Cobalt, the first Cypriot airline to take to the skies since the grounding of Cyprus Airways, commenced service on its first commercial flights on 7 July, with routes from Larnaca (LCA) to Athens (ATH), London Stansted (STN) and Manchester (MAN).

• The carrier has also added service to Chania (CHQ), Heraklion (HER), Thessaloniki (SKG) and Dublin (DUB). It should be noted that just before Cyprus Airways’ demise, it did operate to Athens, Stansted and Thessaloniki from Larnaca, while Heraklion was also served by the carrier until 2014. The new airline, which operates under the code CO (formerly used by Continental Airlines), plans on building on the success of the low-cost flying model, by offering services that will not only fill the gap left by Cyprus Airways, but also by strengthening the image of Cyprus as an all-year-round destination, and by creating an important regional aviation hub at Larnaca. Of Cobalt’s seven routes only two will face no direct competition, while the average weekly frequency is 4.5. The airline currently has one A320 in its fleet according to ch-aviation, with the airline’s website stating that it is hoping to have seven single-aisle Airbus aircraft in its fleet by next January. Looking at the airline’s schedule, it requires some services to be flown by third parties until it gets more aircraft of its own. Currently Astra Airlines, SmartLynx and Titan Airways are all flying for the carrier. 

Launched	From	To	Aircraft (WF)	Competition (WF)
7 July	Larnaca (LCA)	Athens (ATH)	A320 (14)	Aegean Airlines (42), Blue Air (14), Emirates (5)
		London Stansted (STN)	A320 (6)	Thomas Cook Airlines (1)
		Manchester (MAN)	A320 (2)	Jet2.com (4), Thomson Airways (4), Thomas Cook Airlines (3)
8 July		Chania (CHQ)
		Heraklion (HER)		Aegean Airlines (4)
		Thessaloniki (SKG)	A320 (4)	Aegean Airlines (9), Blue Air (5), Ellinair (5)
9 July		Dublin (DUB)	A320 (2)
Source: OAG Schedules Analyser data for w/c 12 July 2016.

Aenna