 Presidential Airways CASA/IPTN CN-235 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Operating bases | Melbourne International Airport | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fleet size | See Fleet below | ||||||
| Parent company | Aviation Worldwide Services | ||||||
| Headquarters | Melbourne, Florida, United States | ||||||
Presidential Airways (PAW) is a charter cargo and passenger airline currently based at Melbourne International Airport. Presidential is now a subsidiary of Aviation Worldwide Services, owned by AAR Corp.
Presidential was awarded a US government contract of up to $34 million in 2004 to provide fixed-wing STOL airlift capacity to US forces in Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and Pakistan. [1]
An aircraft, Blackwater 61, operated by Presidential and owned by its sister company, Blackwater AWS crashed on November 27, 2004 in Afghanistan; it had been a contract flight for the United States Air Force en route from Bagram to Farah. All aboard, three soldiers and three civilian crew members, were killed. Several of the dead's relatives filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Presidential in October 2005. [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] A 60 Minutes investigation reported that the crash was caused by pilot error but that the company tried to avoid responsibility. [7]
After the crash, Presidential was suspended from government operations for one month, but its rights were reinstated thereafter. [8] Presidential went on to win new Central Asia regional airlift contracts in 2007, 2008, and 2010. [1]
AAR purchased the company from Xe Services, formerly Blackwater Worldwide, in April 2010. At the time, Presidential and sister company STI Aviation operated 17 fixed wing aircraft and 21 helicopters on deployment. Following the acquisition, the company's base was relocated from Moyock, North Carolina to Melbourne, Florida. AAR Airlift won another contract for Central Asian airlift capacity in 2014. [1]
Presidential operates CASA C-212 and CASA CN-235 turboprops. Recent contracts have added de Havilland Canada DHC-8 Dash 8 turboprop aircraft to the fleet. The company also operates turbine powered helicopters including Bell 214ST, Bell 412, MD Helicopters MD-530, Eurocopter/Aérospatiale SA 330 Puma and Sikorsky S-61 rotorcraft.
Atlas Air, Inc. is a major American cargo airline, passenger charter airline, and aircraft lessor based in Purchase, New York. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings. Atlas Air is the world's largest operator of the Boeing 747 aircraft, with a total fleet of 54 of this specific fleet type. In 2021, the airline had 4,056 employees and operated to more than 300 global destinations.
Piedmont Airlines, Inc. is an American regional airline headquartered at the Salisbury Regional Airport in unincorporated Wicomico County, Maryland, near the city of Salisbury. The airline is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the American Airlines Group and it is paid by fellow group member American Airlines to staff, operate and maintain aircraft used on American Eagle flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by American Airlines. Piedmont also provides ground handling and customer service for airports in the northeastern and western United States.
This is a list of aviation-related events from 1963:
The de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter is a Canadian STOL utility aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada, which produced the aircraft from 1965 to 1988; Viking Air purchased the type certificate, then restarted production in 2008 before re-adopting the DHC name in 2022. The aircraft's fixed tricycle undercarriage, STOL capabilities, twin turboprop engines and high rate of climb have made it a successful commuter airliner, typically seating 18–20 passengers, as well as a cargo and medical evacuation aircraft. In addition, the Twin Otter has been popular with commercial skydiving operations, and is used by the United States Army Parachute Team and the United States Air Force's 98th Flying Training Squadron.
Helijet International is a helicopter airline and charter service based in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada. Its scheduled passenger helicopter airline services operates flights from heliports at Vancouver International Airport (YVR), downtown Vancouver, downtown Nanaimo and downtown Victoria. It also operates a charter division serving the film, television, aerial tour, industrial and general charter markets, as well as helicopter and jet air ambulance services. Its head office and main hangar is Vancouver International Airport (YVR).
The CASA C-212 Aviocar is a turboprop-powered STOL medium cargo aircraft designed and built by the Spanish aircraft manufacturer Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA (CASA). It is designed for use by both civil and military operators.
This is a list of aviation-related events from 2005:
The Fokker 50 is a turboprop-powered airliner, designed as an improved version of the successful Fokker F27 Friendship. The Fokker 60 is a stretched freighter version of the Fokker 50. Both aircraft were manufactured and supported by Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker.
Grand Canyon National Park Airport is a state-owned public-use airport located in Tusayan, CDP in unincorporated Coconino County, Arizona, United States. It is near Grand Canyon National Park, 7 miles from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. The airport is primarily used for scenic tours and charter flights.
American Eagle Flight 4184, officially operating as Simmons Airlines Flight 4184, was a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Indianapolis, Indiana to Chicago, Illinois, United States. On October 31, 1994, the ATR 72 performing this route flew into severe icing conditions, lost control and crashed into a field. All 68 people aboard were killed in the high-speed impact.
A government contract flight is a type of charter airline operation contracted with a government agency.
National Airways Corporation is a commercial aviation company with its head office on the grounds of Lanseria Airport in Johannesburg, South Africa. The company offers a range of products and services for fixed-wing aircraft and helicopter markets, including aircraft sales, maintenance, parts, value-added products, aircraft charter, international operations, and pilot training. NAC Operations is the flight operations and charter division. NAC operates a South African network of offices, its main base is Lanseria Airport, with office hubs at Cape Town International Airport, Durban, Grand Central Airport, Wonderboom Airport and Rand Airport. NAC also has businesses internationally in Botswana Sir Seretse Khama International Airport, Gaborone, Awesome Flight Logistics in Perth, Australia and Specialized Aircraft Services in Wichita, USA.
Bristow Helicopters Limited is a British civil helicopter operator originally based at Aberdeen Airport, Scotland, which is currently a part of the U.S.-based Bristow Group which in turn has its corporate headquarters in Houston, Texas, U.S. In 2020, Bristow Group was merged with Era Helicopters, a large U.S.-based commercial helicopter operator that was previously a division of Era Aviation, with the two companies then continuing to use the Bristow name.
The Sikorsky S-61L and S-61N are civil variants of the SH-3 Sea King military helicopter. It was developed and produced by the American helicopter manufacturer Sikorsky Aircraft.
Era Aviation was a fixed wing airline as well as a commercial helicopter operation based in Anchorage, Alaska, United States. It operated a network of scheduled fixed wing passenger services from Anchorage as well as from Bethel, AK on behalf of Alaska Airlines via a code sharing agreement. Its main base was located at the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (ANC). Era Aviation has since been renamed Corvus Airlines who currently do business as Ravn Alaska. The company slogan was FlySmart. FlyEra.
EP Aviation based in McLean, Virginia, is an aviation company owned by Academi. Assets may include an Embraer Super Tucano and 28 other aircraft including eight SA330J Puma and 14 Bell 412 helicopters. Blackwater has another affiliate known as Presidential Airways which also has a number of registered aircraft. The Pumas were former Bundespolizei and were purchased from HELOG. EP Aviation is active in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Delta Connection is a regional airline brand name for Delta Air Lines, under which a number of individually owned regional airlines primarily operate short- and medium-haul routes. Mainline major air carriers often use regional airlines to operate services via code sharing agreements in order to increase frequencies in addition to serving routes that would not sustain larger aircraft as well as for other competitive or operational reasons.
Air Africa was an airline based in Kahemba Airport, Zaire. The airline started flights in 1991 with a few destinations, operated by Moscow Airways, but closed in 1996 after the 1996 Air Africa crash.
The East Pakistan Helicopter Service refers to the scheduled helicopter services operated by Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) in East Pakistan during the 1960s. It was one of the earliest air services of its kind in the world and one of the most extensive helicopter networks in history.
Blackwater 61 was the callsign of a CASA 212, registration N960BW, operated by Presidential Airways Inc, the aviation subsidiary of the private security contractor Blackwater USA, that crashed in the mountains of remote central Afghanistan on November 27, 2004. The turboprop airplane was carrying three military passengers and three members of the flight crew when it crashed. According to the NTSB investigative report of the accident, the Blackwater pilots were "behaving unprofessionally" and were "deliberately flying the nonstandard route low through the valley for fun." The accident contributed to the debate over the use of private military contractors in war-zones and Blackwater's hiring practices and standard operating procedures. Blackwater aircraft had been operating in Afghanistan under contract with the U.S. military to transport troops and supplies throughout the country. Five people aboard the aircraft died in the crash, while one later died awaiting rescue.
