Icelandic low-cost carrier PLAY has received its Air Operators Certificate (AOC) today. The airline is preparing to commence flights on June 24th, so this update is a significant step for the company.
Another step closer
Simple Flying reported earlier today that the first service for the new airline will be to Stansted. The carrier is keen to serve popular markets around Europe from this summer before expanding to the United States East Coast in 2022. So, the securement of the AOC from the Icelandic Transport Authority will undoubtedly bring joy to the executives of the company as they can tick this significant task off the list.
Altogether, an AOC is the approval granted by the aviation authority of a country to an operator to allow it to deploy aircraft for commercial activity. Notably, a prospective airline has to have the right personnel, equipment, and structure in place to be given the green light.
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PLAY’s COO, Arnar Már Magnússon shares that there was great cooperation with Icelandic authorities to acquire the certificate. He adds that the firm also received support from major industry figures such as AerCap and Airbus, which has been valuable since these institutions know the market inside out.
The right time
The airline’s CEO, Birgir Jónsson, shares that this progress marks a turnaround for the travel sector in Iceland. Overall, the whole board is grateful for the efforts that the staff of the company and its stakeholders have put in since the airline’s founding in 2019. The work put in has led to the airline being well positioned in the new climate.
“After the pandemic, the opportunity actually just got a lot bigger. If you’re well funded like we are now with $50 million in the pocket, you can actually do it on your own terms. I mean, it’s a very good time to lease aircraft, and you can basically pick and choose the right kind of aircraft, in our case, the A321neos. Additionally, you have great access to a lot of highly qualified and trained staff crew,” Jónsson told Simple Flying this weekend.
“Also, a lot of the competition is weak. It’s damaged. I mean we can see here, our competition like Icelandair, and other airlines, are having huge operational and business problems. So to come into that market well funded with no burden of debt, you can basically set up a company, at a point in time, where everything is beneficial to you. That’s a huge reason why we think we will succeed.”
The next stage
Altogether, PLAY is excited to welcome its passengers on board its new A321neos, which are arriving from the beginning of next month. There will be three units of these narrowbodies with the airline this summer to transport passengers across the skies with what are billed to be highly competitive prices.
What are your thoughts about PLAY’s progress over the last few months? Are you looking forward to flying with the airline after services commence? Let us know what you think of the carrier and its plans in the comment section.
