Air Ukraine

Air Ukraine
Авіалінії України
IATA ICAO Call sign
6U UKR AIR UKRAINE
Founded1992
Ceased operations2002 (flight operations suspended)
2004 (AOC revoked)[1]
HubsBoryspil International Airport
HeadquartersKyiv, Ukraine

Air Ukraine (Ukrainian: Авіалінії України Avialiniyi Ukrayiny) was a state-owned airline from Ukraine, serving as flag carrier of the country from 1992 to 2002. Headquartered in Kyiv,[2] Air Ukraine operated scheduled passenger and cargo flights mostly on domestic routes or within the Commonwealth of Independent States, but also to global destinations.

History

An Air Ukraine Yakovlev Yak-42 (in the later dedicated Air Ukraine livery) at Stuttgart Airport (1998).
Two Air Ukraine Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft (still in Aeroflot colours but with Air Ukraine titles) at Moscow's Vnukovo Airport (1994).

The Dissolution of the Soviet Union during 1990 and 1991 lead to the split-up of former Soviet carrier Aeroflot in 1992, with Air Ukraine being founded out of the Aeroflot's Kyiv directorate.[1] Soon, other Ukrainian divisions were merged into it to create a national airline.[citation needed]

In December 2002, Air Ukraine was declared to be bankrupt.[3] Attempts to relaunch the company by merging it with Aerosvit Airlines or Ukraine International Airlines failed, and the airline license was finally withdrawn on 23 July 2004.[1]

Fleet

Over the years, Air Ukraine operated the following aircraft types:[1][4]

Aircraft Introduced Retired Total Number
Antonov An-12 1993 1997 3
Antonov An-24 1993 2001 64
Antonov An-26 1993 2002 12
Antonov An-30 1993 2003 9
Antonov An-32 1993 2001 10
Antonov An-124 1993 1997 2
Boeing 737-200 1994 1998 2
Boeing 737-300 1995 1996 1
Boeing 737-400 1992 1995 2
Ilyushin Il-18 1993 1999 2
Ilyushin Il-62 1993 2002 10
Ilyushin Il-76 1993 2004 13
Let L-410 Turbolet[5][6] 1993 2002 42
Tupolev Tu-134 1993 2004 32
Tupolev Tu-154 1993 2004 39
Yakovlev Yak-40 1993 2002 36
Yakovlev Yak-42 1993 2001 28

Incidents

  • On 5 September 1992, the crew of an Air Ukraine Tupolev Tu-154 (registered CCCP-85269) with 147 people on board had to execute a belly-landing at Boryspil International Airport because the landing gear could not be deployed. The aircraft was damaged beyond repair.[7]
  • On 23 January 1995, another Turbolet (registered UR-67115) was destroyed when it crashed on a frozen lake whilst approaching Provedenia Airport in Russia because of an engine failure. The three crew members on board had been on an empty ferry flight from Anadyr Airport, which was planned to continue onwards to Honduras, to where the aircraft had been sold. There were no fatalities.[8]
  • On 4 April 1995, the pilots of an Air Ukraine Antonov An-26 (registered UR-26049) tried to take off from Palana Airport without having released the brakes. The aircraft thus was not able to get airborne, and overshot the runway, being damaged beyond economical repair. The nine people that had been on the chartered flight to Ust-Pakhachi Airport survived the accident.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Information about Air Ukraine at the Aero Transport Data Bank
  2. ^ "World Airline Directory." Flight International. 20–26 March 2001. 72.
  3. ^ "Directory: World airlines." Flight International. 16–22 March 2004. 77.
  4. ^ Air Ukraine fleet list (Western-built aircraft only) at airfleets.net
  5. ^ Let L-410UVP / Air Ukraine (UR-67536). Aviation Safety Network (ASN).
  6. ^ Let L-410UVP / Air Ukraine (UR-67115). Aviation Safety Network (ASN).
  7. ^ 1992 incident at the Aviation Safety Network
  8. ^ January 1995 accident at the Aviation Safety Network
  9. ^ April 1995 accident at the Aviation Safety Network
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