EgyptAir

EgyptAir is the second largest airline on the African continent (exceeded only by South African Airways) and is the second largest Arab airline (exceeded only by Saudi Arabian Airlines). However, in a historical sense the Egyptian national carrier has no rivals; with origins going back to 1932 it can claim to be the oldest airline servicing both Africa and the Arab world. Although several other airlines sprang up in Africa during the 1930s, no other airlines were developed in the Arab world until the mid-1940s. In addition, until the meteoric growth of Saudia as a result of the oil boom of the mid-1970s, the only Arab airline to even approach EgyptAir in size was Lebanon's Middle East Airline. This background has given EgyptAir a unique leadership role among its Arab neighbors, despite the many serious setbacks it has suffered during its existence. The company's network extends throughout Europe, the Middle East, the Far East, Africa, Australia, India, and North America. EgyptAir's early start can be traced back to the pivotal position played by Egypt in the development of Britain's imperial air routes. Within a few months of the armistice that brought World War I to an end, the Royal Air Force (RAF) was dispatching ground surveys parties to establish both the routes and the basic route facilities for future air services southward from Cairo to Capetown and eastward from Cairo to Baghdad. By the mid-1920s the RAF was operating regular services on both these routes. In 1925 the British government agreed with newly formed Imperial Airways that the airline would gradually take over from the military. This resulted in Imperial Airways starting regular service from Egypt to Iraq in 1927, extending to India via Iran in 1929. Service from Egypt to British East Africa started in 1931. Both services connected in Egypt with Imperial Airways service between the United Kingdom and Egypt. By 1931 Egypt had developed into a vital hub on Britain's Imperial network. At this time a prominent Egyptian economist, Talaat Harb, realized that the importance of Egypt as a hub was soon to be significantly increased by two new developments: in 1932 Imperial Airways was due to extend its African service the entire length of the continent from Cairo to Capetown; and the airline expected to transform its Indian service by shifting the route from the politically difficult Persian shore of the Arabian Gulf to the friendlier Trucial Coast on the Gulf's southern shore. Both these developments did indeed take place in 1932, by which time Talaat Harb had discovered a suitable British partner in the form of Airwork, a well-established company with wide interests in aviation and with ambitions to develop regular air services alongside Imperial Airways. This led to the formation in May 1932 of Misr Airwork, with the Misr Bank of Cairo putting up 85 percent of the initial E£20,000 capital, Airwork contributing ten percent, and Talaat Harb and his Egyptian colleagues furnishing five percent. The first step by the new company was to set up a flight school at the rapidly developing Almaza airport on the outskirts of Cairo at Heliopolis. Airwork was by this time heavily involved in pioneering the development of flight training programs in Britain and Talaat Harb was enthusiastic to encourage airmindedness in Egypt. A small fleet of De Havilland Gypsy Moth aircraft were imported and these provided the foundation on which Egypt's airline industry was to develop. In the summer of 1933 Airwork arranged the import of a Spartan Cruiser on temporary lease from the fleet of the parent company. In July 1933 this aircraft ran a daily service from Cairo to the western port of Mersa Matruh via Alexandria. Strong traffic demand resulted within one month in an extra daily flight being added between Cairo and Alexandria. With the start of the winter tourist season a new route up the Nile Valley from Cairo to Aswan via Assiut and Luxor was opened in December 1933 on a twice-week