[Note: Today, I caught up (lot more) with the news and excitement of FS2020! That all seems like fabulous stuff and surely bodes well for our future, starting in about a year (or more) time, meanwhile, of course, we rethink redirecting our resources (time and money) towards new HW/SW to match FS2020 (my moderate system chugging along, just fine, on FSX-SE, will not do!). However, while waiting and deliberating on it, this holiday season, it'll be probably a shame if we not only continue to enjoy what's already "in-hand" in our respective SIMs, but also, possibly acquire some favorites, from what's on offer in the market (such as, maybe, a couple of new aircraft, that we have always wanted to own and fly in the SIM). So, in that spirit, I just picked up (Carenado's) ATR-72 and Do-228 from JF's BlackWeek Sale. Long before I could tell a Dornier prop from a Cessna, many moons ago, I had seen a Tara Air Do-228 taking off from Kathmandu's RWY, during my (only one) visit to that airport. Since then, something about that aircraft (see Screenshot below) had struck my fancy. And, in the ATR turboprop, I've travelled several times. I especially recall one occasion, when the plane had touched down so smoothly (kudos to the pilots!), that I happened to be not looking out, and didn't even know that we'd landed! Great commuter aircraft! Plus, here in this Forum, I recall seeing many wonderful images posted of these 2 aircraft, but, of course, flying them yourself is always different and rewarding, so, please (also) find, below, (my) 4 more images of these two lovely aircraft (the last 4 screenshots).]

Now back to Olympic: The Greek national (flag) carrier, along with its logo, has always fascinated me. The airline's roots go back to the 1930s, but it was, officially, born in 1957, when three constituent airlines merged to become "Olympic Airways" under the guidance of the famous Shipping magnate, Aristotle Onassis. The Olympic name came about as a result of Onassis' passion for ancient Greece. In 2003, after a series of restructurings, the airline was renamed "Olympic Airlines" which took over the flight operations of the original "Olympic Airways". Then, in 2009, further privatizations would occur, and the (remnant) heritage of this historic carrier would change hands to "Olympic Air" (now a subsidiary of Aegean Airlines). In spite of all these transformations, it's heartening to see that the word "Olympic" (and the logo) have survived to this day within the Airline.

It's well known that the Olympic Airlines of Greece, for their logo, use the the rings of the Olympic emblem. But, here is a trivia, "How many rings are there in the Airline's logo?" (Hint: The answer is not five. Please see note at the end of the text).

During more than half-a-century of its glory days of existence, "Olympic Airlines" had operated an extremely diverse and interesting fleet of aircraft e.g. it included Russian Yak-40, world's first "commuter" trijet (also an IL-62M). In 1960, the de Havilland Comet, world's first commercial jet airliner (see Screenshot), entered service as Olympic's first jet aircraft, and then Olympic went on to acquire Boeing/Airbus/MD aircraft. So, here, below, find 10 images, from our SIM (FW/PW), of (representative) aircraft used by this classic Airline. Not sure, if Olympic Airlines had actually ever used the B747-400 variant (they had used 747-100/200). However, for a bit of nicety, I've included, here, a picture of the PMDG 747-400 Cargo, in the Olympic Airline color - created by someone among us with an (obvious) affinity for this Airline. Also, I don't see that Olympic had ever deployed any B777, still, I could not resist the use of this livery, as I caught the painter's note (and sense of humor), "Don't look too closely at the [lack of] artistry, it is what it is, and if you see any cracks in my workmanship, you may suffer explosive decompression as a result....I needed this livery for a flight, and so here it is for all to enjoy." And, to that, I just said to myself, "Thank you and I didn't experience any explosive decompression!".

[Trivia Answer: The Olympic emblem has five interlocking rings. Two years after the airline's first flight, Onassis asked his associates to design a new logo and the colored rings were created. Onassis wanted to copy the five colored rings of the Olympic emblem, but the International Olympic Committee (IOC) claimed the rights to the emblem, so, instead, a new, "six" ring logo was introduced. The first five rings stand for the five continents, while the sixth stands for Greece.]

Thanks for your interest in this post, and hope you enjoy these images. Here are the Olympic planes: (B707-300, A300-B4, B727-200, dH Comet 4B, B737-200, A320, A340, NAMC YS-11, B777, B747F), and don't forget to count the number of "rings"...🙂...on the Olympic liveries. Have fun!]

[Happy Thanksgiving to the folks in U.S, and a good week to all!]

Nice post, and you saved the best part for last. (I love propjet commuters!)

 

John

Great story and nice shots to go with it, P_7878. The Do 228 is my favorite, and as you said perfect for strips like we'll find in the Himalayas or Andes 😉

John and Bernd: Thanks for the comments!

[And, Bernd: Here below is your favorite Do-228, looking good in the Olympic livery. Note:I'd earlier looked for Carenado's Do-228 in the Olympic livery, in the context of my post here, but I had missed it. I discovered it afterwards - repainted by someone who is a fan of both Do-228 and Olympic...🙂....