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Level (airline brand)

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Level
IATA ICAO Call sign
IB IBE IBERIA
Founded15 March 2017; 7 years ago (2017-03-15)
Commenced operations1 June 2017; 7 years ago (2017-06-01)
Operating basesJosep Tarradellas Barcelona–El Prat Airport
Frequent-flyer programAvios
AllianceOneworld (affiliate)[citation needed]
Fleet size6
Destinations8
Parent companyInternational Airlines Group (IAG)
HeadquartersMadrid, Spain[1]
Key peopleFernando Candela (CEO)[2]
Luis Gallego (CEO of IAG)
Websiteflylevel.com

Fly Level SL, styled as LEVEL, is an airline brand under which airlines owned by the International Airlines Group (IAG) operate low-cost flights.[3] The brand has a registered office in Madrid, Spain.[1]

The brand is currently used to market flights operated by Iberia, another airline in IAG. However, IAG has confirmed that it intends to acquire a stand-alone air operator's certificate for Level which will then transition into an independent airline within the group.[4]

Level was marketed initially as a low-cost, long-haul carrier, and began transatlantic services from Barcelona–El Prat Airport in June 2017.[5] In July 2018, Level expanded with long-haul services from Paris Orly Airport, which took over the operation of IAG subsidiary OpenSkies,[6] and began its first short-haul services from Vienna International Airport, operated by Level Europe.

On 18 June 2020, Level Europe entered insolvency and the brand's short-haul flights operated by the Austria-based airline were terminated with immediate effect.[7] On 8 July 2020, the shutdown of OpenSkies was announced and initially ended the brand's long-haul flights based at Paris Orly,[8][9] and although ticket sales for OpenSkies flights under the brand were later restarted,[10] operations did not resume. The brand's long-haul flights from Barcelona operated by Iberia were unaffected by Level Europe's and OpenSkies' closures.[9]

History

[edit]

Initial launch as a brand

[edit]

Level was established by IAG in response to increased competition in the low-cost long-haul market, including that of Norwegian Long Haul. On 15 March 2017, IAG CEO Willie Walsh announced the new brand, together with four destinations launching in June 2017 from Barcelona–El Prat Airport (later renamed after Josep Tarradellas in 2019). These were Oakland, Los Angeles, Buenos Aires, and Punta Cana.[11] Walsh further noted that the brand was launched a year ahead of schedule.[12] A one-year contract was in place for Iberia to operate Level flights under its airline codes and provide the necessary personnel, which has since been extended as Level had not been issued its own air operator's certificate (AOC).

Walsh stated the corporation due to take over operation of the brand sold 52,000 seats within two days of being established, and over 147,000 after one and a half months, far exceeding IAG's expectations.[13] Rome, Paris, and Milan were also mentioned as possible locations for future expansion of the airline in Europe, together with additional routes out of Barcelona.[14]

Long-haul expansion

[edit]

In line with the expressed intent to continue with future expansion by adding routes from other European cities,[15] on 28 November 2017, Level announced flights from Paris Orly Airport to Montreal and Point-à-Pitre and flights from Barcelona to Boston to begin from July 2018, and flights from Paris Orly to Fort-de-France and Newark to begin from September 2018.[6] Flights from Paris Orly were to be operated with the AOC and crew of OpenSkies, another airline owned by IAG.[16]

After the OpenSkies brand was retired on 2 September 2018, its operations were absorbed into the Level brand.[6] On 8 November 2018, flights from Barcelona to Santiago de Chile and New York JFK were announced to begin in March and July 2019 respectively.[17] On 8 May 2019, a service from Paris to Las Vegas was announced to begin from 30 October 2019, which was subsequently terminated by 1 March 2020.[18][19] On 1 October 2019, a service between Paris Orly and Boston was announced to begin from 31 March 2020, but reservations were later closed between the initial announcement and the planned start of service.[20][19]

OpenSkies was among three airlines that applied with the French Ministry of Ecology for traffic rights to operate services between France and Brazil, following the relinquishment of airport slots and traffic rights by Aigle Azur and XL Airways France, which had gone defunct during September 2019. Of the five weekly frequencies made available between France and Brazil, OpenSkies applied to operate three weekly services between Paris Orly and Rio de Janeiro under the Level brand, with the intention of eventually using all five frequencies, but was unable to provide a specific operational timeline for when it would increase service. By January 2020, none of the traffic rights were awarded to OpenSkies, with the French Ministry of Ecology instead awarding four frequencies to French Bee, and one frequency to Air France.[21]

The COVID-19 pandemic and its associated impacts on aviation resulted in the grounding of Level's short- and long-haul fleet, and the subsequent suspension of its operations starting in March 2020. On 8 July 2020, IAG announced that OpenSkies, the operator of Level's flights based at Paris Orly, would cease operations, with employee union negotiations and further closing procedures to begin the following week.[8][9] Despite the announcement of OpenSkies' closure, ticket sales for Paris Orly-based flights operated by the airline were restarted, with operations planned to resume in October 2020,[10] later postponed to December 2020,[22] yet operations never resumed and ticket sales were subsequently closed completely. Level's long-haul flights that were based in Barcelona and operated by Iberia resumed on 11 September 2020, with reduced capacity.[10] As travel restrictions between countries continued to be lifted, Level launched a new route between its Barcelona base and Cancún International Airport on 2 July 2021.[23] In the following months, it announced in September 2021 that its Punta Cana services would resume on 4 December 2021, and in October 2021 that it would resume its services to Los Angeles on 28 March 2022.[24][25] On 19 September 2023, Level announced plans to increase its fleet to six aircraft, and with it, a new service between Barcelona and Miami International Airport to begin on 31 March 2024.[26]

Short-haul expansion

[edit]
A former Level Airbus A321-200 used on since discontinued short-haul routes from Amsterdam and Vienna (2019).

On 29 June 2018, IAG announced the launch of a new low-cost Austrian subsidiary, Anisec Luftfahrt, to operate flights from Vienna International Airport, branded as Level, starting from 17 July 2018. The new subsidiary had its own Austrian AOC and based four Airbus A321 aircraft previously used by Air Berlin and Niki in Vienna, from which it planned to serve 14 European destinations on behalf of Level by the end of August 2018.[27] By December 2018, however, Level announced cuts to its Vienna route network, with routes being reduced in frequency or cancelled altogether due to business figures being below expectations.[28]

On 14 March 2019, IAG confirmed plans to open a second base at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, with seven routes already operated by Vueling transferred from 6 April 2019 to 15 August 2019. Routes once transferred were planned to be operated under the Level brand by Anisec Luftfahrt, with three Airbus A320 aircraft transferred from Vueling to Level in March 2019.[29] On 18 June 2019, during the 2019 Paris Air Show, the International Airlines Group signed a letter of intent to order a total of 200 Boeing 737 MAX 8 and MAX 10 aircraft to be operated across IAG's airlines, possibly including the Level brand, Vueling, and British Airways, although specific allocation amounts between operating airlines were not specified.[30][31] In December 2019, Anisec Luftfahrt was renamed to Level Europe.[32]

On 18 June 2020, all short-haul flights operated by Level Europe from its bases in Amsterdam and Vienna were terminated as the operating company went into liquidation.[7]

Transformation from brand to airline

[edit]

On 21 November 2023, IAG announced that Level would receive its own AOC, allowing for the company to operate its own flights independently of other IAG-owned airlines, which Level's flights had been operated by since launch.[33]

Corporate affairs

[edit]

Level has a registered office in Madrid, Spain, using space shared with Spanish airline Iberia, which is located on the grounds of Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport.[1] The brand has additional offices on the grounds of Josep Tarradellas Barcelona–El Prat Airport, shared with Spanish low-cost airline Vueling.[34]

Level initially lacked a chief executive officer (CEO) following its launch in 2017, according to former International Airlines Group CEO Willie Walsh.[12] In turn, Vincent Hodder, who had previous experience at British regional airline Flybe, became Level's first CEO on 25 July 2018.[35] Hodder was later succeeded as CEO by Fernando Candela on 9 September 2019, who had previous experience at Spanish airlines Iberia Express and Air Nostrum.[2]

Destinations

[edit]

As of March 2024, the airlines operating for Level serve, or have previously served, the following destinations.[36]

Long-haul destinations

[edit]

Starting in March 2017, long-haul flights under the brand were launched from a base at Barcelona–El Prat Airport, with the flights operated by Iberia.[11] Starting in July 2018, long-haul flights under the brand based at Paris Orly Airport were operated by OpenSkies[6] until March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, after which IAG announced the closure of OpenSkies in July 2020.[8]

Country or Territory City Airport Notes Refs
Argentina Buenos Aires Ministro Pistarini International Airport [11]
Canada Montréal Montréal–Trudeau International Airport Terminated [6]
Chile Santiago Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport [17][25][37]
Dominican Republic Punta Cana Punta Cana International Airport Terminated [11][24]
France Paris Orly Airport Terminated [6]
Guadeloupe Pointe-à-Pitre Pointe-à-Pitre International Airport Terminated [6]
Martinique Fort-de-France Martinique Aimé Césaire International Airport Terminated [6]
Mexico Cancún Cancún International Airport Terminated [23]
Spain Barcelona Josep Tarradellas Barcelona–El Prat Airport Base [11]
United States Boston Logan International Airport [6]
Las Vegas Harry Reid International Airport Terminated [18][19]
Los Angeles Los Angeles International Airport [11][25]
Miami Miami International Airport [26]
New York City John F. Kennedy International Airport [17]
Newark Newark Liberty International Airport Terminated [6]
Oakland Oakland International Airport Terminated [11][38]
San Francisco San Francisco International Airport Seasonal [38]

Short-haul destinations

[edit]

Short-haul flights were operated under the brand by Anisec Luftfahrt (later renamed Level Europe) between July 2018 and March 2020, when operations were initially suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On 18 June 2020, Level Europe went into administration, resulting in all short-haul flights within Europe under the Level brand being terminated with immediate effect.[7] The following table shows the status of each current, former, or planned destination at the time Level Europe's operations were suspended in March 2020, before the airline's official ceasing of operations in June 2020.

Country City Airport Notes Refs
Austria Linz Linz Airport Terminated [39]
Salzburg Salzburg Airport Seasonal
Vienna Vienna International Airport Base [40]
Croatia Dubrovnik Dubrovnik Airport Terminated
Cyprus Larnaca Larnaca International Airport Seasonal [41]
Denmark Copenhagen Copenhagen Airport Terminated [39]
France Calvi Calvi – Sainte-Catherine Airport Seasonal [39]
Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport
Germany Hamburg Hamburg Airport Terminated
Memmingen Memmingen Airport Seasonal
Was to begin 17 May 2020		 [42]
Rostock Rostock Airport Seasonal
Italy Genoa Genoa Cristoforo Colombo Airport Seasonal [39]
Milan Milan Malpensa Airport [43]
Olbia Olbia Costa Smeralda Airport Terminated
Rome Rome Fiumicino Airport [43]
Venice Venice Marco Polo Airport Terminated
Netherlands Amsterdam Amsterdam Airport Schiphol Base [43]
Portugal Lisbon Lisbon Airport
Porto Porto Airport Terminated
Spain Alicante Alicante–Elche Airport
Barcelona Josep Tarradellas Barcelona–El Prat Airport
Bilbao Bilbao Airport Seasonal
Fuerteventura Fuerteventura Airport [43]
Ibiza Ibiza Airport Terminated
Málaga Málaga Airport Seasonal
Palma de Mallorca Palma de Mallorca Airport Seasonal
Seville Seville Airport Terminated
Valencia Valencia Airport Terminated
United Kingdom London Gatwick Airport Terminated [44]
London Luton Airport [43]

Codeshare agreements

[edit]

As of October 2021, the airlines operating for Level have codeshare agreements with the following airlines:

Fleet

[edit]

Current fleet

[edit]
Level Airbus A330-200

As of December 2023, the combined Level branded fleet consists of the following aircraft:[46][47]

Level fleet
Aircraft In
service 		Orders Passengers Notes
W Y Total
Airbus A330-200 7 — 42 269 311 Operated by Iberia.
Total 7 —

Former fleet

[edit]
A former Level Airbus A320-200

Level previously had the following aircraft types operate under its brand:

Level former fleet
Aircraft Total Introduced Retired Notes
Airbus A320-200 2 2019 2020 Operated by Level Europe.
Airbus A321-200 4 2018 2020

Fleet development

[edit]

The brand announced plans to expand from three A330-200s in 2017 to at least 15 aircraft by 2022, with the possibility of continuing to acquire Airbus A330s, or possibly moving to Boeing 787s.[48] The brand later stated it was to decide between the Boeing 787 or the Airbus A330-800 for its future widebody fleet plans, as production of the Airbus A330-200 was expected to end in early 2020.[49]

In June 2018, four branded Airbus A321-200 aircraft were added to begin short-haul services before another two Airbus A320-200 aircraft were added starting from March 2019, from the three A320s originally planned to be added.[27][43] Three additional Airbus A330-200 aircraft operated by OpenSkies were added to the fleet starting in July 2018. In June 2020, the Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft were subsequently retired after Level Europe, the airline responsible for operating short-haul flights under the brand, ceased operations.[7] The following month, OpenSkies ceased operations and its three Airbus A330-200s were transferred to Iberia starting in January 2021, with at least one of the three aircraft repurposed to operate from Level's Barcelona base.[50]

Following the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, in November 2023 IAG announced plans for Level's fleet to increase to eight aircraft by 2026.[33]

Services

[edit]

Cabins and service

[edit]

Premium Economy

[edit]

Premium Economy on Level's A330 aircraft features 21 reclining seats in a 2–3–2 layout, each featuring 37 inches (94 cm) of pitch and including noise cancelling headphones. Seats are equipped with a 12-inch (31 cm) TV screen featuring a complimentary selection of films, TV shows, and music. Passengers are offered a three-course meal, and WiFi is available for purchase. Passengers are also given a baggage allowance of one cabin bag and two checked/hold bags.[51]

Economy

[edit]

The Economy cabin of Level's A330 aircraft features 293 seats in a 2–4–2 layout, which are equipped with a 9-inch (23 cm) TV screen. In-flight WiFi, in-flight catering, and checked/hold baggage are all available for purchase by passengers.[52]

Frequent-flyer programme

[edit]

Although the Level brand does not have its own standalone frequent-flyer programme, flights operated by Iberia are eligible to earn Avios points through the airline's Iberia Plus programme. Flights operated by Level Europe or OpenSkies were not eligible to earn Avios points on any programme.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "IAG names Fernando Candela as CEO of low cost airline Level". Reuters. 4 September 2019. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  2. ^ "Conditions of Carriage". Level. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  3. ^ Villamizar, Helwing (26 November 2023). "LEVEL to Become an Independent IAG Airline". Airways. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  4. ^ "Tweets with replies by Level_en (@flywithlevelEN) - Twitter". twitter.com.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Liu, Jim (28 November 2017). "Level outlines S18 operations: New routes from Paris Orly". Routesonline. Informa Markets. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  6. ^ a b c d "Level Europe (In Administration) ('The Company' or 'Level Europe')" (Press release). 18 June 2020. Archived from the original on 18 June 2020. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
  7. ^ a b c "Transport aérien: Level France va cesser son activité et engager un plan social" [Air transport: Level France will cease its activity and initiate a social plan]. Le Figaro (in French). 8 July 2020. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  8. ^ a b c "Level France becomes latest coronavirus crisis airline casualty". FlightGlobal. DVV Media International Limited. 10 July 2020. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  9. ^ a b c "Spain's Level to restart scheduled flights in late 3Q20". ch-aviation. 2 September 2020. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g Liu, Jim (17 March 2017). "Level outlines planned June 2017 launch". Routesonline. UBM (UK) Ltd. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  11. ^ a b Casey, David (24 September 2017). "Willie Walsh: Level to have 30 aircraft in five years". Routesonline. Informa Markets. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  12. ^ Schlapping, Ben (19 March 2017). "Whoa: New "Level" Transatlantic Airline Sold 52K Tickets On Day One!". One Mile at a Time.
  13. ^ "IAG dice que la acogida de Level en Barcelona ha sido excepcional" [IAG says that the reception of Level in Barcelona has been "exceptional"]. elEconomista.es (in Spanish). Editorial Ecoprensa, SA.
  14. ^ Baquero, Camilo S. (18 March 2017). "Level, así se llama la nueva aerolínea 'low cost' de IAG que volará a Los Ángeles desde 99 euros" [Level, that's the name of IAG's new low cost airline that will fly to Los Angeles from 99 euros]. El País (in Spanish). Ediciones El País SL.
  15. ^ "IAG confirms Orly for Level base; to scrap OpenSkies in 4Q18". ch-aviation. 29 November 2017.
  16. ^ a b c Liu, Jim (8 November 2018). "Level adds new Barcelona Trans-Atlantic routes in NS19". Routesonline. UBM (UK) Ltd. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  17. ^ a b Liu, Jim (8 May 2019). "Level adds Paris – Las Vegas service from late-Oct 2019". Routesonline. UBM (UK) Ltd.
  18. ^ a b c Liu, Jim (27 January 2020). "Level closes reservation for 2 Paris Orly – US routes from March 2020". Routesonline. Informa Markets. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
  19. ^ Liu, Jim (1 October 2019). "Level adds Paris Orly – Boston service in S20". Routesonline. Informa Markets. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  20. ^ "Projet de decision suite a l'appel a candidatures lance le 12 octobre 2019: Services aeriens entre la France et le Bresil" [Draft decision following the call for applications launched on 12 October 2019: Air services between France and Brazil] (PDF) (in French). Ministère de la Transition écologique. 16 January 2020. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  21. ^ Duclos, François (20 October 2020). "Level: un retour à Paris début décembre?" [Level: a return to Paris in early December?]. Air Journal. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  22. ^ a b Higueras, Arturo (27 April 2021). "Level also Focuses on the Caribbean". AirlineGeeks. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
  23. ^ a b "Level anuncia reapertura de sus vuelos entre Barcelona y Punta Cana" [Level announces reopening of flights between Barcelona and Punta Cana]. Arecoa (in Spanish). 15 September 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  24. ^ a b c "Level se vuelca con EEUU: duplica la oferta prepandemia" [Level turns to the US: doubling the pre-pandemic offer]. Preferente (in Spanish). 20 October 2021. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  25. ^ a b Nieves Dolande, Rainer (19 September 2023). "Level arrives in South Florida with Barcelona-Miami Flights". Aviacionline. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
  26. ^ a b "IAG Launches New Austrian Subsidiary" (Press release). IAG. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  27. ^ Gruber, Jan (18 December 2018). "Wien: Anisec gibt drei Routen auf" [Anisec gives up further three routes]. Austrian Aviation Net (in German). Cubo Media.
  28. ^ Steuer, René (14 March 2019). "Amsterdam: Anisec startet Level-Basis am 6. April 2019" [Level confirm Amsterdam shorthaul operation from April 2019]. Austrian Aviation Net (in German). Cubo Media. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  29. ^ Garcia, Marisa (18 June 2019). "LOI For 200 737 MAX Planes Is Can't-Lose For IAG, And No Loss For Airbus". Forbes. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  30. ^ "Analysis: Paris air show 2019 order tracker". FlightGlobal. Reed Business Information Limited. 19 June 2019. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
  31. ^ Gruber, Jan (21 December 2019). "Amsterdam: Anisec Luftfahrt GmbH ist jetzt Level Europe GmbH" [Anisec Luftfahrt GmbH is now Level Europe GmbH]. Austrian Aviation Net (in German). Cubo Media. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
  32. ^ a b Dunn, Graham (22 November 2023). "Level to get its own AOC as part of IAG Spanish expansion plans". FlightGlobal. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  33. ^ "Ways to Contact us". Level. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  34. ^ Ireland, Ben (25 July 2018). "Flybe's Hodder named CEO of low-cost airline LEVEL". Travel Weekly. Jacobs Media Group Limited. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  35. ^ "Our destinations". Level. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  36. ^ "Level resumes Chile service in NW22". AeroRoutes. 22 June 2022. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
  37. ^ a b "Low-Cost Airline Brand Level Announces Plans to Shift Nonstop Barcelona Flights from Oakland to SFO This Fall" (Press release). San Francisco International Airport. 7 June 2018. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  38. ^ a b c d Liu, Jim (22 January 2019). "Level/Anisec expands Austria network in S19". Routesonline. UBM (UK) Ltd.
  39. ^ "IAG to open Level-branded base in Vienna". Breaking Travel News. 28 June 2018.
  40. ^ "New low-cost airline, Level, to feature Vienna-Larnaca flights". Cyprus Traveller. 28 June 2018. Archived from the original on 28 June 2018. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  41. ^ Liu, Jim (24 December 2019). "Level adds Calvi – Memmingen service from May 2020". Routesonline. Informa Markets. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
  42. ^ a b c d e f Steuer, René (14 March 2019). "Amsterdam: Anisec startet Level-Basis am 6. April 2019" [Amsterdam: Anisec launches Level base on 6 April 2019]. Austrian Aviation Net (in German). Cubo Media. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  43. ^ Liu, Jim (25 October 2019). "Level removes planned Vienna – London service resumption from late-Oct 2019". Routesonline. Informa Markets. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
  44. ^ Brandler, Hannah (6 October 2021). "Iberia and Level announce codeshare with Alaska Airlines". Business Traveller. Panacea Media Limited. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  45. ^ elEconomista.es. "IAG estudia Roma y París como nuevas bases para Level y dotarla con cinco aviones para verano de 2018 - elEconomista.es".
  46. ^ "Level Fleet Details and History". Planespotters.net. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  47. ^ Bjorn Fehrm (28 February 2018). "IAG's Level shopping for future fleet". Leeham.
  48. ^ Casey, David (11 January 2019). "Level plots aggressive expansion once the building blocks are in place". Routesonline. Informa Markets. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  49. ^ "EC-NNH Level Airbus A330-202". Planespotters.net. 24 September 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  50. ^ "Baggage options". Level. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  51. ^ Silva, Gil Da. "Level - Réservation : bagages, frais, poids et prix des valises (soute et cabine)". www.quellecompagnie.com.
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Media related to LEVEL airline at Wikimedia Commons

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