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Founded | 5 June 1967 | ||||||
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Commenced operations | 5 April 1968 | ||||||
Ceased operations | 2 October 2017[2] | ||||||
AOC # | 365 | ||||||
Operating bases | |||||||
Frequent-flyer program | Vantage Club | ||||||
Fleet size | 35 (at closure) | ||||||
Destinations | 43 (at closure) | ||||||
Parent company | Monarch Airlines Holdings | ||||||
Headquarters | Luton, United Kingdom | ||||||
Key people |
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Employees | 2,300 (at closure) |
Monarch Airlines, simply known as Monarch, was a British charter and scheduled airline founded by Bill Hodgson and Don Peacock and financed by the Swiss Sergio Mantegazza family. The company later became a low-cost airline[3][4] in 2004 before abandoning charter flying completely. The airline's headquarters were based at London–Luton, and it had operating bases at Birmingham, Leeds/Bradford, London–Gatwick and Manchester.
When Monarch entered administration in 2017, it was the biggest airline collapse in UK history up to that point, leaving nearly 100,000 passengers and holidaymakers stranded.[5] However, on 23 September 2019, Thomas Cook also collapsed, leaving 150,000 people stranded, and went on to become the largest UK airline ever to collapse. [6] The airline held a United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) Type A Operating Licence. This licence allowed Monarch to carry passengers, cargo, and mail on aircraft with 20 or more seats.[7][8]