10/14/2010: CCM Approves Air Corsica Brand

On this day in 2010, CCM Airlines’ supervisory board approved the Air Corsica commercial brand at a meeting in Bastia. The French regional carrier is now known as Air Corsica (XK).

The decision preceded the formal business-name change. The airline’s history records the board’s adoption of the brand in 2010 and shareholder approval of the business-name and brand changes in October 2011.

From ATRs to Jets

Established in 1989 after a proposal by Pierre-Philippe Ceccaldi, the airline aimed to improve Corsica’s air links with mainland France. Ceccaldi became its founding chairman.

Flights began in 1990 between Ajaccio (AJA), Bastia (BIA), and Nice (NCE), using ATR 72 turboprops. The airline introduced its first jet, a Fokker 100, in 1992 on the Ajaccio–Marseille (MRS) and Bastia–Marseille routes. Its first Airbus A319 joined the fleet in November 2002 as a replacement for the Fokker 100.

Air France Partnership

CCM entered a partnership with Air Inter in 1994. In 1997, Air France (AF) signed a charter contract with the Corsican carrier for the Marseille–Bordeaux (BOD) route, according to the airline’s historical account. By the autumn-winter 2002 schedule, CCM and Air France were jointly operating the Ajaccio–Paris and Bastia–Paris routes.

Fleet Renewal

In a release dated November 29, 2019, Airbus announced that Air Corsica had received the first of two A320neo aircraft leased from ICBC Leasing, becoming the first French A320neo operator. The aircraft had 186 seats in a single-class cabin. Airbus said the two aircraft would replace older aircraft in the fleet.

The turboprop fleet changed, too. On August 26, 2024, ATR announced a delivery that completed Air Corsica’s transition from the ATR -500 series. At that point, the airline operated seven ATR 72-600s, a milestone covered in Airways’ report on the fleet transition.