Final flight for ČSA as an independent airline
The completion of Flight OK766 from Prague to Paris and Flight OK767 from Paris back to Prague brought one era in Czech aviation to a close, as the world’s fifth oldest continuously operating airline ceased to operate as an independent entity. The two final flights were quickly sold out, with remaining economy seats selling for over CZK 12,000 (£395) one-way.
But this was not really the end of Czech Airlines.
What actually happened was that Czech Airlines (ČSA) changed its business model from 27 October 2024, at the beginning of the winter flight schedule, leaving the SkyTeam alliance, ending its OK Plus frequent flyer programme and voiding all unused miles earned. ČSA will become a holding/,management company, with a majority stake in Smartwings, the budget airline brand of leisure firm Travel Service. Low cost carrier Smartwings will provide the flight operations of the entire group, with both companies operating under one code (QS).
The ČSA livery will continue to be worn by the two Airbus A320 aircraft and by four new Airbus A220-300 aircraft, the first two of which are to be delivered at the end of this year and the other two in the first half of 2025. These will operate as part of the much larger Smartwings fleet, of nearly 50 aircraft. The ČSA and Smartwings brands will be retained, and passengers can continue to buy tickets on the existing ČSA and Smartwings websites.
The change in ČSA’s business model is intended to make the group’s operations more efficient and to increase productivity by leveraging the synergistic effects of Czech Airlines and Smartwings.
The chairman of the board of Smartwings, Jiří Jurán, explained that: “There is a need to constantly optimize the costs of operating companies within the group, simplify processes and diversify risks. These are steps that will have a positive impact on the group’s operations. At the same time, we will offer our clients a consistent, clear and understandable offer of products and services on all flights.”
History
Founded in October 1923 as the Czechoslovak State Airline, ČSA (Československé Státní Aerolinie) was one of the five oldest continuously operating airlines. For decades, it connected the people of Czechoslovakia, and later the Czech Republic, with destinations around the globe.
ČSA’s first service connected Prague to Bratislava – a three-hour flight using an Aero A-14 aircraft piloted by Karel Brabenec. A single passenger, journalist Václav König from Lidové noviny, was carried on the inaugural flight. ČSA transported 29 passengers, 110 kg of cargo and 10 kg of mail in 1923.
In 1930, ČSA began international flying, starting with flights to Zagreb and later adding connections to Rijeka and Dubrovnik.
Post war, ČSA became the first airline in the world to fly regular jet-only routes (between Prague and Moscow) from 1957, using the Tu-104. The airline began transatlantic services on 3 February 1962 using a Bristol Britannia turboprop leased from Cubana de Aviación for a flight to Havana. By the 1970s, the airline’s international services included New York, Montreal, and Havana.
Czechoslovakian Airlines split into two companies: Czechoslovakian Airlines and Slov Air, on January 1, 1991. The division of Czechoslovakian Airlines ownership in 1991 between the governing bodies of the Czech and Slovak parts of Czechoslovakia was unrelated to the division of Czechoslovakia in January 1993. This saw Czechoslovak Airlines rebranding as Czech Airlines on 18 November 1994.
At its peak in 2006, ČSA transported over 5.5 million passengers annually, but numbers declined as competition from emerging low-cost carriers increased and intensified.
ČSA’s financial struggles worsened in recent years, primarily due to fierce competition from low-cost carriers, but exacerbated by failed privatization attempts and internal management issues.
In April 2015, Travel Service Group (owners of Smartwings) bought 34% of the airline, and in 2016, the airline returned to profit for the first time in several years. On 6 October 2017, Korean Air announced the sale of its 44% stake in Czech Airlines to Travel Service, taking its holding to 78.9%. Travel Service later acquired Prisko’s 20% stake in ČSA, increasing its stake to 97.74%.
The COVID-19 pandemic compounded ČSA‘s issues, and the airline was forced to file for insolvency in early 2021 before undergoing a re-organisation from which it emerged in June 2022.
In recent years, Czech Airlines has operated just two routes from Prague to Paris and Madrid, with Smart Wings operating all other group flights.
