Airlines of Tasmania

Last updated

Airlines of Tasmania
Airlines of Tasmania logo.svg
IATA ICAO Callsign
FOATMAIRTAS
Founded1977
Operating bases Cambridge Aerodrome
Secondary hubs Launceston Airport
Fleet size20
Destinations3 (scheduled)
Headquarters Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
Employees40
Website www.paravion.com.au

Airlines of Tasmania, commercially known by the name Par Avion [1] is a regional airline based in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. It operates scheduled services across a number of locations in Tasmania. Par Avion also operates a wide variety of charter services ranging from business, scenic flights into Tasmania's South West, group charter and leisure. Par Avion owns and operates Cambridge Aerodrome, a flying training school which is affiliated with the University of Tasmania and a tourism business into the Southwest National Park of Tasmania, including day and overnight trips in Bathurst Harbour.

Contents

History

Par-Avion Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander on the Melaleuca Airstrip in Tasmania's South West Wilderness Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander with Mount Rugby behind - Melaleuca.jpg
Par-Avion Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander on the Melaleuca Airstrip in Tasmania's South West Wilderness
Cessna 404 at Griffith Airport in New South Wales Airlines of Tasmania, operated by Par-Avion (VH-WZM) Cessna 404 Titan at Griffith Airport.jpg
Cessna 404 at Griffith Airport in New South Wales

Airlines of Tasmania was established as a regular public transport operator (previously it had been an airwork operator) in 1977, [2] along with Par-Avion, a different branding used for chartered and sightseeing flights. [3] During its early years, the company had regular services to the West Coast from Queenstown and Strahan. [4] [5] In the 2004–2005 year there was a service between Hobart and Strahan, but this service was closed due to marginal traffic. Early in 2008, the airline moved its Melbourne operations from Moorabbin Airport to Essendon Airport, due to the airline upgrading its fleet by introducing the Dornier 228.

During October 2010, Sharp Airlines took over all scheduled operations to Flinders Island.

During July 2012, Sharp Airlines took over all scheduled operations to King Island.

In December 2013, the airline announced a partnership with the University of Tasmania, for flying training study as part of a Tertiary Qualification and is a Registered Training Organisation [6]

In February 2014, the airline announced it was intending to expand into the mainland and commence regular services from Essendon to Griffith. [7] Following approval by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority, the airline announced the first services would begin on 17 March, under the Par Avion brand. [8] The airline will use Cessna 404 Titan aircraft on the new route. The airline has since dropped the route.

In September 2015 [9] the airline announced they would introduce a new service from Hobart (Cambridge Aerodrome) to King Island via Wynyard and in partnership with Sharp Airlines. Flights commenced in November using 6-9 passenger seating Piper Navajo and the occasional service using Cessna 404 weeks before the route was dropped. Airlines of Tasmania / Par Avion Airlines would fly from Cambridge Aerodrome to Wynyard, passengers could then board a Sharp Airlines flight to connect with King Island. Flights operated twice daily on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. However flights were suspended in late 2015 due to poor passenger numbers.

Par Avion entered the Tasmanian Tourism Hall of Fame in 1999 (Tour and Transport Operator - Significant) and again in 2016 [10] (Major Tour and Transport Operator) and won the 2014, [11] Australian Tourism Award for Major Tour and Transport Operator (receiving Silver in 2016) [12] for its tourism operations around Tasmania [13]

In May 2019, Par Avion commenced airline services to Strahan from Hobart / Cambridge, with assistance of a Tasmanian state government grant, [14] with services three times a week using a Cessna Titan, this service was again terminated at the end of the grant due to unsustainable passenger numbers.

Destinations

The sightseeing flights under the Par Avion branding are conducted from the Cambridge Aerodrome base near Hobart. In May 2019, the company commenced services to Strahan three times a week, and Hobart to Launceston twice a week [15] Par Avion provides chartered flights and as of November 2019, provides scheduled passenger services to the following locations:

Par Avion has previously operated to King Island, Flinders Island, Strahan, Burnie, Melbourne/Essendon and Griffith

Fleet

An Airlines of Tasmania Piper PA-31 Navajo Airlines of Tasmania (VH-BTD) Piper PA-31-300 Navajo at Bankstown Airport.jpg
An Airlines of Tasmania Piper PA-31 Navajo

As of January 2024, the Airlines of Tasmania fleet consists of the following aircraft: [16]

Airlines of Tasmania fleet
AircraftIn Service
Britten-Norman Islander 2
Cessna 172S 6
Cessna U206G 2
Cessna 404 Titan 1
PAC CT/4 Airtrainer 1
Piper PA-31 Navajo 1
Total13

Accidents and incidents

The company has been involved in two separate fatal accidents. A Par-Avion Britten Norman Islander airplane impacted terrain near Federation Peak and the Western Arthur Range in December 2018 which resulted in the death of the pilot. [17] A Cessna 172 impacted the ocean off the Tasman Peninsula in December 2014 resulting in the death of the company pilot and one passenger [18]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hobart Airport</span> Primary airport serving Hobart, Tasmania

Hobart Airport is an international airport located in Cambridge, 17 km (11 mi) north-east of the Hobart CBD. It is the major and fastest growing passenger airport in Tasmania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Launceston Airport</span> Airport

Launceston Airport is a regional airport on the outskirts of Launceston, Tasmania. The airport is located in the industrial area of Western Junction 15 km (9.3 mi) from Launceston city centre. It is Tasmania's second busiest after Hobart Airport; it can also run as a curfew free airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cambridge Aerodrome</span> Airport in Tasmania, Australia

Cambridge Aerodrome, also known as Cambridge Airport, is a minor airport located in Cambridge, a suburb of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. It is located only a few kilometres from the primary airport, Hobart International Airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Barren Island</span> Island in Tasmania, Australia

Cape Barren Island, officially truwana / Cape Barren Island, is a 478-square-kilometre (185 sq mi) island in Bass Strait, off the north-east coast of Tasmania, Australia. It is the second-largest island of the Furneaux Group, with the larger Flinders Island to the north, and the smaller Clarke Island to the south. The highest point on the island is Mount Munro at 715 metres (2,346 ft). Mount Munro is named after James Munro, a former convict turned sealer who, from the 1820s, lived for more than 20 years with various indigenous women on nearby Preservation Island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Essendon Airport</span> Municipal airport serving Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Essendon Fields Airport, colloquially known by its former name Essendon Airport, is a 305 ha public airport serving scheduled commercial, corporate-jet, charter and general aviation flights. It is located next to the intersection of the Tullamarine and Calder Freeways, in the north western suburb of Essendon Fields of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The airport is the closest to Melbourne's City Centre, approximately an 11 km (6.8 mi) drive north-west from it and 8 km (5.0 mi) south-east from Melbourne–Tullamarine Airport. In 1970, Tullamarine Airport replaced Essendon as Melbourne's main airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Air Link</span> Australian airline

Air Link Pty Ltd is an airline and air charter company based in Dubbo, New South Wales, Australia. It operates air charter services and recommenced regular passenger services in November 2019. As of 2024, Aviation Logistics Holdings (ALH) who owns Air Link, Air Med and Chart Air, employs nearly 300 staff and owns and operates 70 aircraft across it's 7 bases in 4 states. Aviation Logistics Group operates one of Australia's largest fleet of general aviation aircraft across its subsidiaries and associated companies. Air Link has bases in Dubbo, Brisbane (Archerfield), Sydney (Bankstown) and Melbourne (Essendon).

Tasair was an airline based in Hobart and Devonport, Australia. It operated a regional network across Tasmania until it was placed in voluntary liquidation on 3 February 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mackay Airport</span> Airport in Mackay, Queensland

Mackay Airport located in South Mackay, Queensland, Australia is a major Australian regional airport that services the city of Mackay, with flights to the cities of Brisbane, Rockhampton, Townsville, Hamilton Island, Cairns, Sunshine Coast and Melbourne. In the year ending 30 June 2012, the airport handled 969,900 passengers making it the 14th busiest airport in Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Strahan Airport</span> Airport at Strahan, Tasmania, Australia

Strahan Airport is an airport located 2 nautical miles west of Strahan, Tasmania, Australia. It is the main airport for the West Coast of Tasmania, and is owned and maintained by the West Coast Council. The need for an airport in the area was suggested in the 1950s, and suggestions for upgrades have occurred over time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tasmanian Government Railways</span> Former government railway operator in Tasmania, Australia

The Tasmanian Government Railways (TGR) was the former operator of the mainline railways in Tasmania, Australia. Formed in 1872, the railway company was managed by the Government of Tasmania, and existed until absorption into the Australian National Railways Commission in 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burnie Airport</span> Airport in Wynyard, Tasmania

Burnie Airport, also called Burnie Wynyard Airport or Wynyard Airport, is a regional airport located adjacent to the town of Wynyard, about 17 kilometres (11 mi) west from Burnie, Tasmania, Australia. Formally named the Wynyard Aerodrome, the first official opening occurred on 26 February 1934. The Burnie Airport is majority owned by the Burnie City Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geraldton Airport</span> Airport in Moonyoonooka, Western Australia

Geraldton Airport is an airport located 6 nautical miles east of Geraldton, Western Australia, in Moonyoonooka along the Geraldton – Mount Magnet Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Gambier Airport</span> Airport in Wandilo, South Australia

Mount Gambier Regional Airport is an airport in the Limestone Coast, South Australia.

Sharp Airlines is a regional airline founded in Hamilton, Victoria, Australia in 1990. Sharp operates scheduled airline services in the southern states of Australia. Its main bases are Essendon Airport, Adelaide Airport, Launceston Airport and Brisbane Airport. The airline also provides charter operations to Tasmania, Victoria and South Australia. The parent company, Sharp Aviation, has its main maintenance base at Launceston Airport. Sharp Airlines has no registered ICAO code.

The city of Hobart, Tasmania is served by a wide variety of transport. While the city's main form of transport is private transport on the road network, transport is also available by bus, ferry and aircraft. A suburban train service operated between Hobart and Brighton from the 1870s until 31 December 1974. There has been, however, talk in recent years of reinstating a train service in the northern suburbs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salt Air</span> Airline of New Zealand

Salt Air is a New Zealand charter airline based at Paihia in the Bay of Islands, in the Northland Region of the North Island.

Air Safaris is a New Zealand scenic flight and air charter company based at the Lake Tekapo Airport located 2.8 km west of the town of Lake Tekapo, off State Highway 8 in the Mackenzie District of New Zealand. The airline operates from 5 bases: Tekapo, Franz Josef, Glentanner, Twizel and Mt Cook airports. The company logo is a stylised chamois; these are wild goat-like antelope which inhabits the region of the South Island High Country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queenstown Airport (Tasmania)</span> Airport in Tasmania, Australia

Queenstown Airport is an aerodrome located at Howard's Plains west of Queenstown, Tasmania, Australia. Formerly a commercial airport, the aerodrome no longer receives regular passenger services, but is maintained by the West Coast Council for a variety of aviation and non-aviation related uses.

Free Spirit Airlines is a Melbourne-based airline that was founded in 2012 and commenced operations on 30 April 2015. The company is headquartered in Essendon Fields, Melbourne, Australia.

Vee H Aviation Pty Ltd, operating as Link Airways, formerly known as Fly Corporate, is an Australian regional airline based at Brisbane Airport, Queensland. The airline operates scheduled regional passenger services in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and the Australian Capital Territory. Link Airways operates a fleet of Saab 340B Plus and Fairchild Metro 23 turboprop aircraft.

References

  1. ↑ "Airline Services - Par Avion". www.paravion.com.au. Archived from the original on 8 March 2019.
  2. ↑ "Australia Business Listing". AUS61 Business. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  3. ↑ Information about Airlines of Tasmania at airlineupdate.com Archived 20 July 2012 at archive.today Dead link
  4. ↑ Historic timetables of Airlines of Tasmania Dead link
  5. ↑ Airlines of Tasmania website Archived 19 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine retrieved 22 January 2009. Dead link
  6. ↑ "training.gov.au - 40601 - AIRLINES OF TASMANIA PTY LTD". training.gov.au. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
  7. ↑ "Griffith's new air provider speaks publicly". ABC News. 10 February 2014.
  8. ↑ Morphett, Jack (28 February 2014). "CASA gives all clear for new Melbourne route". The Area News (Griffith).
  9. ↑ HEATHCOTE, CAITLIN (12 September 2014). "Intrastate air service flagged". The Advocate. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
  10. ↑ "Tasmanian Tourism Awards Hall of Fame | Tourism Industry Council Tasmania". tict.com.au. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
  11. ↑ "2014 Winners | Australian Tourism Awards". australiantourismawards.com.au. Archived from the original on 10 February 2016. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
  12. ↑ "2016 Winners | Australian Tourism Awards". australiantourismawards.com.au. Archived from the original on 21 April 2017. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
  13. ↑ "Par Avion Wilderness Tours". Archived from the original on 10 April 2001.
  14. ↑ "New Strahan flights a 'catalyst' for tourism growth". 26 March 2019.
  15. ↑ Bennett, Lachlan (26 March 2019). "New Strahan flights a 'catalyst' for tourism growth". The Advocate. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
  16. ↑ Australian civil aircraft register search Archived 11 May 2015 at the Wayback Machine , using "Airlines of Tasmania" as the search parameter. Search conducted 2 May 2014.
  17. ↑ "'I love my job': Queensland pilot's dream ends in tragedy in Tasmania". ABC News. 10 December 2018.
  18. ↑ "Bodies found in wreck of plane that ditched off Tasman Peninsula". ABC News. 31 December 2014.

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