TAROM

TAROM - Romanian Air Transport
TAROM - Transporturile Aeriene Române

IATA ICAO Callsign RO ROT TAROM
Founded	September 18, 1954 (1954-09-18)
Hubs	Henri Coandă International Airport
Focus cities	Iași International Airport Timișoara International Airport
Frequent-flyer program	Flying Blue
Alliance	SkyTeam
Fleet size	25
Destinations	52 (including 2017 charter destinations)
Headquarters	Otopeni, Ilfov County, Romania
Key people	Werner Wilhelm Wolff, CEO
Revenue	221 million € (2017)
Operating income	-37,7 million € (2017)
Website	tarom.ro

Compania Națională de Transporturi Aeriene Române TAROM S.A., doing business as TAROM (pronounced "ta-rom"), is the flag carrier and oldest currently operating airline of Romania, based in Otopeni near Bucharest. Its headquarters and its main hub are at Henri Coandă International Airport. It is currently the second largest airline operating in Romania based on international destinations, international flights and the third largest measured by fleet size and passengers carried.

The brand name is an acronym for Romanian: Transporturile Aeriene Române (Romanian Air Transport). Over ninety-seven percent (97.17%) of TAROM is owned by the Romanian Government (Ministry of Transport). The airline transported almost 2.4 million passengers in 2015, with an average load factor of 70%. The airline joined SkyTeam on 25 June 2010.

History[edit]

The beginnings[edit]

The history of Romanian National Air Transport Company can be traced back from 1920, when CFRNA - (French-Romanian Company for Air Navigation) was founded.^[1][2] The airline used French-built Potez 15 aircraft for its passenger/mail service between Paris and Bucharest via several cities in Central Europe. In 1925, the city of Galați became the first destination in Romania served by regular flights followed, from 24 June 1926, by an extended service to Iași and Chișinău. Ten de Havilland DH.9 and five Ansaldo A.300, in addition to the Potez aircraft, operated the service.

In 1928 the airline changed its name to SNNA (Serviciul Național de Navigație Aeriană, The National Air Navigation Service). In 1930, the company adopted the name LARES (Liniile Aeriene Române Exploatate de Stat, Romanian State-Operated Air Lines) while 1937 saw the merger of LARES with its competitor, SARTA (Societatea Anonimă Română de Transporturi Aeriene).^[3]

Post-World War II[edit]

Immediately After World War II, in 1945, when the Soviet Union had extended its influence across Eastern Europe, a new reorganization replaced LARES with TARS (Transporturi Aeriene Româno-Sovietice),^[2] jointly owned by the governments of Romania and the Soviet Union. Domestic operations were started from Bucharest (Băneasa Airport) on 1 February 1946, when TARS took over all air services and aircraft from LARES.^[3]

Over the following decade, the company's Soviet share was purchased by Romanian government and, on 18 September 1954, the airline adopted the name of TAROM (Transporturi Aeriene Române, Romanian Air Transport). By 1960, TAROM was flying to a dozen cities across Europe. 1966 saw the operation of its first transatlantic flight. On 14 May 1974, it launched a regular service to New York City (John F. Kennedy International Airport).

Being part of the regional group of airlines within Eastern Bloc states meant that for much of its history TAROM has operated Soviet-designed aircraft. These included the Lisunov Li-2, Ilyushin Il-14, Ilyushin Il-18 long-range turboprop, Ilyushin Il-62 long-range jet airliner, Antonov An-24 regional turboprop, and the Tupolev Tu-154 medium-range tri-jet. As was the case with a number of other nations, the Il-62 was the first long-range jet airliner to be put into operation by Romania, in 1973. Five examples (three Il-62s and two later version Il-62Ms) were owned by TAROM, which also leased the aircraft to other operators.

An exception to Soviet-built aircraft was made in 1968, when TAROM bought BAC One Elevens for European and Middle East destinations, and in 1974 when it acquired Boeing 707 aircraft to share its long-haul operations with the Il-62. Plans were made to acquire Vickers VC10 aircraft as well, but in the end the Soviets did not allow it, and made them buy the Il-62 instead.^[4] With 59 aircraft in operation, in the late '70s, TAROM had the largest fleet in the Eastern Bloc, after Aeroflot.^[5]

In 1978, a contract was signed with the UK enabling Rombac to manufacture the BAC One Eleven at Romaero, near Bucharest. Meanwhile, the 707 and Il-62 long-range aircraft were operating New York (via Amsterdam, later London and finally Vienna), Abu-Dhabi-Bangkok-Singapore, and Karachi-Beijing. TAROM was the only Eastern Bloc airline to operate flights to Tel Aviv, Israel.

The 1990s[edit]

After the collapse of the communist regime in 1989, the airline, operating a fleet of 65 aircraft of six basic types, was able to acquire more Western-built jets.^[6] By 1993, TAROM had introduced long-haul flights to Montreal and Bangkok using Ilyushin Il-62 and Airbus A310 aircraft.

During the 1990s, TAROM replaced its long-haul fleet of Boeing 707s and IL-62s with Airbus A310s (the last Il-62 being sold in 1999). In 2001, the airline cancelled its non-profitable long-haul services to Bangkok and Montreal and also terminated services to its remaining intercontinental destinations of Beijing in 2003, Chicago in 2002, and New York City in 2003.^[7]

TAROM terminated loss-making domestic services to Craiova, Tulcea, Caransebeș, and Constanța, and focused its activity on service to key destinations in Europe and the Middle East. 2004 was the first profitable year of the last decade.

2000 onwards[edit]

TAROM is recovering from a difficult period that began in the 1990s, when losses of up to $68 million per year were registered, caused by unprofitable routes. At the beginning of the new millennium, the airline initiated a programme that was aimed at restoring profitability. This was achieved by terminating loss-making intercontinental services. TAROM has decided to focus its operations on Bucharest (Henri Coandă International Airport) (OTP) and Cluj-Napoca International Airport (CLJ), and initiated direct international flights from Sibiu International Airport.

A fleet upgrade programme started in 2006 with the acquisition of four Airbus A318s, three Boeing 737-800s, and two ATR 72-500s, which resulted in a fleet increase to 26 by 2009.

The airline had a frequent-flyer programme "Smart Miles", which was turned into Flying Blue on 5 June 2010. Codeshare agreements with foreign partner airlines are in place for several international routes. On 25 June 2010, TAROM joined SkyTeam as the alliance's thirteenth member.

Starting with November 2012, in accordance to the Romanian state-company legislation, TAROM was led by a private manager, the Belgian Christian Heinzmann occupying the positions of CEO and Accountable Manager until March 2016. During Heinzmann's leadership, the company reduced its financial losses by more than 75%, grew its yearly passenger number to a record 2.4 million and stabilised its load-factor around 70%. However, broad reforms like the fleet renewal and harmonisation, as well as the establishment of profit centers such as the TAROM Maintenance and TAROM Charter services, were not accomplished due to a constant lack of decision from the company's board of administrators.^[8]

On 29 October 2016, TAROM retired their remaining two Airbus A310-300s after a final flight from Madrid to Bucharest. The A310s will be replaced with new smaller aircraft.^[9] In May 2017, TAROM received its first of two leased Boeing 737-800s.^[10]

Corporate affairs[edit]

Ownership[edit]

TAROM is a state-owned company, with shareholding structure as follows:^[11]

Shareholder	Interest
The Romanian Government (held through the Ministry of Transport)	97.17%
Bucharest Airports National Company	1.48%
ROMATSA R.A.(Romanian Air Traffic Services Administration)	1.26%
Societatea de Investitii Financiare Muntenia	0.09%
Total	100.00%

Business trends[edit]

Figures for recent years are shown below (for years ending 31 December):

	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017
Turnover (€m)	220	234	261	257	193	218	279	238	247	258	256	237	221
Profit (€m)	1.1	12.3	21.8	−1.7	−55	−79	−58	−54.5	−29.5	−25	−6.2	−11.1	−37.7
Number of employees (average for year)	2,289	2,333	2,338	2,471	2,517	2,353	2,200	2,070	2,006	1,969	1,880	1,841	1,776
Number of passengers (m)	1.40	1.45	1.89	1.98	1.72	2.20	2.19	2.19	2.10	2.33	2.39	2.33	2.34
Passenger load factor (%)	61.0	62.3	67.2	61.9	55.6	60.9	60.6	66.0	65.9	66.0	70.0	68.1	71.6
Number of aircraft (at year end)	18	20	22	24	26	26	26	24	24	24	23	21	23
Notes/sources	[12]	[12]	[12]	[12]	[12]	[12]	[12]			[13]	[13]	[14][15]	[16]

Logo and livery[edit]

The TAROM logo, representing a swallow in flight, has been used on all TAROM aircraft since 1954. It is sometimes confused with the similar logo of LOT Polish Airlines, which features a crane in flight. In the 1970s livery the logo on the tail was painted in red, with a red cheatline. The livery introduced in the early 1990s (on the Airbus A310 aircraft) is an overall-white scheme with the titles and the tailfin painted in dark blue. The current color scheme (introduced in 2006 on the A318) is a slightly modified version of the previous one, with an oversized logo on the tailfin, and the engine pods also painted in dark blue.

All aircraft in the TAROM fleet receive a "name" which is a Romanian toponym. For instance, the names of the ATR aircraft in the fleet are related to the rivers of Romania, the Boeing aircraft bear names of Romanian cities, the Airbus long-haul aircraft bear Romanian historical province names, while the Airbus A318s bear names of Romanian aviation pioneers.

In 2009, marking the airline's 55th anniversary, a Boeing 737-700 (YR-BGG "Craiova") was painted in a retro jet color scheme, representing airline's first livery used in the 1950s on Lisunov Li-2 aircraft.

TAROM Technical Division[edit]

The TAROM Technical Division provides aircraft maintenance services for the entire fleet of the company and for the fleet of other national and international companies. The objective of TAROM Technical Department is to be the best and the most efficient, in terms of costs, maintenance service provider for Boeing 737, ATR 42 and ATR 72 aircraft in Central and Eastern Europe. The services provided by the TAROM Technical Department include unscheduled maintenance works, scheduled maintenance works and repair works for spare parts.

The major maintenance activity is performed in the hangar of the technical department, built between 1969 and 1972, with an area of 6,000 m² and restored in 2000 to fully comply with EASA (European Safety Aviation Agency) and FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) standards. The hangar is equipped to perform all types of inspections for TAROM fleet, and the personnel is qualified and licensed for all types of aircraft in the fleet. Maintenance activities for 3 to 6 aircraft, depending on their size, may be carried out simultaneously in the hangar. The hangar is equipped with full MERO system for B737 docking.

The most important maintenance capacities of the TAROM Technical Department include full maintenance services for Boeing 737 and ATR42/72 aircraft, inspection capacity type C for Airbus A310 and A318 aircraft, total painting, interior cleaning, modifications.

Also, the technical department provides safe storage facilities for spare parts and materials necessary for maintenance activity, dedicated spaces for chemicals, dedicated spaces for special tools and testing equipments, quarantine spaces. The TAROM Technical Department also provides conveyance services (packaging, preparation of documents, customs) and acceptance services (customs, disassembly, and reception inspection) for various substances and equipment.^[17]

Destinations[edit]

The airline directly operates 50 destinations including charter and seasonal services in 22 countries in Europe, the Middle East and Northern Africa including 8 domestic destinations. The airline's flights to the USA ceased in 2003 and are now operated under a codeshare agreement with Air France via Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport.^[18]

Alliances[edit]

In 2006, TAROM was scheduled to join SkyTeam as an associate member (sponsored by Alitalia), but the entry into the alliance was postponed until 2008. On 7 May that year, SkyTeam signed a SkyTeam Alliance Associate Adherence Agreement (SAAAA) with TAROM. On 22 June 2010, SkyTeam announced that it had renewed its membership program, thereby making TAROM a future full member of the alliance.^[19] On 25 June 2010, TAROM became a full member of SkyTeam.^[20]

Codeshare agreements[edit]

TAROM has codeshare agreements with the following airlines:^[21]

Fleet[edit]

As of November 2018, the TAROM fleet consists of the following aircraft:^[23]

TAROM fleet

Aircraft	In Service	Orders	Passengers			Notes
			C	Y	Total
Airbus A318-100	4	—	14	99	113
ATR 42-500	7	—	6	42	48	One in SkyTeam livery.
ATR 72-500	2	—	8	60	68
Boeing 737-300	4	—	8	126	134
Boeing 737-700	4	—	14	102	116	One in SkyTeam livery. One in Happy 60 Years retro livery.
Boeing 737-800	4	—	—	189	189
			16	144	160
Boeing 737 MAX 8	—	5[24]	TBA			Deliveries start in 2023.[24]
Total	25	5

Tarom is planning to lease three widebody aircraft to resume long-haul operations to China and the United States after the withdrawal of its Airbus A310s. The Request For Proposals (RFP) to leasing firms ended on 31 August 2017,^[25] however as of August 2018 no decision has been made public.

Historical fleet[edit]

During its history, TAROM also operated the following aircraft types:

Airbus A310-300[9] Antonov An-2 Antonov An-24 ATR 42-300

BAC One-Eleven ROMBAC 1-11 Boeing 707 Boeing 737-500

Ilyushin Il-14 Ilyushin Il-18 Ilyushin Il-62 Lisunov Li-2

McDonnell Douglas DC-10 Mil Mi-4 Tupolev Tu-154

Incidents and accidents[edit]

• On 4 November 1957, a TAROM Ilyushin Il-14, registration YR-PCC, operating an international administrative flight from Bucharest to Moscow crashed short of the runway at Vnukovo Airport, killing four of 16 on board. The aircraft was on approach to Vnukovo Airport when the pilot noticed that the aircraft was too low, however the aircraft continued its descent until it struck tree tops and later crashed. The aircraft was carrying Romanian government members Chivu Stoica, Grigore Preoteasa, Alexandru Moghioroş, Ştefan Voitec, Nicolae Ceauşescu, Leonte Răutu and Marin Năstase to Moscow for the 40th anniversary of the October Revolution.^[26] Preoteasa, who apparently was not wearing a safety belt, and three Soviet crew members lost their lives.
• On 24 February 1962 a Ilyushin Il-18V, registration YR-IMB, operating on an international scheduled flight from Bucharest Otopeni Airport (OTP) to Tel Aviv via Nicosia lost power on all four engines and made a belly landing on a grassy field in Cyprus. While cruising at 23,000 feet over the Mediterranean Sea and 43 miles offshore, engine number 3 lost power, followed shortly by number 1 and 2. Then at 10,000 feet and 27 miles offshore engine 4 also quit. All 100 occupants survived. The aircraft was transported to Moscow for repairs, but it never re-entered service.^[27]
• On 9 October 1964, an Ilyushin Il-14, registration YR-ILB, operating a domestic scheduled flight from Timișoara to Bucharest broke apart in mid-air and crashed 2 km south of Cugir, killing all 31 on board. The aircraft had flown into a strong downdraft; the pilot attempted to maintain altitude, but this caused the fuselage to overstress and break apart.^[28]
• On 4 February 1970, TAROM Flight 35, an Antonov An-24, registration YR-AMT, operating a domestic scheduled flight from Bucharest to Oradea struck the side of a mountain in the Vlădeasa mountain group, killing 20 of 21 on board. The aircraft began descending in poor visibility until it struck tree tops on a mountain side, after which it struck the slope of a second mountain. The aircraft was leased from the Romanian government.^[29]
• On 29 December 1974, an Antonov An-24, registration YR-AMD, operating on a domestic scheduled flight from Bucharest to Sibiu crashed into the side of the Lotrului mountains (22 km south of Sibiu) at an altitude of 1,700 m, killing all 28 passengers and 5 crew members. The crew's incorrect approach procedure execution, which led to the aircraft drifting south off course by 20 km, while the wind was increasing turbulence was present.^[30]
• On 7 August 1980, a Tupolev Tu-154B-1 registered YR-TPH, operating on an international scheduled flight from Bucharest Otopeni Airport to Nouadhibou Airport, Mauritania ditched in the water 300 m short of the runway at Nouadhibou Airport. The crew could not see the runway while descending through the 90 m decision height. A missed approach procedure was initiated when the pilot felt contact with what he thought was ground, but was actually water.^[31] All of the 152 passengers and 16 crew members survived the impact, but a passenger suffered a heart attack and died before he could be rescued. Most of the passengers were sailors who were going to replace the crew of two Romanian ships located on the Mauritanian coast. Many passengers swam to the land, while sharks were kept away by the vibrations of an engine which continued to function for a few hours after the crash.
• On 5 September 1986, an Antonov An-24 registered YR-AMF operating on a domestic scheduled flight from Bucharest Băneasa Airport touched down nose wheel-first while landing at Cluj Airport. A fire erupted, killing three crew members who were trapped in the cockpit. The other two crew members and all fifty passengers survived.^[32]
• On 28 December 1989, during the Romanian revolution, an Antonov An-24 flying from Bucharest to Belgrade, carrying journalist Ian Henry Perry, was shot down by a missile at Vișina, Dâmbovița. All the people on board (six crew members and the passenger) died.^[33][34]
• On 24 September 1994, TAROM Flight 381, an Airbus A310 registered YR-LCA flying from Bucharest to Paris Orly, went into a sudden and uncommanded nose-up position and stalled. The crew attempted to countermand the aircraft's flight control system but were unable to get the nose down while remaining on course. Witnesses saw the aircraft climb with an extreme nose-up attitude, then bank sharply left, then right, then fall into a steep dive. Only when the dive produced additional speed was the crew able to recover steady flight. An investigation found that an overshoot of flap placard speed during approach, incorrectly commanded by the captain, caused a mode transition to flight level change. The auto-throttles increased power and trim went full nose-up as a result. The crew's attempt at commanding the nose-down elevator could not counteract effect of stabilizer nose-up trim, and the resulting dive brought the aircraft from a height of 4,100 ft at the time of the stall to 800 ft when the crew was able to recover command. The aircraft landed safely after a second approach. There were 186 people on board.^[35]
• On 31 March 1995, a TAROM Airbus A310 operating as Flight 371 crashed near Balotești due to a fault in the throttles and lack of recovery from the flight crew. All 50 passengers and 10 crew members were killed.
• On 30 December 2007, a TAROM Boeing 737-300 (YR-BGC "Constanța"), flying Flight 3107 hit a car on the runway of Bucharest Henri Coandă International Airport while taking off for Sharm-el-Sheikh. The aircraft stopped beside the runway and was severely damaged.^[36] None of the passengers were injured. Because of fog, neither the tower nor the pilots saw the car belonging to staff who were repairing a runway beacon.

See also[edit]

• List of companies of Romania
• Aviation in Romania

References[edit]

External links[edit]

Media related to TAROM at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website