Air Madrid have cancelled all of it’s flights and suspended operations.
Here’s the full story: http://nwitimes.com/articles/2006/12/16/ap/business/d8m1tpv81.txt
By: keltic - 17th December 2006 at 19:40
More fresh news. Spanish goverment ministers working on sunday. Woww, I am impressed. Press conference by Mrs Magdalena (our minister of transport) and some questions by media.
-Did the goverment considered the airline unsafe?
-No, the life of the passengers were not in danger. But we had detected some irregularities in their procedures…..
-Couldn´t had it been solved by a fine and keep them flying?
….uhhh, not definite answer…..well, what we have to say is that we did what we had to….
Did the Spanish officials acted just after seeing the video?. I have flown in this particular plane, and looked inmaculately. It doesn´t matter who shabby is a cabin, if avionics, structure, engine….are in good shape. Stinks in Denmark….well sorry in Madrid. How I see the whole thing?. Let´s share the responsability.
-Iberia wanted to get rid of the airline and the goverment made the very best to do it.
-The CEO has acted foolishly for not foreseen the success of the airline and increase fleet to cope with the huge numbers of flights. Despite the goverment is responsible, it´s a wise but inmoral move, to shut it down, and reopen the airline after restructuring.
-Passengers?. Well not really. However delays in the airline are well known, and most of us prepare to risk if we pay less than 400 euros for an intercontiental flight.
Should the SPanish citizen assume the cost of the charter flights for solving the caos?. Not so sure.
By: keltic - 17th December 2006 at 16:14
Until yesterday Spanish aviation authorities said that safety was fine with Air Madrid, then in a few days……the video (I can´t insert hundreds of pics of Iberia interiors with the same sort of faults) and they change the mind. Airline maintenance is made in Air France Industries, so appart from the “anecdotic video”, there were no real reasons for concern.
By: T5 - 17th December 2006 at 14:52
I saw a video yesterday of the interior of one of the Air Madrid A330-200s and I was horrified by the state of it. Even if the circumstances surrounding the somewhat rapid demise of the airline are suspicious, this seemed like one airline which was seriously jeopardising passenger safety.
By: keltic - 17th December 2006 at 14:35
Do you remember Laker Airways and the dirty tricks for years by goverment and BA?. Well, don´t think these are things from the past…..NO monopoly still happens in Spain. Power and Iberia which dominates goverments, media and all mechanism are the same thing. The first longhaul low cost in Spain (and successfull) which had dared to attack Iberia main markets (southamerica) can´t be tolerated.
Since the beginning lots of burden, media campaigns and “ficticious” faults in maintenance. I wonder why any other aviation board in the countries they flew didn´t ever find any irregularities. Just closed down for delays (due to their lack of fleet). I wonder if an Ministry of Aviation can close an airline for their operating procedures. I have always thought that aviation boards were to tackle with security…..NOT IN SPAIN. They shape the market.
No intervention when Iberia employees blocked Barcelona Airport, no intervention in the great number of emergencies Clickair is having, no interventions when the Madrid New Terminal (paid with our money to favour Iberia) design make passengers to loose connections all the time….WE CAN¨T touch Iberia.
Air Madrid was a pain in Iberia ass, and the goverment has come to rescue her. I am ashamed to be SPanish today.
By: SHAMROCK321 - 16th December 2006 at 23:08
Ye Im just back from 2 days in Madrid and today in the airport there was some really annoyed passengers trying to break their way through airport secuirity.
Ill try and post some pics I took of the protesting passengers it wasnt pretty and I really felt for the passengers espeically so close to christmas.
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December 16, 2006 at 7:56 pm