Trans European Airways

Trans European Airways (shortened "TEA") is a now defunct airline that had its seat in Belgium.

History

TEA (ICAO Code: TEA; IATA Code: HE; Call Sign: Belgair) was founded by Georges Gutelman in 1971 who had previously operated a company known as TIFA. The airline initially acquired a fleet of Boeing 707 and Boeing 720 aircraft from sources such as TWA and Eastern Airlines.

In the early 1970s they became the first airline to order an Airbus and subsequently operated the only Airbus A300B1 variant in service - distinguished by its shorter fuselage and lack of slats - until 1990. The aircraft, registered OO-TEF, was named "Aline" after Gutelman's wife.

The airline expanded, operating a second Airbus A300 for a while and started to acquire Boeing 737-200 aircraft. It later acquired Belgian tour operator SunSnacks which it had helped to form in 1976 and create a subsidiary, TEAMCO (Trans European Airways Maintenance Company) to handle maintenance of both its own aircraft and also offer these services to other operators, both civil and military.

The airline started to expand rapidly during the late 1980s, forming subsidiaries in the United Kingdom (TEA-UK), France (TEA-FRANCE), Italy (TEA-ITALY) and Switzerland (TEA-BASEL) but global economic downturn in the early nineties, partly as a result of the Gulf War caused it to go out of business on September 27, 1991. [Airlines Remembered by BI Hengi, Publisher Midland Publishing] Its failure gave rise to European Airlines and Eurobelgian Airlines. The management of the UK subsidiary, who had previously managed Orion Airways went on to form Excalibur Airways. TEA Switzerland continued successfully until being purchased by easyJet in 1997. Georges Gutelman later went on to found CityBird which also failed in the aviation slump following 9/11.

Historical Fleet Information

*1 - Boeing 720-025 ex Eastern Airlines
*1 - Boeing 720-051(B)
*3 - Boeing 707-131 es TWA
*1 - Boeing 707-048 ex Air Lingus
*1 - Airbus A300B1 from manufacturer
*1 - Airbus A300B4-2C from manufacturer
*1 - Airbus A300B4-103 ex Eastern Airlines
*5 - Boeing 737-2M8 from manufacturer
*2 - Boeing 737-229 ex Sabena
*1 - Boeing 737-2Q9 ex Nordair
*1 - Boeing 737-2S3 ex Air Europe
*1 - Boeing 737-2P6 ex Gulf Air
*1 - Boeing 737-219 ex Air New Zealand
*13 - Boeing 737-3M8 from manufacturer
*1 - Boeing 737-3B3 ex Aeromaritime

External links

* [http://rzjets.net/operators/operator.php?opid=1268 Data]
* [http://www.aerosite.net/content/view/1530/41/ Brief historical information]
* [http://www.skystef.be/airlines/tea.htm Belgian Historical Site]
* [http://www.planespotters.net/Airline/TEA-Trans-European-Airlines-(Belgium) Fleet History]
* [http://www.pbase.com/fstopintl/tea__trans_european_airways_ TEA pictures]
* [http://www.al-airliners.be/t-z/tea/tea.htm TEA pictures and logo]

References