Swiss International Air Lines? fifteenth Airbus A340-300, registration HB-JMM, has been named ?Solothurn? in honour of the capital of the same-named canton in Northwest Switzerland. The aircraft formally received its new name this morning at Zurich Airport in a ceremony attended by SWISS CEO Harry Hohmeister, Solothurn Mayor Kurt Fluri and top model Ronja Furrer (who hails from the city), along with numerous further guests and media representatives from the Solothurn region.
?We are delighted that ?Solothurn? is now part of our aircraft fleet,? said SWISS CEO Harry Hohmeister at the event. ?Solothurn and our company are linked by much more than the 100 or so SWISS personnel who live in and around your city,? he continued. ?We are also connected by Grenchen Airport, which hosts such a large and vital part of our pilot training.?
Swiss National Councillor Kurt Fluri, the current Mayor of Solothurn, was equally pleased at the naming. ?It?s wonderful to feel,? he said, ?that Solothurn, which is known from history as the City of Ambassadors, now has a ?flying ambassador? of its own to carry its name all over the globe.?
HB-JMM is one of fifteen Airbus A340-300s in the present Swiss International Air Lines long-haul fleet. SWISS names all its aircraft after Switzerland?s cantonal capitals, its key tourist destinations and municipalities around its main international airports. The Airbus A340-300 is 63.7 metres long and 16.8 metres tall, has a wingspan of 60.3 metres and accommodates 219 passengers in its SWISS cabin configuration. With its range of 10,500 kilometres, HB-JMM will now carry the name ?Solothurn? all over the world, to destinations that include S?o Paulo, Johannesburg, Los Angeles, Beijing, Tokyo and Singapore.
Swiss International Air Lines Ltd.
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Picture of the event