Air Europa

When a Dreamliner with large “AirEuropa” titles turns onto final approach in Madrid, it has very likely just come in from South America. Air Europa is Spain’s second major network airline – smaller than Iberia, but with a clear profile: privately run, based on Mallorca, a member of SkyTeam and operating a fleet made up entirely of Boeing aircraft. This page shows you how to identify Air Europa with confidence, where to see it best and which details are worth adding to your logbook.

Air Europa at a glance

Air Europa is a Spanish network airline based in Llucmajor on Mallorca. Its roots go back to the mid-1980s: the company was founded in 1984 as Air España and got its current name two years later. The first flight took place in November 1986 – back then still as a leisure and charter airline, closely tied to the British Air Europe.

When the British partner went bankrupt in 1991, a group of investors around the entrepreneur Juan José Hidalgo took over the airline; today it belongs to his tourism group Globalia. Things moved quickly after that: in 1993 Air Europa became the first private airline to break Iberia’s monopoly on Spanish domestic routes, and international scheduled flights followed from the mid-1990s. Step by step, the leisure airline became a network airline with long-haul service.

Today Air Europa concentrates its traffic at its hub Madrid-Barajas. From there, feeder flights from Spain and Europe connect to long-haul routes to South and Central America, the Caribbean and the USA. Latin America is the core of the long-haul network – this is where Air Europa competes directly with Iberia.

Codes and callsign

• IATA code UX: appears in the flight number, so on departure boards, tickets and in most schedules.
• ICAO code AEA: appears in the air traffic control flight plan and on flight trackers.
• Callsign EUROPA: how the crew identifies itself on the radio.

The IATA code UX has no obvious connection to the name – that is nothing unusual for IATA codes. Why flight number and callsign often differ is explained in the articles on IATA and ICAO codes and on the difference between callsign and flight number.

Group and owners: Globalia, IAG and Turkish Airlines

Few European airlines have had as many takeover stories in recent years as Air Europa. For spotters this is more than business news – deals like these sooner or later change the network, the partners and sometimes the fleet.

Year	What happened
1991	A group of investors around Juan José Hidalgo (now Globalia) takes over the airline
2019	The International Airlines Group, parent of Iberia, announces the acquisition
2021	Amid the pandemic, the purchase agreement is dissolved
2022	IAG converts a loan into a 20 percent stake
2023	New attempt: IAG wants to acquire the remaining 80 percent
2024	After competition concerns from the European Commission, IAG withdraws its offer
2025	Turkish Airlines agrees to invest around €300 million
2026	Spain approves in June, the EU review is still pending at that point

Bottom line: Air Europa has stayed independent. Globalia holds the majority, IAG is on board as a 20 percent minority shareholder, and Turkish Airlines will come in with about 26 percent once all approvals are in place. Turkish is a member of Star Alliance, while Air Europa remains part of SkyTeam – an unusual setup you can keep an eye on.

Alliance: SkyTeam instead of oneworld

Spain’s airline landscape is clearly divided when it comes to alliances. Iberia and Iberia Express belong to oneworld, while Air Europa has been with SkyTeam since 2007 – first as an associate member, since 2010 as a full member. That makes Madrid the most important SkyTeam connection point on the Iberian Peninsula. A joint hub of Air Europa and SkyTeam opened there in 2014.

In everyday operations this means close cooperation with partners such as Air France and KLM. There are also codeshares with airlines outside the alliance. For an overview of the three big alliances, see the article Star Alliance, oneworld and SkyTeam.

The fleet: Boeing from nose to tail

For years, Air Europa has relied exclusively on Boeing. According to overviews (as of late 2025), the fleet comprises just under 50 aircraft – compact, but with two clearly separate worlds: 737s for Europe, 787s for long-haul.

Type	Role	Seats (per fleet overviews)	Spotter tip
Boeing 737-800	Short and medium haul	186	Workhorse in Europe, also at Air Europa Express
Boeing 737 MAX 8	Short and medium haul	189	New arrival since 2025, more on order
Boeing 787-8	Long-haul	296 (22 of them business)	Shorter Dreamliner
Boeing 787-9	Long-haul	339 (32 of them business)	Largest group in the long-haul fleet
Airbus A350-900	Long-haul	still open	Reportedly up to 40 on order, deliveries from 2028

Air Europa was early with the Dreamliner: in 2008 it became the first Spanish airline to order the 787-8. Today the 787-8 and 787-9 make up the entire long-haul fleet. Airbus A330-200s and A330-300s as well as Boeing 767s used to fly there – the A330 has since been retired. With the A350, Airbus returns to the fleet once the first aircraft arrive.

787-8 or 787-9? How to tell the Dreamliners apart

Both versions wear the same livery and share the typical Dreamliner features: serrated engine nacelles, wings that flex sharply upward in flight and the smoothly rounded nose. The difference is the length.

Without a side-by-side comparison, the length is hard to judge. The safest method is to check the registration and the tracker type. For the 737s, look at the engines instead: the MAX 8 has larger engines with serrated trailing edges on the nacelle, while the 737-800 has smooth nacelles.

How to recognize Air Europa

Since 2015, Air Europa has used a revised look. Its hallmarks are the white fuselage and the large, single-word “AirEuropa” titles in blue. The tail is in shades of blue and carries the brand logo. Overall the livery looks clean and modern, without loud accent colors.

One special feature is the SkyTeam special livery that at least one 737-800 has worn – a popular subject you will not catch every day. It is best to check beforehand whether the aircraft is still flying that way. Tips for finding such aircraft are in the article on special liveries. All aircraft are registered in Spain and carry the prefix EC-; how country codes work is explained in the post on country codes on aircraft.

Air Europa Express: the regional subsidiary

Behind Air Europa Express is the company Aeronova, which the Globalia group took over in 2015. Since 2016 it has flown routes for Air Europa under the new name – with its own air operator certificate and its own codes (IATA X5, ICAO OVA). It is part of SkyTeam as an affiliated carrier.

For spotters, the fleet history is the interesting part. At first the Express fleet consisted of Embraer 195s and ATR 72-500s, typical regional aircraft. The Embraer E195 and the turboprops have since disappeared; today Air Europa Express mainly flies Boeing 737-800s. Photos from the Embraer era are therefore almost historical material by now.

Spotting Air Europa

You see the most Air Europa traffic at Madrid-Barajas. The entire long-haul fleet takes off and lands there, along with numerous 737 rotations. According to available information, Air Europa uses Terminals 1 and 2 – not Terminal 4, where Iberia and the oneworld partners are handled. A well-known, if unofficial, spot for approaches in north flow is La Muñoza on the southeast edge of the airport.

The second focus is Palma de Mallorca, where the company is headquartered and where Air Europa mainly offers domestic connections, above all to Madrid. In summer, Palma is a paradise for spotters anyway, since leisure airlines from half of Europe meet there.

In German-speaking countries, Air Europa is seen much less often than, say, Vueling or Iberia. Whether and how often the airline serves your home airport changes with the schedule – so check the current connections before every outing. If you want to see the Dreamliners specifically, it is best to plan a spotting trip to Madrid; the overview of the best spotting locations in Europe offers inspiration.

Be sure to check the runway direction in use on site: in Madrid the runway configuration switches between north and south flow depending on the weather, and landings only pass La Muñoza in north flow. How this works is explained in the guide to the runway direction in use at airports. For the right light, the article on the sun position at your photo spot also helps.

Common mix-ups

• Confusing Air Europa with Iberia – both are based in Madrid, but Iberia belongs to IAG and oneworld, Air Europa to Globalia and SkyTeam.
• Equating Air Europa with the British Air Europe – the British airline was a partner in the 1980s but has not existed since 1991.
• Assuming every UX aircraft is Air Europa itself – Air Europa Express flies in the same look, and the tracker then shows OVA.
• Expecting the A350 in your logbook already – the A350-900s on order are reportedly not arriving until 2028.
• Logging 787-8 and 787-9 by gut feeling – the length difference is hard to see without a comparison, so the registration decides.
• Thinking Air Europa is a low-cost carrier – it is a network airline with a hub, an alliance and long-haul service.

Conclusion

Air Europa is the airline that gives Madrid a second face alongside Iberia. An all-Boeing fleet, Dreamliners on the Latin America routes, a regional subsidiary with its own code and an ownership circle that includes Globalia, IAG and – once the deal closes – Turkish Airlines make the airline more interesting for spotters than its size suggests. If you note the registration and ICAO code with each sighting, every entry in your logbook is clean.