DALLAS — Today, in 2010, French regional airline Compagnie Corse Méditerranée (CCM) was rebranded as Air Corsica (XK).
Founded in 1989 by Corsican politician Pierre-Philippe Ceccaldi, the airline was established on the grounds of Ajaccio-Campo dell'Oro Airport in Ajaccio, today Ajaccio Napoleon Bonaparte Airport (AJA), Corsica, France, with the aim of offering improved connectivity to the Mediterranean island.
Flights were launched in 1990 between Ajaccio, Bastia, and Nice with a fleet of ATR-72s. The airline introduced its first jet, the Fokker 100, in 1992 on its Ajaccio (AJA) to Marseilles (MRS) and Bastia (BIA) to MRS routes. The Airbus A319 replaced the Fokker 100 in the summer of 2002.
ATR 42-500. Photo: Alberto Cucini/Airways
Air France Partnership
A partnership with French domestic carrier Air Inter (IT) in 1994. This was followed by Air France in 1997 when an agreement was reached for XK to operate the Marseille (MRS) to Bordeaux (BOD) route on the French flag carrier's behalf.
This partnership with AF and its Hop (A5) subsidiary has continued throughout XK's history. Today the airline code-shares on flights between Corsica and Paris Orly (ORY) and Charles de Gaulle (CDG).
A320neo Delivery
On December 2, 2019, the airline took delivery of the first of two Airbus A320neos. The aircraft is configured with 186 seats in a single-class layout. It will be used to replace older aircraft in the fleet.
Pre-COVID, the airline operated a fleet of four A320ceos, two A320neos, five ATR-72-500s, and a single ATR-42-500. It has a route network covering 16 destinations across France, Belgium, and the UK.
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Exploring Airline History Volume I
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David H. Stringer, the History Editor for AIRWAYS Magazine, has chronicled the story of the commercial aviation industry with his airline history articles that have appeared in AIRWAYS over two decades. Here, for the first time, is a compilation of those articles.
Subjects A through C are presented in this first of three volumes. Covering topics such as the airlines of Alaska at the time of statehood and Canada's regional airlines of the 1960s, the individual histories of such carriers as Allegheny, American, Braniff, and Continental are also included in Volume One. Get your copy today!
January 2025 Issue
