[cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7611639.stm|title= Thousands stranded by XL collapse|date=2008-09-12|publisher=BBC|accessdate=2008-09-12] .]This is the biggest collapse of a British tour operator since 1974 when Court Line became insolvent, affecting 50,000 travellers.
Member companies
As of November 2006, the companies which form XLLG are:
* XLLG holds significant interest in Xtra Airways and Skywest, although these airlines are managed independently.
Holdings and Branding
*Kosmar Holidays - A British holiday brand offering package holidays to Greece and Turkey.
*Travel City Direct - A UK holiday company specialising in low-cost family holidays to Florida, other parts of the U.S. and the Caribbean. Flights are operated on behalf of Travel City Direct by XL Airways, using aircraft bearing dual-branded liveries.
* Freedom Flights - A seat-only tour operator which primarily sells airline seats to UK tour operators. The majority of its seats are with XLLG's own XL Airways, although Freedom Flights also deal with seat sales on other airlines.
* XL Holidays and Aspire Holidays - XL Holidays is the main tour-operating division of XLLG in the UK, offering holidays worldwide and is fully ATOL bonded. Aspire Holidays is a division of XL Holidays specialising in luxury bespoke holidays.
* CrystalTO and Heliades - CrystalTO is a French tour operator fully affiliated to XL Airways France, offering French travelers package holidays worldwide. Heliades is a tour operator in France, specialising primarily in holidays to Greece.
* XL Airways - Was a charter airline with brands in the UK, France and Germany. It began as Sabre Airways in 1994, and was renamed Excel Airways in 2001. It was later rebranded XL Airways in November 2006 after it was found that the airline was more commonly known by the British public as simply XL Airways. Following the acquisition of the French and German airlines Star Airlines and Star Europe, XLLG rebranded these as XL Airways France and XL Airways Germany in Novermber 2006, creating a pan-European airline consisting of at least 34 Boeing and Airbus aircraft.
*XL Aviation and XL24 - XL Aviation is the commercial sales arm of XLLG. It sells charter capacity on flights operated by XL Airways and also buys and sell charter capacity on numerous other airlines. XL24 is a dealer in "relief" aircraft in the airline-to-airline market, providing sub-chartered aircraft from the XL Airways and other fleets to other airlines who require the extra capacity on short notice.
* Interests in:
**Xtra Airways and Skywest, Inc. - Established in 1987, Xtra Airways is a charter airline based in Nevada, USA. It now has bases at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, Louisville, Kentucky, New York (John F. Kennedy International Airport)and Boston. It is owned by CXP Management, and XLLG holds a 19% share of the airline. Prior to XLLG's acquisition of 19% interest in Xtra Airways in summer 2005, the airline was known as Casino Express. The rebranding to Xtra Airways reflects a close relationship between Xtra and XL, which also includes similar aircraft liveries.
**Skywest is an Australian regional airline, which began operations in 1963 as part of Ansett Airlines. It is now owned by Advent Air, in which XLLG hold a 5% share.
Kosmar Villa Holidays
Kosmar Villa Holidays was a British holiday company specializing in holidays to Greece and Turkey.
It was founded by Kostas Markou in 1981, taking holidaymakers to his home-town of Tolon, Peloponese. Kosmar still travels to Tolon, as well as a large number of destinations across the Mediterranean and the Middle East. From its roots, Kosmar has also become the UKs largest operator to Greece'. The name 'Kosmar' comes from "Kos"tas - "Mar"kou. Kosmar's slogan is 'Making Holiday Dreams Come True.....it's what Kosmar does best. The company is now owned by the XL Leisure Group, using XL Airways, Astraeus and Air Malta for its flights. On flights to Crete and Rhodes, Kosmar gives the option to fly with British Airways. On 10 April 2006, Excel Airways, representing the Avion Group, purchased Kosmar Villa Holidays plc for an undisclosed sum. The founder Kostas Markou will stay with the company.
The XL Leisure Group, of which Kosmar is part of, has now split away from Avion and has been retrieved under a management buy-out.
As part of this split Kosmar will now offer holidays to Bulgaria, Majorca, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, Tenerife and The Algarve, in addition to Greece, Turkey, Cyprus and Egypt. Kosmar Greece will be run under a different sector to the new destinations. Nevertheless, many of the new destinations will feature in the 'Greece' brochure. It is thought that Kosmar will now become the package holiday division of the XL Leisure Group.
In early June 2007, Kosmar removed Bulgaria, Majorca, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, Tenerife and The Algarve from its website. It is thought that Kosmar is to revert back to being a specialist to more 'exotic' destinations.
Online booking services
XL.com was the website portal for the XL Leisure Group, the fifth largest travel company in the UK, consisting of:
*XL Airways in the UK, France and Germany
*The 'XL.com web portal in the UK, France, Ireland, Germany and Australia
*Travel City Direct - the UK's largest Florida specialist
*Kosmar
*CrystalTO - a French holiday company
*Freedom Flights - a seat-only flight company
*Aspire Holidays and XL Holidays
Other XL Leisure Group firms
The full XL Leisure Group comprised of these subsidiaries:
*Holli'Tobago plc
*Explorer House Limited
*Aspire Holidays Limited
*Freedom Flights Limited
*Freedom Flights (Aviation) Limited
*The Really Great Holiday Company plc
*Medlife Hotels Limited
*Medlife Limited
*Travel City Direct Limited
*Travel City Flights Limited
*Kosmar Villa Holidays plc
*Kosmar Holidays plc
*Kosmar plc
*XL Airways UK Limited
*XL Airways Ireland Limited
*XL Airways France Limited
*XL Airways Germany Limited
*XL Airways Egypt Limited
*Excel Aviation Limited
*XL.com plc
*XL Holidays plc
*CrystalTO Limited
*Heliades Limited
*Xtra Airways Limited
*Skywest Limited
*XL Aviation Limited
*XL24 Limited
[http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2008/09/13/dream-trips-in-tatters-as-holiday-firm-collapses-91466-21808850/] [ [http://www.xlairways.fr XL Airways France] ] [ [http://www.xlairways.de XL Airways Germany] ] [ [http://www.altitudemagazine.com XL Airways In-Flight magazine] ] [ [http://www.ch-aviation.ch/aircraft.php?search=set&airline=XLA&al_op=1 XL Airways Fleet] ]
External links
* [http://XL.com XL website]
News items
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_7611000/7611784.stm Administration in September 2008 on the "Today" programme]
References
