Czech Airlines

In the beginning nature was all. It gave us sustenance, it warmed us and provided us with homes. When it revealed its laws, it bestowed upon humankind a vast gift of knowledge. Its apparent simplicity and innocence were exposed, and humankind peered into the depths of the world's complicated, but perfectly functioning laws. It became enough to stir, to choose one of the many laws of nature and to fulfil one's desires. And so it was that man (not only once) soared heavenward, like a dandelion seed. But nature sent forth greater mysteries and elicited further questions. Why do flocks of birds stay aloft? Why do they always head for their nest? How much patience and work goes into a flowering meadow? What washes up on shore with the ocean's breakers? And why does the intelligent dolphin only guide ships in large pods? Man looked closely at a petal and found that if the perfect network of links is damaged in its structure, the entire flower may wilt. Utter perfection created from myriad superbly functioning, interconnected features, one element complementing the next, patience while awaiting the outcome: add to this the ancient and overwhelming desire of man to overcome time, shorten distances, to fly. From all of this was born an airline. Nature and its fascinating laws attended its birth. To his own benefit, man assessed the speed of the cheetah, the strength of the elephant, the purity of an iceberg, the structural perfection of a leaf and the method and order of the tiny ant, and thus did airplanes take wing with the elegance of a dandelion seed or bird. For the first time--at the threshold of the third millennium--more than three million passengers were borne aloft on the wings of CSA. Ceské aerolinie, a.s., also called Czech Airlines or CSA, flies to approximately 70 destinations in more than 40 countries. Its fleet numbers about three dozen Western-made aircraft. Since 2001, CSA has been a member of the Delta Airlines-led Skyteam alliance, which gives its passengers easy access to two dozen international airlines. In addition to scheduled and charter flights, CSA provides an array of aviation support services, including cargo handling, catering, and aircraft maintenance. CSA is controlled by a number of government institutions. CSA was founded on October 6, 1923, as Ceskoslovenska Statni Aerolinie, or Czechoslovak State Airlines. The first passenger flight, between Prague and Bratislava, occurred on October 29 with an Aero A-14 Brandenburg biplane piloted by Karel Brabenec. The airline joined the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in 1929. On July 1, 1930, the carrier used a Ford 5AT to add its first international route, from Prague to Zagreb, in the former Yugoslavia (Croatia). CSA carried about 9,000 passengers during the year, according to Airlines of the World by R.E.G. Davies, who also reports that CSA's early fleet included Savoia-Marchetti S.M. 73s, four Airspeed Envoys, and one Saro Cloud, the latter two types made in Britain. Flights to Romania, Austria, and the Soviet Union were added in the early 1930s. CSA moved to the new airport at Prague-Ruzyni in April 1937. Brussels, Paris, Rome, and Budapest were added to the network within the next two years. However, operations were curtailed on March 15, 1939 due to the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia. Another airline, Ceskoslovenska Latecka Spolecnost (CLS), in which the Skoda Works had a significant interest, had provided domestic and international service after being founded in 1927. It was merged with CSA in 1945. Flight operations resumed on September 14, 1945. After the war, CSA rebuilt its fleet with both the Douglas DC-3 transports of the Allies and their German counterpart, Junkers Ju52s. The route network was restored and the first intercontinental flights--to Cairo and Ankara--added in 1947. After the Communist coup of 1948, CSA shifted to Russian-made Ilyushin Il-12 airliners. Il-14s made locally under license by Avia were the next upgra