Spacegrand

Spacegrand Aviation was set up in Blackpool in 1978. It provided a charter and regular service around the Irish Sea from the Blackpool Airport base, predominantly using de Havilland Twin Otters to serve the Isle of Man, Belfast, and Dublin airport in Eire. Ultimately Spacegrand were amalgamated into Jersey European Airways. JEA were forerunners of the current Flybe airline
< Blackpool based carrier used by datapost >

[ – flybe (i) was formed on 01/Jan/1969 as Intra Airways. It then started operations on 01/Nov/1979 as Jersey European Airways as a result of a merger of Jersey-based Intra Airways and Bournemouth-based Express Air Services. In 1983 the airline was sold to Walker Steel Group, which also owned Spacegrand Aviation, and the two airlines were merged under the Jersey European name in 1985. Renamed to British European on 01/Jun/2000 and then changed again on 18/Jul/2002 to current one. On 03/Nov/2006, it was announced that Flybe would buy BA Connect, and during Mar2007, this takeover was completed. In Feb2019, the airline was sold to the Connect Airways consortium, backed by Virgin Atlantic and Stobart Aviation. Connect Airways intends Flybe and Stobart Air to subsequently rebrand as Virgin Connect, though they will retain their own Air Operator Certificates. flybe ceased flight operations following its entry into administration on 04/Mar/2020. The new flybe received 86 slots at London’s Heathrow Airport for Summer 2021. These will be used to connect Aberdeen and Edinburgh with the city, if the airline takes off. Thyme Opco, the Cyrus Capital-controlled shell company that announced Oct2020 its intention to acquire flybe, revealed on 14Apr2021 that it had completed the purchase of the collapsed carrier’s assets and business and had aimed to restart flight operations in summer 2021. Thyme Opco renamed Flybe (ii) and the airline took delivery of its first aircraft on 25Nov2021 and started operations on 13/Apr/2022 ( Birmingham Airport for Belfast City Airport) ]

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