2. Air Berlin: Background
Germany’s second biggest airline, after Lufthansa, and Europe’s
seventh biggest airline with respect to number of passengers
carried.
Operates an extensive network (includes holiday destinations in
the Mediterranean region, the Madeira Islands, the Canary
Islands, and North Africa) and global destinations in Southeast
Asia, the Caribbean, and the Americas.
Member of the Oneworld alliance; Niki, its Austrian subsidiary, is
an affiliate member of Oneworld.
Focuses on serving major German and European airports to
benefit business traffic.
Serves a total of 25 cities, more than any other airline; BerlinTegel Airport and Düsseldorf Airport are its hub airports.
Had its headquarters at the Airport Bureau Center in
Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, Berlin.
Its owner, airberlin group or Air Berlin GmbH, is openly traded
(FSE: AB1, ISIN: GB00B128C026).
Had 9,284 employees in December 2012.
In 2012, Air Berlin Group carried more than 33.3 million
passengers; Air Berlin likewise has another owner, Etihad
Airways (the flag carrier of the United Arab Emirates, the fourth
biggest airline in the Middle East, and the second biggest airline
in the United Arab Emirates), which claims 29.21% of Air Berlin;
the deal was announced in December 2011.
4. Air Berlin: Flight school
Since 2007, Air Berlin has been running its own pilot training scheme in a dual project with the TFC Käufer flight school.
Beginners finish their commercial pilot training to the newest industry standards within a period of about 24 months.
In February 2009, the Air Berlin flight school was the first flight school in Germany to win a training permit by the German Department of Aviation
for the new Multi-Crew Pilot model.
5. Air Berlin: Technical services
airberlin technik, part of the airberlin group, is a specialized EASA Part-145 maintenance organization with some 1,200 employees
that provides services to both the aircraft operating within the airberlin group and customers across Europe.
Numerous National Airworthiness Authorities, including USA FAA-145, Canadian CAA-145, Aruba EASA-145, Federal Aviation
Authority of Russia, GCAA, and United Arab Emirates, recognize and approve airberlin technik.
6. Air Berlin: Passenger services
Unlike pure European low-cost airline carriers, Air Berlin offers free (at the point of spending) in-flight snacks and drinks, and newspapers and
magazines as well.
Full hot meals are admired on long-haul flights.
During an Air Berlin flight duration of an hour or longer, gourmet meals are offered; according to the airline, these meals are made by chefs at
“Sansibar”, a famous restaurant on the island of Sylt.
The airline additionally offers in-flight entertainment, assigned seating, and guaranteed flight connections.
A dedicated business class section is offered on flights operated by Airbus A330-200 aircraft.
7. Air Berlin: Frequent flyer programme
Like numerous other airlines, Air Berlin has a frequent flyer scheme.
Air Berlin’s frequent flyer program (called topbonus) is operated together with Niki.
Points (“miles”) can be accumulated on all flights; these points can later be redeemed for free flights (award flights) or for a change
to business class.
Apart from the entry-level “topbonus Card Classic”, there are cards with Silver, Gold, and Platinum status, which match to
oneworld ruby, sapphire, and emerald levels.
A Service Card and a Credit Card, for which an adjustment is made, are available as well.
8. Air Berlin: Destinations
Air Berlin operates an extensive semi-low-cost network (includes
international destinations in the United States, the Caribbean,
Southeast Asia) and holiday destinations in the Mediterranean
region, the Canary Islands, and North Africa, with a total of 150
scheduled destinations in 40 countries.
The primary Air Berlin hubs are Berlin and Düsseldorf; both offer
long-haul flights and connections within Europe.
9. Air Berlin: Codeshare
agreements
Air Berlin, as of July 2013, has codeshare
agreements with these airlines(*=oneworld
member):
Air Baltic
Air Seychelles
American Airlines*
Bangkok Airways
British Airways*
Air Serbia
Etihad Airways
Finnair*
Hainan Airlines
Iberia*
Japan Airlines*
Meridiana
Niki (affiliate)
Pegasus Airlines
Qantas*
Royal Jordanian*
S7 Airlines
11. Air Berlin: Fleet policy
The fleet’s regular age is currently five years.
In May 2001, Air Berlin was the first airline in the world to claim delivery of a Boeing 737-800 retrofitted with the Aviation Partners Incorporated
(API) combined, fuel-saving winglets; the majority of the Air Berlin fleet have now been built with this equipment.
Air Berlin announced in 2012 that it had purchased its normal specific gas consumption to 3.4 litres/100 passengers-km.
On 26 March 2013, the Air Berlin group announced that it acquired one of the first Airbus A320 equipped with gas-saving sharklets at Hamburg’s
Airbus factory.
12. Air Berlin: Cabin
Air Berlin assumed delivery of its first Boeing 737-800 with the
new “Sky Interior” cabin design in February 2011.
All new Boeing Next Generation aircraft operated by Air Berlin, in
the future, will include this improved interior, with its recently
designed side wall and luggage compartments, big window
niches and indirect LED lighting.
In early 2012, Air Berlin began the adjustment of its long-haul
cabin, which equips both economy class and business class with
new seats and a new in-flight entertainment system.
Fully automatic seats that can slant to 170 degrees provide
maximum comfort in the business class, apart from an antithrombosis version and an individually changeable headrest (as
well as additional legroom, narrower seat back), the seat
improves comfort in economy class.
All seats have their own 8.9-inch monitor that is easy to use per
touch screen and offers a wide selection of movies, series,
music, audio books, and games.
Air Berlin introduced its new business class in January 2013; this
new business class mainly features single seats, which offers
tourists even more space.
These new seats have a full-flat function, a massage function,
and even feature a 15-inch monitor.
The Air Berlin long-haul fleet will be successively equipped with
the new Business Class.
13. The End
YouTube links:
airberlin.com - Air Berlin - TV Spot - Kai: ipod:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HszASEXN
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airberlin Stadionspot für Fortuna Düsseldorf :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6L7_TfDn7
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Airberlin Boeing 737-700 safety video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvwT6EdpO
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