Growing the airline

More aircraft, more routes

A second aircraft spreads the hub's fixed costs and feeds connections. Grow where the numbers are proven: routes full above 85% want more flights or bigger aircraft; half-empty ones want fewer.

Bases

A base is another hub: routes open from it, rotations start and end there, crew are stationed there and its rotations connect with each other. Setting one up costs from $1M (more at busy airports) plus a monthly running cost; open one on the Routes page. Abroad, traffic rights apply: inside the European single aviation market its airlines may fly from a base in any member state.

Partners

Interline and codeshare agreements sell tickets on partners' flights where they connect with yours; alliances join several airlines at once. See Partners.

More business

• Cargo: belly freight on passenger flights, or freighters of your own (Cargo).
• Charters and ACMI: one-off flights for tour operators and wet leases (Charter & ACMI).
• Public service contracts: subsidised regional routes the ministry tenders (Tenders).
• Corporate travel contracts and holiday packages (Corporate, Holidays).
• Airport deals: incentives for new routes (Airport deals).

Brands and the stock market

A second airline of your own, with its own name and hub, is a brand (Brands). Airlines can list on the stock market, buy stakes in each other and take each other over (Stock market).