 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 White Plains, 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, with 54 of the type. In 2021, the airline had 4,056 employees and operated to more than 300 global destinations.
Iraqi Airways Company, operating as Iraqi Airways, is the national carrier of Iraq, headquartered on the grounds of Baghdad International Airport in Baghdad. It is the second oldest airline in the Middle East. Iraqi Airways operates domestic and regional services; its main base is Baghdad International Airport.
Piedmont Airlines, Inc. is an American regional airline headquartered at the Salisbury Regional Airport in 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 in the mid-1960s and still in production today. De Havilland Canada produced it from 1965 to 1988; Viking Air purchased the type certificate, then restarted production in 2008 before re-adopting the DHC name in 2022. In 2023 DHC restarted production of the 300 series, in addition to the Series 400 produced by Viking. 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 98th Flying Training Squadron of the United States Air Force.
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 helicopter and corporate jet 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.
New York Airways was an American helicopter airline in the New York City area, founded in 1949 as a mail and cargo carrier. On 9 July 1953 it may have been the first scheduled helicopter airline to carry passengers in the United States, with headquarters at LaGuardia Airport. Although primarily a helicopter airline operator with scheduled passenger operations, New York Airways also flew fixed wing aircraft, such as the de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 19-passenger STOL twin turboprop aircraft.
The Fokker 50 is a turboprop-powered airliner manufactured and supported by Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker. It was designed as an improved version of the successful Fokker F27 Friendship. The Fokker 60 is a stretched freighter version of the Fokker 50.
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, 1 mile from the South Rim entrance of the Grand Canyon. The airport is primarily used for scenic tours and charter flights.
Williamsport Regional Airport serves Williamsport, Pennsylvania, and the surrounding area with a population of roughly 200,000. The airport processes approximately 40,000 passengers annually and has served north central Pennsylvania since 1929.
The Short 360 is a commuter aircraft that was built by UK manufacturer Short Brothers during the 1980s. The Short 360 seats up to 39 passengers and was introduced into service in November 1982. It is a larger version of the Short 330.
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. They were developed and produced by the American helicopter manufacturer Sikorsky Aircraft.
Bristow Helicopters operate a large fleet of 490 helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. In 2015 it operated 24 helicopter types, however as a result of their restructure due to previous financial difficulties it now operates approximately six types, a significant reduction. The fleet includes unconsolidated affiliates and joint venture partners.
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 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.
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. All six people aboard the aircraft died in the crash, including one who initially survived but later died awaiting rescue.
