Airline Name
AB AirlinesEarlier Air Bristol logo,
AB Shannon logo,
Air Belfast logo,
IATA: 7L / ICAO: AZX / Callsign: Aztec Air
Country of Origin
United Kingdom
Aircraft Types Used (from those available in WoA)
B733 (737-300) (3 operated),B734 (737-400) (2 operated in 1998, leased from Futura but not painted, just registered with british registration),
Not in-game,
BA11 (BAC 1-11) (5 operated (+2 for Air Belfast and +1 for AB Shannon)),
European AirCharter hybrid,
Air Bristol,
Air Belfast,
AB Shannon livery,
Why should this airline be added?
This airline was one of the first LCC’s in the UK founded in 1993 as Air Bristol based at Filton Airfield in Bristol, where BAe/Airbus’s facilities were (Was BAC’s hence the use of the 1-11). It operated a mixed fleet of BAC 1-11’s and then later 737-300’s alongside them as well as mixed across the UK and Ireland. It continued operating from its base at London Stansted and secondary base at Bristol Filton until late summer 1999 when mounting costs ended their operations, as well as heavy competition at their main base from BA’s LCC Go Fly.It would make for a cool special livery for the new 737-300 and potentially as a standard contract in the future, with the BAC 1-11 having more liveries and maybe if it comes, we could see some of them too.
Doing some more reading, appears they wanted to expand with an A320 in 1994 as they were operating shuttle flights from Filton to Toulouse and Chester for BAe and Airbus so naturally a fleet of older BAC 1-11’s were perfect for this but Airbus was wishing an A320 would be utilised, as well as the potential for operating it on the route from Stansted to Belfast. However, the airline just didn’t have the funding so it never went ahead and instead they took on some 737-300’s in 1998 whilst expanding fully into the low cost market.
Some info for extra reading and to show the blue livery one operated, haven’t taken the photo as it’s prohibited. From this the Air Belfast airline was Air Bristol branching out to Belfast to operate runs to London Stansted and Gatwick. When it outgrew its Filton base, it moved across to Stansted operating flights from both as well as branching into Gatwick and changing its name to AB Airlines. AB Shannon was founded to operate the twice daily Gatwick to Shannon flight with the BAC 1-11 the airline had.