The Story of Sabena: A Belgian Airline’s Rise and Fall

Disappeared in 2001, the Sabena would have celebrated its hundredth anniversary on May 23.

No candles or cakes for Sabena this Tuesday: the defunct airline, which today celebrates its hundred years of existence, went bankrupt in November 2001, at the end of a politico-economic saga which will have shocked Brussels and well beyond. Because Sabena was not just a simple airline: it was a symbol of luxury, Belgian excellence and entrepreneurship for all Belgians.

► Focus | Watch our program “Focus” devoted to the bankruptcy of Sabena (23/07/2022)

We are on May 23, 1923: on this day, the first official line of Sabena was born, created by SNETA (National union for the study of air transport), the Belgian State and the Belgian Congo. It then connects Brussels to Lympne, in the United Kingdom, with a stopover in Ostend. Sabena, whose acronym stands for Société anonyme belge d’exploitation de la navigation aerial, is now born, and will radiate over the international sky for seventy-eight years. Its history is then punctuated by developments in aeronautics: a first flight to Africa in 1925 (followed by a regular connection ten years later), a first major crash in 1935, the introduction of the DC-3 Dakota at the end of the Second World War, or the first Brussels-New York flight in 1947.

But Sabena’s successes do not overshadow the dramatic financial situation into which the company plunged over the decades: in the mid-1970s, the deficit exceeded one billion Belgian francs. The State intervenes regularly, by injecting billions of francs into the company, even if the restructurings follow one another.

Swissair: the worm is in the fruit

In 1995, Sabena’s death certificate was signed, even if no one knew it yet: that year, Sabena approached Swissair, and the Swiss company acquired 49.5% of the capital. Dramatic decisions follow, such as the purchase of 34 Airbuses, at the request of Swissair… whereas the Sabena had historically flown on Boeing.

Then came the attacks of September 11, in the United States: we are in 2001. Instantly, the aviation world plunged into great difficulty. As Swissair goes bankrupt, Sabena also sinks. Its bankruptcy was pronounced on November 7, 2001, leaving 7,300 employees on the floor, the very day of the last flight operated by Sabena. That day, the SN690 connected Abidjan, Cotonou and Brussels for the last time: at 11.5 a.m., the flight landed in Zaventem, and was symbolically sprayed by the airport firefighters.

ArBr with Belga – Photos: Belga (archives)

■ Explanations ofArnaud Bruckner In 12:30 p.m.