Flybe (1979–2020)

Flybe (pronounced ), styled as flybe, was a British airline based in Exeter, England. Launched in 1979 as Jersey European Airways, and rebranded flybe in 2002, at various points it was the largest independent regional airline in Europe, and provided more than half of the UK domestic flights outside of London. Jersey European Airways (UK) Ltd. (JEA) was formed on 1 November 1979 after the merger of both Intra Airways and Express Air Services passenger scheduled operations. In 1983, JEA was sold to Walkersteel, which also owned Spacegrand Aviation; the two airlines were merged under the Jersey European name during 1985. The airline experienced significant growth during the 1990s. It was renamed British European Airways Ltd. on 1 June 2000 and rebranded flybe in 2002. On 3 November 2006, it was announced that Flybe was in the process of purchasing BA Connect. With the sale (assets and operations on 5 Mar 2007, operations on 25 Mar 2007), the airline became the largest regional airline in Europe. On 10 December 2010, the company was floated in an initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange. In February 2019, the airline was sold to the Connect Airways consortium, backed by Virgin Atlantic and Stobart Aviation. Connect Airways intended Flybe and Stobart Air to then rebrand as Virgin Connect, although they would have retained their own air operator certificates. On 5 March 2020, British European filed for administration and ceased operations. The airline, which had been struggling for several months, claimed that its difficulties were compounded by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on bookings. In October 2020, Thyme Opco, a company linked to former shareholder Cyrus Capital, agreed with the administrators to purchase the flybe brand and relaunch the airline in 2021, subject to regulatory approvals. In April 2021, a new company...