Tag Archives: SAAB 340B

Silver Airways completes its acquisition of Seaborne Airlines, the brand will continue

Silver Airways and Seaborne Airlines on April 23, 2018 announced that Silver’s acquisition of Seaborne’s business and assets has successfully been closed, creating a leading independent airline to serve the Caribbean, Bahamas, Florida, and beyond.

The acquisition brings together two strong independent airlines with similar SAAB 340B fleets, complementary route networks, and common codeshare/interline partners.

With the upcoming deployment of Silver’s recently announced new fleet of state-of-the-art ATR 42-600s across both networks, the combined airline will have an expanded range, allowing it to better serve passengers and markets while creating more opportunities for employees and greater value for its business partners.

The combined airline will continue operating Silver’s route network in the Bahamas, Florida, and beyond under the Silver Airways banner and Seaborne’s route network throughout Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the Caribbean under the Seaborne name.

The total fleet now consists of 31 aircraft, including SAAB 340s and de Havilland Twin Otter seaplane aircraft.

Steve Rossum of Silver Airways will serve as CEO of the combined airline. Ben Munson will resume his role as president of aviation consulting firm Embark Aviation, and continue as a valued advisor to the company.

The combined airline will employ nearly 1,000 aviation professionals and will be headquartered at Silver Airways’ offices in Fort Lauderdale under the leadership of executives from both Silver and Seaborne.

Corporate and operations support functions will continue at locations in Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Tampa, San Juan, and St. Croix, U.S.V.I.

Seaborne aircraft slide show:

Silver Airways route map:

Seaborne Airlines route map:

Loganair to add new routes from the Carlisle Lake District

Carlisle Lake District Airport (CLDA) has unveiled Loganair, Scotland’s Airline, as its airline partner with flights to George Best Belfast City Airport, Dublin Airport and London Southend Airport.

The six times weekly service to Belfast City Airport, which will commence on June 4, 2018, will connect passengers to Cumbria and the Lake District, which receive 45 million visitors per year.

The airline will be operating this route as a partner of the Stobart Group.

The first flight from Carlisle Lake District Airport will arrive in Belfast on June 4 with the following week seeing the launch of Flybe’s four times weekly service to Doncaster Sheffield Airport from Belfast City.

In other news, Loganair is launching a Glasgow to Derry air service after the recent Ryanair announcement to discontinue the route.

The regional carrier, which has a long history of operating between the two cities, will commence the link on Sunday, October 28 – the day after Ryanair’s service ceases.

Operating five days per week, Loganair will utilise a 33-seat SAAB 340 aircraft on Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday with a larger, 50-capacity SAAB 2000 aircraft used for Sunday evening services.

Services will depart Glasgow at 10.55 am on Mondays and Saturdays, arriving in Derry 50 minutes later at 11.45 am. The return trip from Derry will take to the skies at 12.15 pm.

The Thursday, Friday and Sunday services leave Glasgow at 6.55 pm, with return flights leaving Northern Ireland’s second largest city at 8.15 pm.

Loganair first served Derry in April 1979, becoming the first airline to operate to City of Derry Airport at the time.

Derry becomes Loganair’s 12^th destination from Glasgow, the home base for Scotland’s Airline. Loganair has added Guernsey and Donegal to its Glasgow network this year and will also resume nonstop flights in May from Glasgow to Bergen in Norway for a second summer season.

Loganair aircraft slide show:

Video:

WestJet Link launch is delayed

WestJet has announced a delay in the launch of WestJet Link, a capacity purchase agreement between WestJet and Pacific Coastal Airlines, to June 2018. The delay comes as Pacific Coastal continues their work in order to be fully able to meet WestJet’s operational requirements.

WestJet Link routes and revised launch dates:

Route	Frequency	Effective
Calgary – Cranbrook	Three times daily	June 20, 2018
Calgary – Prince George	Once daily	June 20, 2018
Calgary – Lethbridge	Three times daily	June 21, 2018
Calgary – Lloydminster	Once daily	June 21, 2018
Calgary – Medicine Hat	Three times daily	June 22, 2018

Pacific Coastal Airlines has entered into a Capacity Purchase Agreement (CPA) with WestJet. Operating under the name WestJet Link, Pacific Coastal Airlines’ aircraft will connect the communities of Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Cranbrook, Lloydminster and Prince George to WestJet’s hub at the Calgary International Airport.

All WestJet Link flights will be operated by Pacific Coastal using 34-seat Saab 340B aircraft painted in WestJet colors.

Pacific Coastal Airlines aircraft slide show:

Silver Airways turns to ATR to replace its 21 SAAB 340Bs

ATR has issued this statement:

ATR announces its first deal of 2018 which sees the introduction of the ATR -600 series in the US, to be operated by Silver Airways.

The airline will introduce 20 ATR -600 aircraft into its fleet, of which 16 will be ATR 42-600s and four will be ATR 72-600s.

This follows a deal between ATR and Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC) for the purchase of 15 ATR -600s, of which 12 will be ATR 42-600s and three will be ATR 72-600s.

These aircraft, along with five from an existing order between ATR and NAC, will be leased to Silver Airways, making them the first operator of ATR -600 series aircraft in the US.

The delivery and subsequent entry into service of the first -600 aircraft under the livery of Silver Airways will take place in March of this year. The aircraft, an ATR 42-600, will be configured with 46 seats in a 2-2 seating configuration, with a pitch of up to 32 inches. The remaining deliveries are expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2020. Crew training will be conducted by ATR at its new training facility in Miami, which is home to a Full Flight Simulator (FFS) for the ATR -600 series aircraft.

The brand new ATR -600s will replace Silver Airways’ existing fleet of 21 Saab 340B turboprops (below), while increasing the frequency of main routes and opening new air services to destinations in Florida, the southern United States and Caribbean.

Above Copyright Photo (all others by ATR): Silver Airways SAAB 340B N327AG (msn 427) FLL (Jay Selman). Image: 402991.

Silver Airways aircraft slide show:

Seaborne Airlines files for reorganization, signs agreement to be acquired by Silver Airways

Seaborne Airlines (San Juan) has released this statement:

Sea Star Holdings Inc., parent company for Seaborne Puerto Rico LLC, Seaborne Virgin Islands, Inc. and affiliates, announced the company has commenced a voluntary Chapter 11 reorganization proceeding under Title 11 of the US Code in order to implement new financing and a sale to affiliates of Silver Airways, LLC.

The Company will continue its business without interruption, including all existing flight operations in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and throughout the Caribbean. Tickets held by customers will continue to be valid and Seaborne will be taking bookings for future travel, as normal.

Seaborne also announced that it has secured a new $4.2 million credit facility and concurrently entered into a Purchase Agreement (subject to court approval and potential overbids) to sell substantially all of its business and assets to Silver Airways. This will facilitate a combination between Seaborne and Silver Airways, creating the industry’s leading regional carrier in the Caribbean, Florida, and the Bahamas.

“While the Company’s business has enjoyed a remarkable recovery since the 2017 hurricanes, the financial stress caused during the recovery period coupled with legacy liabilities have made it necessary to seek reorganization protection,” said Ben Munson, Acting CEO of Seaborne Airlines. “Our day to day operations will continue as normal, and this process will be in the best interests of all of our customers and stakeholders.”

Passenger service and safety will continue to be top priorities for the company. Seaborne will operate normal flight schedules and conduct business as usual, honoring all ticketed reservations and rules of the company’s Contract of Carriage. The company will also maintain our codeshare partnerships that facilitate easy connections to partner airlines and our Seamiles program will remain active.

Seaborne Airlines, the largest Caribbean based regional airline for 25 years, operates iconic seaplanes and an airport based fleet that service the beautiful islands throughout the Caribbean, carrying approximately 3 million customers safely. With over 1,500 monthly departures to 12 airports, Seaborne serves San Juan’s Luis Muñoz Marin International Airport, St. Thomas airport, and Seaplane base, St. Croix airport and Seaplane Base, Anguilla, Antigua, Dominica, Saint Maarten, St. Kitts, Tortola, and Nevis. All Flights operate with two pilots and two engines.

Above Copyright Photo (all others by Seaborne Airlines): Seaborne Airlines SAAB 340B N283AE (msn 283) (Seahorse) SJU (Raul Sepulveda). Image: 922659.

Seaborne Airlines aircraft slide show:

Route Map:

REX selected as the preferred tenderer for the Perth – Carnavon/Monkey Mia route

Regional Express – REX (Wagga Wagga) has released this statement:

The West Australian (WA) Government has announced REX as the preferred tenderer for the regulated Perth to Carnarvon/Monkey Mia route.

The announcement follows an extensive competitive tender process by the WA Government and comes on the back of Rex commencing operations in WA in February 2016 to operate the regulated Perth to Albany and Perth to Esperance routes.

Subject to final negotiations in early 2018 , REX will enter into a deed of agreement with the Department of Transport to operate the Perth to Carnarvon/Monkey Mia route for a five – year licence period commencing on July 2, 2018.

The REX livery has been updated with blue-painted engine nacelles.

Photo Above: REX.

Regional Express (REX) is Australia’s largest independent regional airline operating a fleet of more than 50 SAAB 340 aircraft on some 1,500 weekly flights to 60 destinations throughout all state s in Australia. In addition to the regional airline Regional Express, the Rex Group comprises wholly owned subsidiaries Pel – Air Aviation (air freight and charter operator), Air Link (Dubbo – based regional airline) and the Australian Airline Pilot Academy .

Top Copyright Photo: REX (Regional Express Airlines) SAAB 340B VH-ZRE (msn 391) SYD (Micheil Keegan). Image: 908308.

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Route Map:

GLO Airlines suspends all operations

GLO Airlines (New Orleans) on July 15, 2017 suspended all operations.

GLO was founded by Louisiana native Trey Fayard and operations began in November 2015 using three SAAB 340Bs operated under contract by Corporate Flight Managment (CFM).

GLO and CFM are now involved in a dispute where the virtual airline has claimed CFM was “unable to properly staff flights” which often led to cancellations.

GLO is now looking at other operators to replace CFM and hopes to resume operations.

Route Map:

Copyright Photo: Jay Selman/AirlinersGallery.com. Corporate Flight Management’s SAAB 340B N9CJ (msn 224) stops at Huntsville (HSV) in GLO’s 2015 livery.

Silver Airways starts selling tickets for Cuba, will operate the first regularly scheduled passenger flight to Cuba on September 1 from Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood to Santa Clara, Cuba

https://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/World-Airline-News/World-Airline-News-June-2016/i-BKNc95q/A

Silver Airways has become the first U.S. airline to again sell regularly scheduled flights to Cuba.

Silver Airways, which operates more routes within Florida and between Florida and the Bahamas than any other airline, will be the first U.S. carrier to start service to Cuba with the inaugural flight departing Fort Lauderdale (FLL) to Santa Clara, Cuba (SNU) on September 1, 2016. This will be the first regularly scheduled flight from the U.S. to Cuba in over 50 years and a historic moment for American-Cuban relations.

Following are details of Silver Airways’ Cuba flights currently available for sale at silverairways.com:

Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood – Santa Clara starting September 1, 2016 (three weekly flights; daily starting October 13)
Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood – Camagüey starting October 13, 2016 (five weekly flights)
Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood – Cienfuegos starting October 21, 2016 (two weekly flights)
Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood – Holguín starting October 27, 2016 (daily)
Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood – Santiago starting November 3, 2016 (daily)
Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood – Cayo Coco starting November 17, 2016 (three weekly flights)
Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood – Varadero starting December 2, 2016 (four weekly flights)
Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood – Cayo Largo starting December 10, 2016 (one weekly flight)
Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood – Manzanillo starting December 16, 2016 (three weekly flights)

Route Map:

SA_ALL_Routes_Cuba_030716

Silver Airways to return to Cuba in 2016

https://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Airlines-UnitedStates-3/Airlines-United-States3-QZ/Silver-Airways/i-J6w2Jh8

Silver Airways (Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood) has announced its intention to resume nonstop service to Cuba in 2016. The company has a long history of providing charter flights to Cuba, and given the announcement of a new bilateral agreement between Cuba and the U.S., Silver plans to bring much needed commercial service to many Cuban destinations in the near future. The airline will apply to the U.S. Department of Transportation to serve most, if not all, of the ten approved destinations within Cuba, including Havana.

In light of the recent Cuba announcement as well as several other exciting growth opportunities within Florida and the Caribbean, the board of directors of Silver Airways has initiated a process to evaluate a range of strategic alternatives for the airline. The company has engaged Raymond James as its financial advisor to assist in exploring potential strategic partnerships, growth investments, and a merger or ownership transition that would enhance Silver’s ability to capitalize on these attractive growth opportunities.

Over the past five years, Silver has been transformed from a regional express carrier into a successful independent airline providing important air service to otherwise unserved or underserved cities across Florida and the Bahamas. As part of this transformation, the company was rebranded as Silver Airways, upgraded its fleet to SAAB 340B+ aircraft, launched its own Sabre reservation system, relocated its maintenance headquarters to Orlando, strengthened the leadership team, and implemented valuable commercial partnerships with a number of larger carriers, including United and JetBlue. These initiatives have created a compelling value proposition and unique customer experience, and have driven Silver’s revenue to nearly triple since 2011. The board is now considering several opportunities that will accelerate growth and geographic expansion, including the opening of the Cuban market.

Copyright Photo: Brian McDonough/AirlinersGallery.com. SAAB 340B N435XJ (msn 435) climbs away from the runway at Washington (Dulles).

Silver Airways aircraft slide show:

Route Map:

Silver Airways 12.2015 Route Map

JetBlue Airways and Seaborne Airlines launch their new codeshare agreement

JetBlue Airways (New York) and Seaborne Airlines (St. Croix and San Juan) on October 21 began selling flights under a codeshare agreement that will offer customers increased travel options and new destinations throughout the Caribbean. Connections will be made via San Juan’s Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU), where JetBlue is the largest carrier.

Initially, JetBlue has placed its ‘B6’ designator code on eight Seaborne Airlines routes allowing JetBlue customers to reach more destinations in the Caribbean on a single itinerary:

Anguilla (AXA)
Tortola, British Virgin Islands (EIS)
Dominica (DOM)
Nevis (NEV)
St. Kitts (SKB)
St. Maarten (SXM)
St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands (STT)
St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands (STX)

Following receipt of all necessary government approvals, JetBlue will place the ‘B6’ designator code on the remainder of the Seaborne Airlines network to include:

Antigua (ANU)
Fort-de-France, Martinique (FDF)
La Romana, Dominican Republic (LRM)
Point-a-Pitre, Guadeloupe (PTP)
Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (PUJ)
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (SDQ)

In other news, JetBlue today also announced its intent to expand the airline’s service to Barbados by adding a daily roundtrip flight between Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) and Grantley Adams International Airport (BGI) in Barbados.

The new daily roundtrip service is set to begin in April 2016, subject to government approval, with seats going on sale in the coming weeks. JetBlue’s Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood focus city will become the third JetBlue city with nonstop flights to Barbados. Service from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) launched in 2009 and service from Boston’s Logan International Airport (BOS) will begin this fall.

Top Copyright Photo: Ken Petersen/AirlinersGallery.com. SAAB 340B N341CJ (msn 341) with the image of a sea turtle on the tail, taxies at the San Juan hub.

JetBlue Airways aircraft slide show:

Seaborne Airlines aircraft slide show: