atlantic and Stobart Group bought Flybe in 2019 but was unable to save the airline from collapse.
Pictured: A Flybe Q400 aircraft.
The airline, founded in 1979 as Jersey European Airways, went into administration last March, one of the early aviation casualties of the pandemic.
With its new owner buying the brand, its intellectual property and some assets, including spare parts, Thyme Opco still has a long way to go until it has a fully functioning airline.
Before that it needs staff, including pilots and aircrew, a website and a network, with many of its previously profitable routes being taken on by other airlines - including Blue Islands, Loganair and Eastern Airways - after Flybe’s collapse.
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Long gone are the days of Jersey European Airways, regretfully, however the low cost airlines should maintain the best service levels possible.