Editing First Choice Airways (section)

===Air 2000===
[[File:Air2000_Logo,_January_1994.svg|thumb|left|145px|Air 2000 logo]]
[[File:G-OOAH A321-211 Air 2000 MAN 29MAR02 (6998792492).jpg|thumb|An Air 2000 [[Airbus A321-200]] in 'Tapestry' livery taxiing at [[Manchester Airport]] in 2002]]

The airline started operations on 11 April 1987, launched by the Owners Abroad Group under the name '''Air 2000''', with two [[Boeing 757-200]]s and a flight from Manchester to [[Málaga Airport|Málaga]].<ref name="FI"/> The 757s were re-equipped for extended range and flights to the [[United States]] began in 1989. Their fleet doubled a year later, with one aircraft being based at [[Glasgow Airport]]. In the same year, the airline set up a subsidiary in [[Canada]], to be called ''Air 2000 Airline Ltd''.  This subsidiary lasted only a few days before the Canadian government suspended its licence. The second attempt was more successful and became [[Canada 3000]].

Long haul services to [[Mombasa]] in [[Kenya]] were introduced during the 1988/89 season. The airline was granted a licence for scheduled operations by the [[Civil Aviation Authority of the United Kingdom|CAA]] in 1992, which commenced in 1993, initially between London-Gatwick and [[Paphos]], Cyprus. Scheduled services were distinguished by the use of the 'DP' identifier with the flight number, while purely-charter flights used the 'AMM' identifier. Over the next few years scheduled routes to Cyprus from Birmingham, Glasgow, Manchester and Newcastle were introduced. 

Expansion saw new bases in the UK established, with [[Dublin]] becoming the airline's first overseas hub in 1996. In 1997, the airline signed a lease deal for two [[Boeing 767-300ER]] aircraft with [[GE Capital Aviation Services|GECAS]], having also examined the option of introducing the larger [[A330-200]], but opting instead for the 767.<ref>{{Cite web |last=1997-12-17T00:00:00+00:00 |title=Air 2000 to expand long-haul operations with 767-300 |url=https://www.flightglobal.com/air-2000-to-expand-long-haul-operations-with-767-300/18794.article |access-date=2025-05-16 |website=Flight Global |language=en}}</ref> In 1998, Air 2000 parent company [[First Choice (UK)|First Choice]] purchased rival tour operator Unijet for £110 million, with Unijet's in-house airline [[Leisure International Airways]] (LIA) being fully integrated in to Air 2000.<ref name="FI"/> This included the entire fleet of aircraft and an order for two [[Airbus A330-200]]s. Before the merger, LIA had planned to replace its two 767s leased from [[International Lease Finance Corporation|ILFC]] with the newly ordered A330-200s, but in 1999 First Choice cancelled in favour of retaining the two [[Boeing 767-300ER]] alongside the two it had ordered from GECAS.<ref>{{Cite web |last=1998-07-08T00:00:00+01:00 |title=Air 2000 makes LIA fleet merger first priority |url=https://www.flightglobal.com:443/air-2000-makes-lia-fleet-merger-first-priority/21807.article |access-date=2025-05-16 |website=Flight Global |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=1999-03-17T00:00:00+00:00 |title=Air 2000 delays A330s in favour of 767s |url=https://www.flightglobal.com:443/air-2000-delays-a330s-in-favour-of-767s/25421.article |access-date=2025-05-16 |website=Flight Global |language=en}}</ref> In 2000, additional scheduled services were introduced from eight UK airports to six major Spanish and Portuguese holiday destinations. Air 2000 received a new colour scheme which, by March 2004, the ''Air 2000'' branding was removed and ''First Choice Airways'' branding added.