25 Years of ASM: Part Two

ASM have proudly worked with airports, airlines, tourism authorities and governments in the development of new routes since 1993.

We would like to thank everyone who has worked with ASM over the last 25 years. With your support we have assisted in the introduction of 1,000 new routes, delivered over 300 training courses around the globe and attended more than 75 Routes events on behalf of our clients.

We are privileged to have been the first consultancy solely dedicated to route development, and feel honoured to have supported the growth of the aviation community over the last 25 years. In the build up to Routes Europe, we will be highlighting 25 milestone moments from the last quarter century of aviation.

1. Star Alliance launched (14 May 1997): Star Alliance was the first major airline alliance and remains the biggest today. Operations began when five airlines (Thai Airways International, Air Canada, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines and United Airways) joined forces to provide more expansive and efficient air travel. At the time, the alliance stated its intention to "take passengers to every major city on earth," and they have made significant strides towards this end in the years since.
2. World Routes 2000 (18 – 19 September 2000): 120 airlines attended the Millennium event. It was hosted by the three global airports of the Schiphol Group and at the time it was the biggest Routes event to date. Routes had truly become the event of choice for airlines and airports worldwide.
3. 9/11 attacks (11 September 2001): The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 shook the world in a profound way, deeply upsetting the perception of safety. No industry felt these impacts more strongly than the airline industry. Anyone associated with aviation knew that the industry would never be the same, but what was less evident was how resilient the industry would be in the aftermath of the tragedy or the direction in which it would change.
4. End of era for Concorde (24 October 2003): The legendary supersonic aircraft, Concorde, landed for the final time amid emotional scenes at Heathrow airport. The final transatlantic flight, ending 27 years of supersonic history, carried 100 celebrities from New York. Thousands of people gathered by the runway on a specially built grandstand to cheer on the crew as well as two other Concorde flights which landed a few minutes earlier, one carrying competition winners on a flight from Edinburgh and the other completing a trip for invited guests around the Bay of Biscay.
5. Etihad Airways services launched (5 November 2003): Etihad Airways was established as the flag carrier of the United Arab Emirates in July 2003 by Royal (Amiri) Decree issued by Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Services were launched with a ceremonial flight to Al Ain on 5 November 2003, one week later Etihad commenced commercial operations with the launch of services to Beirut, and has gone on to become the fastest growing airline in the history of commercial aviation.

Routes Europe will mark the 25th Anniversary of ASM, and with your help, we plan to celebrate our birthday in style, come and visit us at our stand in Bilbao. To discuss the future of the aviation industry, visit the ASM website or email [email protected].