2012-12-13 — /travelprnews.com/ — SWISS has just named one of its Airbus A320 (registration HB-IJN) after the resort of Crans-Montana. The symbolic ceremony held on Thursday underlines the company’s policy of reinforcing its presence in western Switzerland and at Geneva International Airport. Holger Hätty, Chief Commercial Officer at SWISS, hosted the ceremony together with Francis Tapparel, Chairman of the Association of Communes of Crans-Montana. The event was attended by numerous VIPs and representatives of regional and national media. Sir Roger Moore, English actor and ex-secret agent 007, and Anne-Flore Marxer, Freeride World Champion 2011, are prestigious godparents to the newly christened aircraft.
“Western Switzerland is a priority market in terms of passenger transport. Crans-Montana and its international clientele will benefit directly from this product development and growth in our flight operations in and out of Geneva Airport. This christening is a symbol of our commitment. As the national carrier, we regard it as our duty to connect the different regions of Switzerland with the rest of the world”, said Holger Hätty, Chief Commercial Officer at SWISS, during the ceremony.
Francis Tapparel, Chairman of the Association of Communes of Crans-Montana, also expressed his satisfaction: “Crans-Montana now has a magnificent ambassador. This SWISS Airbus A320 will help to further reinforce the excellence of our resort. SWISS enjoys a first-class reputation, and it is an honour for our resort to associate itself with such a prestigious Swiss company”. The newly christened aircraft is one of a fleet of 23 Airbus A320s which SWISS has named after a Swiss location.
Designed to seat 168 passengers, the Airbus A329 is 37.6 m long and 11.6 m high with a wingspan of 34.1 m. With its range of 3,650 km, “Crans-Montana” will serve medium-haul destinations in Europe and a number of destinations in Africa and the Middle East.
From left to right: Frédéric Delalay (F/A), Sir Roger Moore, Anne-Flore Marxer (Worldchampion Snowboard Freeride 2011), Nicole Tapparel (Francis Wife), Francis Tapparel ( President of the Community Crans-Montana), Holger Hätty (Chief Commercial Officer SWISS) und Raphaël Bellwald (First Officer).
From left to right: Anne-Flore Marxer (Worldchampion Snowboard Freeride 2011), Karin Pfändler (F/A), Sir Roger Moore and Frédéric Delalay (F/A).
Swiss International Air Lines Ltd.
Corporate Communications
Phone: +41 848 773 773
Fax: +41 44 564 21 27
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