Pantheon Airways prepares for takeoff
The government is preparing to reactivate the Pantheon Airways scheme to provide a successor to Olympic Airlines, according to Transport Ministry sources. The plan to be submitted to the European Commission provides for the concession of the operations and rights of Olympic Airlines to Pantheon. The size of the new venture will be roughly 50 percent of today’s Olympic, against a Commission requirement of 40 percent. The Olympic group will also conduct a voluntary exit program to reduce its staff by about 2,300 employees (2,000 administrative and 300 crew). It is not yet clear how the program will be funded. Speaking to Olympic’s pilots last Friday, Transport Minister Costis Hatzidakis said the plan would be tabled to the Commission in Brussels by the end of the month. Hatzidakis also estimated that the activation of Pantheon will begin in October and for a period of six months the two companies will operate in parallel. Against this background, Economy and Finance Minister Giorgos Alogoskoufis last Friday tabled an amendment in Parliament which will protect Pantheon against any claims from Olympic’s creditors. Hatzidakis further told the pilots that some 100-110 of them could be dismissed and requested their union’s view about the terms for the pilots’ exit. The union asked the minister for a specific proposal so that they can discuss it at a later date.
