Baltia Airlines at JFK?

[T-Bird76]

I checked and didn't see a post on this. Looks like a new startup providing flights from JFK to select Russian cities. Anyone know details...?

http://www.baltia.com/index.html

Looks like the real thing..

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/090223/ny73582.html?.v=1

btw their logo is a chicken....

[njgtr82]

This article says they've been trying to get things together since 2002 so I don't think it looks very promising

http://www.stockpatrol.com/article/key/update_baltia506

[flyboy 28]

I wonder if they'll actually be flying a -200 like it is on their site. If so... droooooool.

Also Tommy, regarding the chicken;


Baltia Rooster

The rooster is our symbol of reliability. Dating back to Roman times, a rooster was universally recognized as a symbol of punctuality and dependability. For these same qualities, Baltia’s founder chose the rooster to represent our new airline.

Throughout American history, the rooster has been an icon, particularly in New York. On the bright, sunny day of May 24th, 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge was officially opened in New York, and the first person to cross the bridge carried a live rooster as a sign of victory and accomplishment. She was Emily Roebling, the wife of famed civil engineer Washington Roebling who supervised construction of the Brooklyn Bridge. Emily was so instrumental in her husband’s work she was given the honor of traversing the bridge first from Brooklyn to Manhattan. As she rode across in horse-drawn carriage with the rooster in her arms, all the men who had been working on the bridge raised their hats in triumph and cheered the historic moment.

But there’s more to our rooster story. In European folklore, a golden rooster is also a good luck charm. Just look skyward. Ever vigilant and watching over all, the rooster sits atop many spires and buildings in New York City as well as on church towers throughout Europe. You can also see the revered image on countless weather vanes of homes all over the countryside.

One of the largest and most grand rooster effigies in the world is the golden rooster perched atop the spire of St. Peter’s Church in Riga, Latvia. The church was once the tallest building in Europe before the Eiffel Tower was erected. Over 360 feet up in the air, the golden rooster is the size of a horse.

[Matt Molnar]

I remember reading about them and doing some research a couple years ago. Either it is a completely bizarre pie in the sky dream project of a Latvian immigrant named Igor Dmitrowsky (their "corporate address" is actually his apartment off Queens Blvd in Rego Park), or it is some kind of investment scam, as they are publicly traded on the OTC market (ticker BLTA (http://www.smartmoney.com/stock-quote/?symbol=BLTA), currently trading at 4 cents a share).

That 2002 date Bill mentions is a bit generous. The company actually turns 20 this year...they were incorporated in 1989, yet still haven't rustled up enough funds for that 747 they've always wanted.

Here is a 1991 NY Times article about their big plans that apparently never got off the ground: http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.h ... A967958260 (http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D0CE2DF113DF935A15755C0A9679582 60)

It is possible that they're finally getting their act together...according to the press release Tommy links to and another one I found from earlier this month, they have begun the FAA certification process. That said, they still don't have a plane.

[Matt Molnar]

They're back!

Baltia issued a one sentence press release (http://www.baltia.com/8_19_09.html) Thursday claiming they have executed a purchase agreement for a 747.

JFK INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, JAMAICA, N.Y., Aug. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Baltia Air Lines, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: BLTA - News) announced today that they have executed the final Aircraft Purchase Agreement for its first Boeing 747.
The AP, AviationWeek, FlightGlobal and other reputable sources have covered the development.

AviationWeek (http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story_channel.jsp?channel=comm&id=news/BALT081909.xml&headline=Baltia%20Inches%20Closer%20To%20Launch%20 With%20747%20Buy) had the most detail:

The aircraft was purchased from an unspecified U.S. carrier and could be in service before the end of the year, VP of Finance Barry Clare told AviationWeek in a telephone interview.
How many US carriers have passenger 747s laying around? Northwest is the only one that comes to mind, unless they're dragging something out of the desert.

[T-Bird76]

How many US carriers have passenger 747s laying around? Northwest is the only one that comes to mind, unless they're dragging something out of the desert.

UAL and NWA both have 747 in storage. UAL took a good amount of 74s out of the fleet.

[Delta777LR]

New possibly start up Baltia Airlines is waiting for approval to start out from its home based JFK Airport to 6 destinations such as Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Russia, Ukraine. With a leased Boeing 747-400 which will be based at terminal 4.