Futura International Airways

If you stood on Mallorca, in the Canary Islands or at a regional airport in Britain or Ireland between 1990 and 2008, you almost certainly saw the blue “Futura” titles. The charter airline from Palma flew vacationers to the sun for almost two decades – always with the Boeing 737, sometimes in its own name, sometimes on behalf of other airlines. In September 2008, it was over. This page shows you how Futura came about, which 737 versions it flew and how to recognize it reliably in old photos and logbooks.

Futura at a glance

Futura International Airways was a Spanish charter airline based at Palma de Mallorca Airport. It was founded in 1989 and made its first flight on February 17, 1990 – from Palma to Manchester. This route symbolizes what Futura did for almost twenty years: bringing vacationers from the British Isles and Ireland to Spain’s beaches.

Behind its founding stood mainly Aer Lingus. The Irish airline used Futura as a charter offshoot with a Spanish air operator certificate, and the Spanish bank Banco Santander is also named as a partner. The link to Ireland remained visible until the end – with a base in Dublin and later even an Irish subsidiary of its own.

In 2007, its last full financial year, Futura carried around 3.7 million passengers and had about 1,200 employees at the end. Besides Palma, the airline had permanent bases in Málaga, on Tenerife, on Gran Canaria and in Dublin.

The history in stages

Futura was never an airline for big headlines. It was a typical representative of the Spanish charter industry that grew with package tourism – similar to Spantax before it and in parallel with providers like Air Europa, which also has its roots on Mallorca. The key milestones:

Codes and callsign

• IATA code FH: appeared in the flight number on tickets, travel documents and departure boards.
• ICAO code FUA: appeared in the air traffic control flight plan.
• Callsign FUTURA: this is how the crews identified themselves on the radio.

One thing is special about charter flights: Many vacationers did not even know they were flying with Futura. They booked with the tour operator, and the airline often appeared only in the travel documents. On top of that, Futura aircraft on wet lease also flew under other airlines’ flight numbers. For your logbook, that means: Besides the flight number, always note the airline titles and registration too.

The fleet: Boeing 737s only

Futura stuck with a single aircraft type its whole life. That saved costs on training, maintenance and spare parts and made it easy to move aircraft and crews between bases. Within the 737 family, though, the fleet changed significantly:

Type	Generation	Time at Futura	Spotter tip
Boeing 737-300	Classic	1990s to 2008	Shorter than the -400, oval engine inlets with a flattened underside
Boeing 737-400	Classic	1990s to 2008	The backbone of the fleet for a long time
Boeing 737-800	Next Generation	Late 1990s to 2008	Larger wings, new cockpit, often with winglets
Boeing 737-900ER	Next Generation	2008	Longest version, additional pair of emergency exits behind the wing

The 737-900ER was the last addition: The first aircraft arrived in May 2008, only a few months before the end. According to available information, the two -900ERs flew for the Dutch leisure airline Arkefly – a good example of how heavily Futura was involved in leasing.

How many aircraft Futura operated at the end cannot be stated exactly. Depending on the source and the cutoff date, the figures for 2008 range from just over 20 to just over 30 aircraft, because a major lessor took back numerous aircraft around the time of the grounding. So we deliberately do not give an exact number. The manufacturer of all Futura jets was Boeing, and the Next Generation engines came from CFM International.

Classic or Next Generation? How to date Futura photos

Because Futura flew only 737s, the aircraft’s generation is your best clue to a photo’s age. A 737-800 can date from the late 1990s at the earliest, a 737-900ER only from 2008.

The guide How to tell the Boeing 737 Original, Classic, NG and MAX apart shows you the details of the individual generations from the Original to the MAX.

Wet lease: Futura aircraft in other airlines’ service

A large part of the business did not run under its own flag. Futura leased aircraft with crew – in industry jargon wet lease or ACMI – to other airlines that needed capacity at short notice. Named customers included Blue Panorama from Italy, Air Algérie, Binter Canarias and SunExpress. What is behind the model is explained in the post Wet lease explained.

For spotters, this makes things interesting: A Futura 737 could fly on behalf of another airline and still carry the Futura titles – or, conversely, the customer’s stickers and partial paint schemes. You can classify such hybrids with the guide to hybrid and mixed liveries.

How to recognize Futura

The livery was simple: white fuselage, blue “Futura” titles above the forward cabin windows and a blue tail with the company logo. Almost always there is also a Spanish EC- registration. Because the fleet consisted only of Boeing 737s, you can practically rule out other types on an alleged Futura photo.

Futura Gael and Flyant: the subsidiaries

Futura Gael was founded in Dublin in 2007. The Irish subsidiary flew charters from Ireland to destinations in the EU and had around 90 employees at the end. In August 2008, it had already proposed significant pay cuts to its staff – an early warning sign. It ceased operations at the same time as its parent. If you are interested in the Irish market, Dublin Airport and the guide Plane spotting in Dublin are the right starting point.

Flyant was the cargo subsidiary and operated Boeing 737 freighters. In 2008, it additionally received a permit for passenger flights and leased aircraft to Air Algérie. After the end of Futura, Flyant was sold and continued under a new name, but never got back on its feet and ceased operations in December 2008.

The end in September 2008

Summer 2008 was a hard one for the industry: The oil price hit record highs, and several airlines ran into trouble. Shortly before, Canada’s Zoom Airlines had already collapsed. Futura was hit soon after.

According to media reports, the debts were around 50 million euros – despite 3.7 million passengers the year before. At the time of its collapse, Futura was considered the largest European airline to get into trouble in the 2008 downturn. How the bankruptcy compares with other collapses is put into context in the post on major airline collapses in Europe. Another well-known Spanish bankruptcy followed in 2012 with Spanair.

Futura in today’s spotter routine

For your logbook, Futura is mostly an archive topic. If you photographed in Palma in the 1990s and 2000s, you will very likely find the blue tails in old slides or early digital images. Label them cleanly with type, registration, place and date – then a vacation photo becomes a complete entry.

Tracing what became of the aircraft is exciting. Many Futura 737s were leased and kept flying with other airlines after 2008, and 737 Classics in particular were often converted to freighters in those years. You follow an aircraft’s life story via its serial number and registration – the guide How old is this aircraft? shows how. Why leased jets change operators so often is explained in the post Aircraft leasing.

The places in Futura’s story are still worth visiting. Palma is one of Europe’s busiest vacation airports – you will find tips in the guide Plane spotting on Mallorca. In the Canary Islands, the Ojos de Garza beach at Gran Canaria Airport is a good choice; other Futura destinations were Tenerife South and Málaga. And at the starting point of the very first Futura flight, Manchester Airport, the Runway Visitor Park awaits.

Common mix-ups

• Thinking Futura was an Irish airline – Aer Lingus was the owner for a long time, but Futura itself was based in Palma and flew with a Spanish license.
• Equating Futura Gael with the parent – the Irish subsidiary was a separate company based in Dublin.
• Dating a Futura photo to the wrong era – Classic 737s point more to the 1990s, a -900ER only to 2008.
• Confusing flight number and operating airline – on wet lease, Futura flew under other airlines’ flight numbers.
• Logging other types as Futura – the fleet consisted exclusively of Boeing 737s.
• Confusing Futura International Airways with companies of the same name – the name “Futura” has appeared in aviation several times; codes and registrations bring clarity.

Conclusion

Futura International Airways stands for almost two decades of Spanish charter flying with an Irish touch: founded in Aer Lingus’s orbit, grown on vacation flights to Mallorca and the Canary Islands, faithful to the Boeing 737 to the end. On top of that came a lively leasing business that made Futura jets known far beyond Spain. For spotters, a look back is worthwhile – at old photos, clean registrations and the 737s that kept flying under other names after 2008. You can find more leisure airlines with a history at Aero Lloyd and LTU.