Flash Airlines was a private airline based in Cairo, Egypt. It mainly flew charter flights (special flights booked by travel companies for tourists). The airline was part of a tourism group called Flash Group. The Airline flew only two Boeing 737-300s that were made in 1993. Flash Airlines operated domestic passenger flights and international flights.
The Airline was made in 1995 as Heliopolis Airlines. It was approved by the Egyptian authorities in 1996. It joined the Flash Group in the year 2000. Flash Airlines had one Boeing 737-300 at the time with another joined in 2002.
Swiss aviation authorities made a surprise inspection on one of Flash Airlines‘ Boeing 737-300 (SU-ZCF). They found missing pilot oxygen masks, almost no oxygen tanks and cockpit instruments that weren‘t working. The Swiss authorities told the airline, that they couldn‘t fly the plane until they fixed it. A few days later, Switzerland banned Flash Airlines from flying into Switzerland. Poland and Norway did the same thing.
Heliopolis Airlines: One Airbus A310, three Boeing 737-300 and one McDonnell Douglas MD-83
Flash Airlines: Two Boeing 737-300s
On January 3rd, 2004, the same aircraft that the Swiss aviation authorities inspected (SU-ZCF), crashed as Flash Airlines flight 604. It was the deadliest plane crash in Egyptian history, which was later second deadliest after the bombing of Metrojet flight 9268. After the crash, many people did not fly Flash Airlines due to safety reasons. The airline went out of business and fully shut down in March 2004. This marked the end of Flash Airlines.
