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In a press statement Helios Airways Chairman, Mr Andreas Drakou said that the accident to
flight ZU522 was a terrible tragedy and that the company is providing
immediate financial and other assistance to the families of all those
affected by the appalling event.
A Helios airline crashed in Greece on August 15th, killing all 121 people
on board.
'Yesterday was a tragic day for all of us' he said, 'In an effort to
alleviate, as much as possible, the pain and anguish of the families, Helios
Airways, in co-operation with the Government, activated its emergency
procedure and immediately arranged to set up a meeting centre for the
families of the passengers at a Larnaca Hotel.'
He said that the Cyprus Government, in order to assist the whole process,
relocated to the airport for this task. Managers and staff of Helios Airways
were despatched to the airport to assist and give support to the families of
the passengers and crew.
The company extended its apologies and deepest regrets to the families of
the passengers and crew for the delay in announcing the names on the
passenger list. The company had followed the International procedure and
regulations established by the Cyprus Department of Civil Aviation.
Helios Airways confirmed today that its Scheduled services will continue to
fly as programmed, despite the terrible tragedy that occurred yesterday.
Helios Airways is owned by the Cyprus based travel company Libra Holidays
Group (LHG). LHG also owns the leading hotel chain DH Cyprotels, and the UK
based tour operator Libra Holidays.
A spokesman for the group's UK tour operation, Libra Holidays, which has
about 3% of its flying with Helios, said today that it also did not expect
any significant changes to customers holiday plans.
Mr Drakou said that the aircraft in question was a Boeing 737-300
manufactured in 1999 and entered the Helios fleet in April 2004. Prior to
its departure the aircraft was duly inspected in line with standard
procedures.
Helios Airways is co-operating fully with the technical investigation and
has provided a technical team to assist the Greek Authorities. The
investigating body will release any information regarding the cause of the
accident.
The airline will provide immediate financial assistance to families
affected by the tragedy in line with the Montreal Convention and EC
Regulations, Helios Airways will provide and initial payment of
approximately 19,000 euros per passenger to help families with their
immediate needs pending future compensation.
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