29 Apr 2013 09:49
29 April 2013
Thomas Cook Group plc
(the "Company")
Integration of Condor and Condor Berlin Flight Operations
The merger of the two Thomas Cook Airline flight operations, Condor Flugdienst GmbH and its wholly owned subsidiary Condor Berlin GmbH, will complete on 1 May 2013.
Condor Flugdienst is based in Frankfurt and, with effect from 1 May 2013, will include all activity of the Condor Berlin flight operations. The fleet of Condor Berlin, consisting of twelve Airbus A320-200 aircraft and one Airbus A321-200, will be integrated into the operations of Condor Flugdienst.
"As a result of the integration the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) of Condor Flugdienst will be expanded to include the Airbus fleet of Condor Berlin. We have also reviewed the necessary staffing levels and organisational structures accordingly and we will operate all Boeing and Airbus aircraft of the Condor fleet under one AOC", explains Ralf Teckentrup, joint Chairman of Thomas Cook Group Airlines and CEO of Condor Flugdienst.
The integration of flight operations will take advantage of synergies to reduce complexity and costs. Cost savings will for example result from qualifying the cabin staff for both the Airbus A320 and Boeing B757 fleet and the reduction of IT costs through the integration of duplicate systems. As part of the wider transformation of Thomas Cook Group Airlines and Condor, the merging of these flight operations is an important step towards developing the Thomas Cook Airline Segment.
Christoph Debus, joint Chairman of Thomas Cook Group Airlines said: "We are very pleased that the integration of our flight operations based in Germany will complete on 1 May 2013. This is an important step in delivering the Group Airlines strategy, as we continue to create one airline segment, as well as a major contribution in terms of cost effectiveness within the Group."
Condor Berlin GmbH will continue to exist as a maintenance company in Berlin performing maintenance activities on the Airbus fleet as part of the Thomas Cook Group Maintenance Organisation (GMO).
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