It is quite interesting, how certain organizations grow no matter what difficulties they may need to face, and some down size, no matter how many efforts they make. Truly, those are successful, who work hard, face onerous days but go on, in spite of all that is evident being against them. And for some, no matter what they do, the deities remain on the other side. Such is the story of olympic airlines.
Today it is the national flag bearer of Greece. The name has got nothing to do with the games, but after the gods and goddesses of greek mythology, a true homage to the true gods of Greece. But before the story of olympic air, we need to about the titans and the airlines before it.
Icarus was the first airline, named after the son of Daedalus; the craftsman who made the labyrinth for minotaur; that began immediately after the culmination of the first world war.
World was still new to air transport and people did not take warmly to Icarus. Incidently Icarus in greek mythology also tried to escape Crete by flying, but died by falling down. No wonder the airline faced a similar fate. This airline was aptly replaced by the greek company for air transport, also called GCAT. Another company, a privately owned airline company called technical and aeronautical exploitations or TAE was established soon.
By the end of world war II, Greece alone had GCAT and TAE and another airline, Hellenic airlines. Hellenic, named after Hellen the son of Zeus, made it after all. In a few years time, since the other airlines were not doing well, the government decided to merge the three under the common banner of Hellenic. Later, following a deal with Aristotle Onassis, the company became olympic airways.
However like the twelve Olympians themselves, the airline had to face quite a lot of trouble. The business was strictly floating in the early 60s when the Alexander Onassis, son of Aristotle Onassis died in a plane crash. Grieved, Aristotle sold the olympic airlines to the Greek state, and thus began the slow and gradual demise of the airline.
Most of the economist and politicians claim to have decided directly from one of the twelve’s. We might live in the 3rd millennium, but the Greeks still believe in the royalty of the titans and the Olympians. The state therefore suffered losses because the families of Greece refused to give air fare and continued flying on olympic air, no other airline and this was named on their fore fathers. They did not pay even a 15 % that was deemed as necessary. The state could not do much about them. As a result, the liberties continued and now even the guests of the families were flying free of cost. The press already was enjoying a 97% off. The fate of olympic airways was being sealed by the descendants of the Olympians them selves.
The state finally decided to take matters in hand in hand by making the subsidiary Macedonian airlines into olympic airlines S.A., which finished all their debt until then. All the remaining sub groups merged under the name of olympic airways. Due to continued losses, the state announced to sell the airline but when paid back the 700 million Euros of debt which the european commission affirmed as unlawful and the airline was not bought by any one.
The state is still looking forward to privatize the olympic air, and the olympic investors might be the new owners. They have announced to let go the name olympic airlines due to the amount of misfortune brought upon by the ancient gods, the titans, and adopt the name pantheon airways. The project has been delayed yet again due to numerous reasons and although olympic airways continue to fly, the debt continues to pile and the state continues to squirm.
