Can a new airline take the name of a defunct carrier?

Simon Calder answers your questions on setting up a new airline, sky couches and Covid concerns with visiting Asia

When the current Stansted terminal opened in 1991, Air UK was about the only customer (Getty)

Q I am genuinely asking for a friend. He has a plan for a new airline. I’m not allowed to tell you anything about the business plan, but can I enquire if he would be able to call it Air UK?

Name supplied

A In the past two decades of the 20th century, Air UK was a well-regarded regional airline that was substantially focused on Anglo-Scottish routes, but also had an interesting European network stretching as far as Innsbruck in Austria. The carrier was notable for establishing a base at Stansted, serving Paris and various UK destinations, at a time when the Essex airport had a tiny terminal and easy parking right outside; when the current terminal opened in 1991, Air UK was about the only customer. For a time there was a budget airline offshoot, Air UK Leisure, which I enjoyed flying. With a bit more vision, it could have been at the forefront of the no-frills revolution – but once easyJet was launched, it began to fade.