Tag Archives: ATR 72

Island Air to end all service to Kauai (Lihue)

Island Air (Honolulu) on June 1 will discontinue service to Kauai (LIH) and slightly adjust service between Honolulu and Maui (OGG) from eight round-trip flights a day to seven round-trips (Monday-Friday) and ten round-trip flights on weekends.

In addition, two of the Honolulu-Maui flights will continue on to Lanai (LNY) after picking up additional passengers in Maui, replacing five nonstop round-trips per day from Honolulu.

Copyright Photo: Ivan K. Nishimura/AirlinersGallery.com. Ex-American Eagle/Executive Airlines ATR 72-210 N342AT (msn 345) prepares for its next flight at the Honolulu base.

Island Air aircraft slide show:

Flybe Finland to become Nordic Regional Airlines

Flybe Finland (Helsinki) will become Nordic Regional Airlines in May reflecting the recent change in ownership. The name change still requires approval by the Trade Register, which is expected to take place in early May.

According to the airline’s CEO Maunu Visuri, “The new name reflects our company’s core business, i.e. the regional flying. Our goal is to continue to be a high-quality and skilled Nordic airline to offer excellent service to their customers.”

A new look will be unveiled in the early summer and the transformation will be implemented in stages during 2015.

Flybe Finland aircraft slide show:

All images by Flybe Finland.

Amaszonas to acquire BQB’s AOC, plans to restart operations on May 4

Amaszonas Linea Aerea (La Paz, Bolivia) is making a big move. The small regional airline from Bolivia has agreed to acquire the Air Operators Certificate (AOC) of grounded BQB Lineas Aereas (Montevideo) according to this report by our partner Argentina Airline News, Photography & Spotting.

Above Copyright Photo: Marcelo F. De Biasi/AirlinersGallery.com (all others by Amaszonas Linea Aerea). BQB’s ATR ATR 72-212A (marketed as the ATR 72-500) CX-JPL (msn 816) is pictured at Buenos Aires (Aeroparque Jorge Newbery).

Under the agreed plan, Amaszonas would initially lease the three BQB ATR 72-212As (above) of BQB and restore operations starting on May 4 to Buenos Aires (Aeroparque) and Asuncion pending all approvals. BQB suspended operations on April 11.

BQB aircraft slide show:

Amaszonas currently operates a fleet of Bombardier (Canadair) CRJ200 regional jets (above). Eventually it would replace the ATR 72s with more CRJ200s.

Read the full report: CLICK HERE

Amaszonas current route map:

Can LIAT survive the latest challenge to its fragile inter-island ownership structure?

LIAT (Antigua) is once again facing an uncertain future as there are new fractures in the delicate inter-island ownership alliance.

The government of Antigua and Barbuda, according to the Antillean Media Group, is “furious over a leaked document which detailed plans for Barbados to divest its majority share in regional airline LIAT and to take several aircraft from its fleet to form a new airline”

Under the leaked report, Barbados has given the proposed new airline a code-named “Newco” handle. This new airline, if implemented, would compete against the gutted LIAT.

Antigua Prime Minister Gaston Browne has condemned the LIAT board and its proposed plan.

LIAT is currently owned by seven Caribbean governments, with three governments being the major shareholders (73.4%). Private shareholders (10%) and employees (5.3%) own the remaining shares.

Read the full report: CLICK HERE

Copyright Photo: Eurospot/AirlinersGallery.com. Barbados wants to take the new ATR 72-600s (ATR 72-212As) to form the new airline. V2-LIA (msn 1077) was delivered to LIAT on June 13, 2013.

LIAT aircraft slide show:

LIAT’s current route map:

Video: A view from a DHC-8-300 cockpit:

BQB Lineas Aereas to suspend operations

BQB Lineas Aereas (Montevideo) has announced it will suspend operations on April 11. The airline commenced domestic and later regional operations in May 2010 as a subsidiary of ferry operator Buquebus. The airline is seeking additional investors and plans to resume operations.

The airline was operating two ATR 72-500s at the shutdown.

Read the full story from Argentina Airline News, Photography & Spotting: CLICK HERE

Copyright Photo: Alvaro Romero/AirlinersGallery.com. BQB Lineas Aereas ATR 72-212A (ATR 72-500) CX-LFL (msn 570) is pictured at the downtown Aeroparque Jorge Newbery Airport in Buenos Aires.

BQB aircraft slide show:

Video: The airline previously operated the Airbus A319:

Air Pegasus to start operations on April 12

Air Pegasus (India) (Bangalore) is a new airline in India. The new airline has received its AOC and is planning to commence scheduled passenger operations on April 12 with two 66-seat ATR 72-500s (ATR 72-212As) with a third copy coming.

The new airline is planning to operate in southern India from Bangalore to Hubli, Kochi and Trivandrum.

Read the full story from The Economic Times: CLICK HERE

All images by Air Pegasus.

Finnair acquires Flybe Nordic and Flybe Finland, will introduce Wi-Fi in the fall

Finnair (Helsinki) as planned, has completed its acquisition of Flybe Nordic (Helsinki) and its Flybe Finland (formerly FinnComm Airlines) (Helsinki) airline subsidiary. Finnair issued this statement:

Finnair has acquired Flybe UK Ltd’s 60% ownership of Flybe Nordic for a transaction price of 1 euro, and Flybe Nordic will transfer to Finnair’s ownership on an interim basis. The transaction has been closed on March 31, 2015. Finnair continues discussions about the continued ownership of Flybe Nordic. Finnair and StaffPoint Holding Ltd and G.W. Sohlberg Ltd. signed on January 7, 2015 a Memorandum of Understanding about an arrangement according to which Staffpoint and GWS would own together 60% of Flybe Nordic shares.

“Last November Finnair and Flybe UK decided to discontinue their Flybe Nordic co-operation and agreed, that Flybe UK will sell its 60% ownership in the company to a potential new majority shareholder or Finnair. While the discussions with Staffpoint and GWS still continue, Finnair will now acquire Flybe UK’s share of Flybe Nordic. We hope to sign a new share purchase agreement in the coming months,” says Pekka Vauramo, Finnair CEO.

Flybe Nordic owns fully the Finnish subsidiary Flybe Finland, which operates with a total of 26 ATR and Embraer aircraft a substantial part of Finnair’s domestic and European routes as purchase traffic. Flights operated by Flybe Finland will continue normally.

“Finnair aims to find together with its partners a business model that would enable the development of regional flying in a financially sustainable way. We will take an important step to this direction at the beginning of May, when all routes operated by Flybe Finland at their own commercial risk will become a part of Finnair’s contract flying arrangements, as we have communicated earlier. Flybe Finland has also implemented several internal measures to improve the company’s financial position,” says Vauramo.

The ownership change of Flybe Nordic does not have any immediate impact on Finnair’s result. Finnair continuously monitors the balance sheet valuation related to the Flybe Finland cooperation and will inform about possible financial impacts in more detail in connection with its interim review on 7 May, 2015.

In other news, Finnair has announced it will introduce its first onboard Wi-Fi service in autumn 2015.

Finnair Board of Directors has approved an investment program for bringing Wi-Fi connectivity to the majority of Finnair’s wide-body and narrow-body fleet. The total value of the investment is approximately 30 MEUR.

Finnair will introduce its first onboard Wi-Fi service in autumn 2015, with the arrival of the first Finnair A350 XWB aircraft. In 2016, the company will start Wi-Fi installations in Finnair’s Airbus A330 long-haul aircraft as well as its European short-haul Airbus fleet. Installations are expected to be completed by 2018.

Finnair aircraft slide show:

Copyright Photo: OSDU/AirlinersGallery.com. ATR 72-212A (ATR 72-500) OH-ATL (msn 851) of Flybe Finland lands at Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Finnair to open a new route to Gdansk, Poland

Finnair (Helsinki) on May 11 will open a new daily service to Gdansk, Poland.

The service will be sold with Finnair’s flight number, and it will be operated by Flybe Finland (Helsinki) with ATR 72 aircraft.

In addition to Gdansk, in Poland, Finnair flies daily to Warsaw year-round and to Krakow from April 2 until October 22, 2015.

Copyright Photo: Ton Jochems/AirlinersGallery.com. ATR 72-212A (ATR 72-500) OH-ATG (msn 757) sits on the Helsinki (HEL) ramp.

Finnair aircraft slide show:

Virgin Australia to operate a new route from Sydney to Tamworth

Virgin Australia Airlines (Brisbane) has announced it will introduce flights between Tamworth, New South Wales and Sydney from May 2015.

The airline will introduce this new service on May 25, 2015, using its ATR 72 turboprop 68-seat aircraft to operate six return services between Tamworth and Sydney each week.

Virgin Australia will operate a return flight every day (excluding Saturday) departing Sydney at 1.55 pm (1355) arriving into Tamworth at 3.00 pm (1500). The flight will depart Tamworth at 3.30 pm (1530) arriving into Sydney at 4.35 pm (1635).

Copyright Photo: Peter Gates/AirlinersGallery.com. Skywest Airlines ATR 72-212A (ATR 72-500) VH-FVI (msn 955) prepares to depart from Brisbane.

Virgin Australia aircraft slide show:

Virgin Australia domestic route map:

Flybe Finland to fly under the Finnair code starting on May 1

Finnair (Helsinki) as we previously reported, is now a part owner of Flybe Finland. The Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority approved the transaction in which Flybe UK Ltd’s 60% ownership of Flybe Nordic venture was transferred to StaffPoint Holding Ltd and G.W. Sohlberg Ltd (GWS) . The letter of intent on this transaction was announced on January 7, 2015. StaffPoint’s ownership in the joint venture is now 45%, GWS’s 15% and Finnair’s 40%.

Flybe Nordic owns fully the Finnish subsidiary Flybe Finland, which is in charge of Finnair’s regional airline operations. Flybe Finland currently operates to a number of domestic and European destinations from Helsinki on behalf of Finnair on a contract-flying basis. In addition, Flybe Finland operates to five domestic destinations as well as Tartu, Estonia and Norrköping, Sweden at its own commercial risk.

As a result, Finnair now has issued this statement:

Starting May 1 all routes operated by Flybe Finland (Helsinki) at their own commercial risk will become a part of Finnair’s contract flying arrangements, and the flights will carry a Finnair (AY) flight designator instead of Flybe’s (BE) code. The routes are between Helsinki and the following destinations:

Jyväskylä
Kajaani
Kemi-Tornio
Kokkola-Pietarsaari
Mariehamn
Norrköping
Tartu
Visby

Finnair sells tickets to these routes starting on March 10, 2015. Tickets can also be purchased from Flybe Finland until April 30, 2015.

The change to Finnair’s flight numbers may cause some changes to the schedules of Flybe Finland flights that have already been booked and which depart on 1 May 1, 2015 and onward.

Copyright Photo: Ton Jochems/AirlinersGallery.com. Flybe Finland’s ATR 72-212A (ATR 72-500) OH-ATG (msn 757) sits on the ramp at the Helsinki (HEL) base.