AIR BROUSSE, S. A.: Belgian Congo/Congo (1955-1967). Privately owned Air Brousse is established at Leopoldville in March 1955 to provide charter and scheduled services, including feeder flights on behalf of Sabena Belgian World Airlines, S. A.
Revenue flights commence to a number of points, including Lulua-bourg, employing a fleet that includes 4 Piper PA-23 Aztecs, 2 PA-23 Apaches, 7 Beech 18s, and 5 de Havilland DH 89A Dragon Rapides.
Services continue apace until June 30, 1967, when the concern is taken over by Air Congo, S. A. (2).
AIR BURKINA, S. A.: Avenue Loudun, Siege Social, P. O. Box 1459, Ouagadougou, 307676, Burkina Faso; Phone 226 30 6144; Fax 226 30 6144; Code 2J; Year Founded 1985. The state airline Air Volta, S. A. is renamed Air Burkina, S. A. in 1985 to better honor the name of its nation, Burkina Faso, known before its 1984 independence as Upper Volta. The predecessor carrier’s Fokker F.28-4000, de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter, and Embraer EMB-110P2 Bandeirante are pressed into service on the old regional and domestic routes.
In need of less capacity, the Fellowship jetliner is traded to Fokker in May for an F.27 Friendship. Domestic destinations visited include Bobo Dioulasso, Dori, Sebba, Gorom, Diapaga, Bogande, Fada, and Pama. The Fokker links the capital of Ouagadougou with Abidjan, Bouake, Cotonou, Lome, Niamey, and Bamako.
Little change is seen in Managing Director H. Kere’s operation until October 8, 1988. That day a DHC-6-300 fails its takeoff from Dori; although the Twin Otter is badly damaged in the subsequent forced landing, there are no fatalities.
In 1989, Managing Director Kere is replaced by Bintou Sanogoh. Flights to Accra cease. Sanogoh is succeeded by Paul Antoine Ganem-tore in 1990, who retires the Twin Otter.
Kere is back in charge by 1993 and his fleet includes the F.27 and Bandeirante. A domestic route is flown from Ouagadougou to Bobo
Dioulasso and international destinations include Cotonou and Lome, Brazzaville, Bamako, and the Ivory Coast cities of Abidjan and Bouake.
A Fokker F.28-4000 is reacquired in 1994 and operations continue in 1995-1998. During these years, Mathieu K. Bouda becomes Managing Director and airline employment reaches 75. The fleet now comprises the Fokker Fellowship, the Bandeirante, and a de Havilland Canada DHC-6-300 Twin Otter.
A delegation led by Parliamentary Minister Cyrille Goungounke is aboard the F.28-4000 when it resumes twice-weekly flights to Accra on February 26, 1999.
It is reported in early 2000 that Air Continental, S. A., which has continued its low-key, nearly invisible Ivory Coast service over the past two years, has been given an ex-Burkina Faso air force Nord 262C with which to operate between Ougadougou and Bobo Dioulasso on behalf of Air Burkina.
AIR BURUNDI (SOCIETE DE TRANSPORT AERIEN DU BURUNDI, S. A.): BP 2460, 40 Ave. du Commerce, Bujumbura, Burundi; Phone 257 (2) 224 609; Fax 257 (2) 23 452; Code PBU; Year Founded 1971. Created at Bujumbura in April 1971, this state carrier is initially known as Societe de Transport Aerien du Burundi, S. A. (STAB). Revenue services are started over a route to Gitega in early summer employing two Douglas DC-3s. The present title is adopted in June 1975.
During the remainder of the decade, the carrier maintains its growing domestic network and undertakes agricultural flights. In 1978, the carrier obtains a Sud SE-210 Caravelle III wet-leased from Air Afrique, S. A., which is employed to inaugurate scheduled passenger services to Kigoma and Kalemie.
In the 1980s, the fleet is increased by the addition of two de Havilland Canada DHC-6-300 Twin Otters. The international services are dropped; however, the Canadian turboprops are able to maintain twice-weekly flights to Kigali (Rwanda). In July, 1986, Lt. Col. Libere Nahimana is named CEO. In 1988, Managing Director G. Mu-gabo’s Twin Otters also begin service to Kalemie and Kirundo. A Cessna 210 is acquired in 1989.
Operations continue apace in 1990-1991 and in 1992, the fleet includes 1 each Beech 1900C and Caravelle III, plus 2 DHC-6-300s, 1 of which is leased to Zaire’s Virunga Air Charter, S. A. Destinations now visited from Bujumbura include Goma, Kalemie, Harare, Kigoma, Kigali, Lusaka, Kilimanjaro, and Nairobi. The French-made jetliner is withdrawn in 1993-1994, with new President Kagari Cyprien and Managing Director Isaac Gafuerro now overseeing a workforce of 87.
Operations continue without change in 1995. In a July 1996 coup d’etat by Maj. Pierre Buyoya, regional African nations place an economic and transportation embargo on the country. The allied measure effectively grounds the airline. During the remainder of the year and in 1997-1998, transport at all levels in Burundi is paralyzed. A shortage of imported goods develops and exports dry up.
With political pressure easing, the leaders of East Africa lift their embargo of Burundi on January 25, 1999. On February 1, Air Burundi is permitted to resume flights to Rwanda, Kenya, and Uganda with its Beech 1900C.
AIR BUSINESS, A. S.: Denmark (1980-1988). Organized at Esb-jerg Airport as a division of Alkair, S. A., Air Business undertakes scheduled, international passenger commuter flights over routes to Stavanger and Thisted. In the spring of 1983, the carrier is acquired by Maersk Air, A. S., which operates it as a subsidiary.
In 1984-1985, the carrier’s two Shorts 360s and single Embraer EMB-110 Bandeirante also undertake replacement flights for its parent to Aarhus and certain Danish cities.
A third Shorts 360 joins Managing Director Jan Goffredsen’s fleet in 1986. Services are maintained in 1987 and in 1988 the company is reformed as Maersk Commuter, I. S.
AIR BVI (AIR BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS, LTD.): British Virgin Islands (1971-1995). Air British Virgin Islands, Ltd. is founded at
Beef Island Airport, Tortola, in June 1971 as the national airline of the British Virgin Islands. Equipped with four Britten-Norman BN-2 Islanders, the company, following six months of charter operations, begins scheduled flights from Beef Island Airport in July 1972.
Services are undertaken to Virgin Gorda, San Juan, St. Croix, and Antigua. The fleet is increased in 1975 by the addition of 4 Douglas DC-3s. Shareholding is reorganized in 1976 and the marketing name is changed to Air BVI; ownership is taken by local businessmen, a charitable trust (Air BVI Trust), and company employees.
During 1977-1985, the fleet is upgraded by the addition of another DC-3, 1 de Havilland Canada DHC-6, and 1 Hawker Siddeley HS 748, the latter chartered from Dan-Air/Dan-Air Services, Ltd. Airline employment grows to 90 and additional destinations include St. Martin and St. Kitts.
In 1986-1991, the workforce grows to 120. Additional stops are made at Dominica, Anguilla, and La Romans. CEO Elihu Rhymer’s fleet is upgraded to comprise 3 British Aerospace BAe (HS) 748-B2s (2 of which are leased from Dan-Air/Dan-Air Services, Ltd. and the third acquired from Air Malawi, Ltd.) and 3 Islanders.
Having great difficulty in maintaining viability in a time of recession, the company reduces its fleet in 1992 to 1 BAe (HS) 748-B2 and leases 1 Shorts 330. In 1993, President Rhymer oversees a workforce of 120. The fleet is now increased by the addition of 3 Pilatus Britten-Norman PBN-2 Islanders.
The Shorts 330 with 3 crew and 27 passengers, aborts its takeoff from Tortola on May 6 and overruns the runway into the ocean; there are no fatalities, but the turboprop is lost.
The expansion is overly optimistic and poor traffic forces withdrawal in 1994 of one of the new Islanders added the previous year. Flights cease in June 1995.
AIR CAIRO, S. A.E.: Export Centre, Cairo International Airport, Helipolis, Cairo, Egypt; Phone 20 (2) 267 1456; Fax 20 (2) 267 0683; Year Founded 1997. Ibrahim Kamei establishes Air Cairo in 1997 to provide lift for holiday passengers visiting Egypt from Europe, Asia, and Africa. Revenue flights begin, and continue, with a fleet that includes 2 Tu-204-120s and 1 Tu-204-120C. The first airline outside of Russia to introduce the new Tupolev jetliners, the carrier may better known for its airplanes than its tours.
AIR CALEDONIE (SOCIETE CALEDONIENNE DE TRANSPORTS AERIENS, S. A.): BP 212, Aerodrome de Magenta, Noumea, 98-800, New Caledonia; Phone 687 25 23 39; Fax 687 25 03 00; Http://www. air-caledonie. nc; Code TY; Year Founded 1955.
With a base at Noumea’s Aerodrome de Magenta, Societe Caledoni-enne de Transports Aeriens, S. A. is renamed Air Caledonie in 1968. Reorganized, shareholding is divided between local government (76.3%) and private interests (23.7%). The fleet is upgraded to include Cessna 310s and Britten-Norman BN-2 Islanders. Scheduled services are maintained, linking Noumea with Mueo Kone, Koumac, Belep, Houailou, and Touhu in New Caledonia and Mare, Tiga, and Lifu in the Loyalty Islands.
During the early 1970s, the fleet is upgraded to include de Havilland Canada DHC-6-300 Twin Otters and the airline also undertakes a regularly scheduled shuttle on behalf of UTA French Airlines, S. A. between the islands of Wallis and Futuna. Enplanements in 1973 are 80,754.
Airline employment in 1974 stands at 95 and the fleet comprises 3 Twin Otters and 3 Britten-Norman BN-2A Trislanders. Passenger boardings accelerate 4% to 84,119 while freight traffic is level at 151,000 FTKs.
Three more employees are hired in 1975 and a new terminal is opened at New Caledonia’s Magenta Airport. The twentieth anniversary is celebrated in September and, as a result, the carrier’s half-dozen planes all receive new livery. Passenger bookings jump 6% to 87,331.
The employee population is reduced by 4.1% in 1976 to 93. Several unprofitable routes are abandoned as passenger boardings rise 9% to 99,368. Freight grows 5% to 1.36 million FTKs.
A fourth Twin Otter is acquired in 1977. Operations continue apace during the remainder of the decade and into the early 1980s, with traffic growing steadily.
Enplanements total 119,956 in 1981 and climb each of the following two years: 1982, 133,511 and 1983, 135,299. Following the creation of Air Caledonie International, S. A. during the latter year, the company begins to concentrate exclusively on domestic flights.
One of the Islanders is replaced in 1984 by two more Twin Otters as orders are placed for two Aerospatiale-Aeritalia ATR42s. Enplanements in 1985 total 129,000.
The workforce totals 115 in 1986 and the fleet includes 3 DHC-6-300 Twin Otters. The first ATR42-300 is placed into service during the year, as orders remain outstanding for a second. Passenger boardings jump 11% to 145,000.
Enplanements in 1987 dip to 139,958. Although the company enjoys net income of $1.3 million, there is an operating loss of $1.36 million.
Airline employment is increased by 7.4% in 1988 to 130 and the fleet now includes 2 ATR42-300s and 3 Twin Otters.
Passenger boardings swell 15.1% to 164,850 and cargo is up by 2.2% to 163,148 FTKs. Revenues ascend 28.7% to $7.6 million and an operating profit of $261,546 is generated. There is, however, a $279,700 net loss.
Customer bookings dip in 1989 to 160,000 as financial difficulties arise.
In 1990, Managing Director Christian Liaudel’s fleet comprises the same 2 European turboprops and 3 Canadian-built Twin Otters. Orders are placed for 2 Dornier 228-202s. Enplanements climb to 200,000. Although an operating loss of $2 million is suffered, there is a net profit of $19,454.
The workforce is increased by 1.5% in 1991 to 208 as the Dorniers are delivered.
Passenger boardings rise 5.9% to 244,733 and freight climbs 8.6% to 3.46 million FTKs. Revenues fall 5.8% to $18.5 million and with costs higher, losses are suffered: $4.9 million (operating) and $5.5 million (net).
The last two Twin Otters are replaced in 1992 and the fleet now includes 2 ATR42-300s, 1 of which is leased, and 2 Dornier 228-202s. Orders are outstanding for a Dornier 328.
In 1993, Chairman Guy Mennesson oversees a workforce of 194. Destinations visited from Magenta include Belep Island, Isle of Pines, Kone, Koumac, Lifou, Mare, Ouvea, Tiga, and Touho.
The first Dornier 328-100 enters service in 1994, along with a third ATR42-300. Flights continue without change in 1995-1997.
Service is maintained in 1998-1999. Enplanements in the former year total 280,000, a 0.6% increase over 1997. Freight traffic inches up 1% to 4.16 million FTKs. On revenues of $26.89 million, a $282,000 operating profit is gained. There is also a $468,000 net profit.
Passenger boardings accelerate by 4.6% in 1999 to 293,000 while cargo rises 5.7% to 4.39 million FTKs. Revenues of $22.15 million are generated and costs are $22.09 million. Although the operating profit falls to $57 million, the previous year’s net loss is turned into a $185-million net gain.
AIR CALEDONIE INTERNATIONAL, S. A. (ACI): New Caledonia (1983-1997). ACI is formed at Noumea, New Caledonia, on September 1, 1983 to provide scheduled, regional passenger and cargo service between the South Pacific islands of New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji, Wallis, and Futuna, as well as Australia. Shareholding is split between public (34%) and private (66%) interests. Fifty employees are hired and the initial fleet comprises a single leased Boeing 727-200, although arrangements are made to lease a Qantas Airways (Pty.), Ltd. B-747 on occasion. A scheduled frequency is opened on December 2, Noumea to Melbourne.
During 1984, the fleet is enhanced by the addition of 1 Britten-Nor-man BN-2 Islander, 4 de Havilland Canada DHC-6-300 Twin Otters, and 1 Cessna 310P, all of which are committed to short-haul services.
Enplanements for the first full year of service total 133,905. Profit totals are $163,331 (operating) and $72,866 (net). Passenger boardings dip 2.4% in 1985 to 130,767 and freight drops by 2% to 149,000 FTKs. Revenues jump 12.7% to $6.58 million as expenses grow 12.3% to $6.37 million. The operating profit is $207,290 while the net profit is $407,290.
Air Caledonie International employment stands at 85 in 1987 as customer bookings accelerate 20.2% to 52,083. Managing Director Dannys Famin’s carrier adds 23 personnel in 1988, plus a number of destinations, including Auckland, Sydney, Brisbane, Port Vila, Nadi, and Papeete. The Boeing trijet is replaced by a leased B-737-33A.
Passenger boardings rise 22% to 62,120 and freight climbs 6.6% to
322,000 FTKs. Revenues jump 25.5% to $11.2 million.
Airline employment is increased by 25% in 1989 to 135. Bookings through September are up to 55,234 while freight moves to 91,000 FTKs. A $1.28-million net loss is suffered.
The workforce grows another 17.3% in 1990 to 149 as new Managing Director Alain Ballereau oversees inauguration of a new scheduled service to Melbourne. A de Havilland Canada DHC-6-300 Twin Otter is also acquired.
Passenger boardings for the entire year jump 14.1% to 106,420. Revenues of $19.8 million exceed expenses and allow operating income of $4.06 million and a net profit of $274,400.
The payroll climbs another 2.7% in 1991 to 153. Although customer bookings slide 1.6% to 99,782, revenues increase 17.3% to $23.2 million. Costs are not kept down and, as a result, there is an operating loss of $704,000. A net profit of $639,310 is earned.
One more employee is hired in 1992 as operations continue with the Twin Otter and leased B-737-33A.
Passenger boardings ascend 2.1% to 101,915 while freight falls 4.9% to 846,000 FTKs. Revenues inch up 1.6% to $23.6 million and the operating loss is $751,000. The net profit dips to $549,000.
In 1993, Managing Director Ballereau oversees a workforce of 159, up 1.9% over the previous year. Markets visited from Noumea include Auckland, Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney, Port Vila, Nadi, Wallis Island, and Papeete.
Customer bookings climb 3.9% to 86,536 while cargo ascends 2.5% to 1.53 million FTKs. Revenues slip up by 3.7% to $24.4 million. The operating loss increases to $780,290 while there is a small net profit of $19,467.
The employee population is increased by 6.9% in 1994 to 170, but the fleet is unchanged.
Passenger boardings dip 0.1% to 86,033, but freight is up a strong 9.8% to 1.68 million FTKs. Revenues also slide 0.1% to $24.4 million, but expenses increase by 3.2% to $25.98 million. Consequently, the operating loss is $1.58 million; however, a net $173,270 profit is reported.
The workforce grows by another 20.6% in 1995 to 205. The worldwide recovery being enjoyed by the airline industry makes its way to Noumea and this carrier shows renewed growth.
Customer bookings accelerate 24.2% to 106,817 while cargo skyrockets 192.8% to 4,931,000 FTKs.
Airline employment is reduced 7.8% in 1996 to 189. Using its own aircraft, Air Caledonie International inaugurates a code-sharing service with Air Pacific in July over a route from Nan to Papeete. The carrier’s two aircraft transport a total 110,685, a 3.6% increase. Additionally, 3.52 million FTKs are operated, a drop of 28.6%.
On January 1, 1997, the carrier completely changes its identity, becoming Aircalin, S. A.
AIR CALIFORNIA: United States (1965-1981). Launched in mid-December 1965 by a group of investors led by Bill Myers and William L. Pereira, Air California is granted a California operating certificate in September 1966. A fleet of 4 Lockheed L-188As is purchased from American Airlines and is employed by the intrastate to begin five daily return trips between Orange County Airport (Los Angeles) and San Francisco beginning on January 16, 1967.
Frequencies are increased to seven per day on April 1 and the fleet is enhanced by the addition of 2 leased Douglas DC-9-30 jetliners. Routes are expanded to Oakland and San Jose on October 23.
Enplanements for the year total 300,000.
On June 11, 1968, the carrier is granted a new route from Ontario to Oakland. The DC-9s are now replaced by the first of six ordered Boeing 737-293s. During the fall, the four Electras are sold to an aircraft leasing concern and then chartered back into service.
A new frequency is opened on December 3 to San Jose and Oakland from Burbank.
With 600,758 passenger boardings during the year, the airline becomes one of the quickest startups in pre-deregulation U. S. commercial aviation history. However, startup and expansion costs result in a $1-million loss on revenues of $6.65 million.
The fleet in 1969 reaches 6 B-737-293s and the withdrawal of the Electras begins in March.
Although the company challenges Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA)
Only on the routes from Burbank to San Jose and Oakland, a bitter fare war is fought with the intrastate rival. California’s population boom encourages the rivalry.
Passenger traffic and revenues continue upward; customer bookings total 831,690.
The employee population grows 10% during 1970 to 500 and the fleet includes 7 aircraft.
In January, Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) moves to take over Air California. Following five months of hearings before the public utilities commission, PSA declares its merger attempt a failure and withdraws.
Westgate-California Corporation obtains controlling financial interest in June. Also during the month, an L-188C, first operated by Northwest Airlines, is dry-leased for charter work, principally on behalf of the San Diego Padres major league baseball team.
Customer bookings decline 4.3% to 799,702, but 237,403 freight ton-miles are flown, an increase of 8.2%.
Westgate-California refinances the carrier in 1971 and enplanements grow to 856,653.
The employee population in 1972 numbers 558. When Westgate-California moves to take over Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA), the
DOJ halts the effort by threatening to file an antitrust suit against the corporation.
Passenger boardings jump 20.9% to 1,083,000 and 550,000 freight ton-miles are flown, a remarkable 40.8% gain. As a result of this activity, the company records its first real profit, a trend that will continue for eight years.
Three new employees are hired in 1973. In order to allow more students to visit more sites, a special fare “Students Unlimited” service is inaugurated. New routes are opened from San Diego to San Jose and from Ontario to Sacramento. By December, the intrastate is number one in the latter market in terms of passengers boarded.
Customer bookings accelerate 19.9% to 1,307,000 while the number of freight ton-miles flown rise a remarkable 109.7% to 854,000. The net profit exceeds $2 million.
The workforce is 620 in 1974 and the fleet includes 7 B-737-293s and 1 L-188C. Frederick R. Davis, named vice president of marketing, immediately undertakes a new advertising campaign promoting the company as the “easiest” method of getting anywhere in the Golden State. The maintenance base is transferred across the bay from San Francisco to Oakland and new corporate headquarters are occupied at Orange County Airport.
Destinations now visited include San Diego, Palm Springs, Ontario, Monterey, Fresno, San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, and Sacramento. Late in the year, a B-737-293 is leased to Aloha Airlines.
Still an intrastate operation, Air California originates 1.4-million enplanements, an increase of 10.4%. Cargo traffic is up a minor 1% as
945,000 FTKs are flown.
Seventy-eight new employees are hired in 1975. In the face of competition from larger carriers, AC continues to make headway. Service to Lake Tahoe, undertaken exclusively by turboprops, is initiated in February. Frequencies to Monterey are also started during the first quarter. The fleet is increased by the addition of another B-737-293 and a Lockheed L-188A Electra, which is dedicated to the Lake Tahoe route.
Passenger bookings accelerate 9.8% to 1,584,000 and 1.37 million FTKs are flown, a rise of 45.9%.
The workforce is increased 12.3% in 1976 to 784. The Qantas Airways (Pty.), Ltd. L-188Cs Pacific Electra and Pacific Explorer are acquired in June and August, respectively, and frequencies to Lake Tahoe are increased. Computerized ticketing is achieved by the intrastate.
Customer bookings jump 22.8% to 1,844,894 while cargo is up by 20% to 818,064 FTKs.
Permanent state certification for Lake Tahoe is granted to President Robert W. Clifford’s carrier early in 1977. The fleet grows to include 10 B-737-293s, plus the 4 L-188A/Cs. Westgate-California acquires full ownership in October.
Enplanements for the year are 2,214,030.
The number of employees grows by 12.2% in 1978 to 1,150. Following passage of the Airline Deregulation Act, the intrastate extends operations to Reno; service to the Nevada community allows the carrier break into the ranks of the interstates.
Traffic increases 9% to 2,433,420 passengers carried, while cargo accelerates 11% to 4.2-million ton kilometers.
The workforce is boosted 26.1% in 1979 to 1,450. The fleet’s last three Electras are phased out and sold to Mandala Airlines, making it an all-jet airline, and orders are placed for four McDonnell Douglas DC-9-80s (MD-80s). CAB certification is received and interline agreements are completed with all major U. S. carriers. A scheduled interstate route is inaugurated to Las Vegas in November.
Passenger boardings rise 20.1% to 2,920,000. Revenues total $98.11 million and expenses are $96.85 million. The happy imbalance results in an operating profit of $1.26 million and net gain of $1.34 million.
The employee population is boosted 27.3% in 1980 to 2,100. Frequencies to Portland, Oregon, are started in March and passenger charters are started to Mexico. Joseph R. O’Gorman is named vice president of operations and the first two MD-80s are delivered during the fall. Following adoption of the CAB’s new classification scheme, Air California is re-rated as a national carrier, based upon its income.
Passenger traffic accelerates by 4.8% to 2,997,000. Revenues jump 61.89% to $158.83 million while costs climb only to $146.66 million. Consequently, a $2.13-million operating profit is realized, along with a $9.88-million net profit.
The number of workers is increased by 4.8% in 1981 to 2,200.
Flight 336, a B-737-293 with 5 crew and 105 passengers, is destroyed as the result of a bad landing at John Wayne Orange County Airport, Santa Ana, on February 17 following a flight from San Jose; there are no fatalities.
A bidding war with Air Florida for control of the carrier is resolved in May when William Lyon and George L. Argyros purchase the company from Westgate-California Corporation for $61.5 million. The new owners immediately change the name of their prize to AirCal and adopt a new corporate identification program.
AIR CALYPSO, LTD.: Barbados (1973-1977). The former Barbados Intercontinental Airways, Ltd., largest charter airline in the Caribbean, is reformed in 1973 and renamed. The workforce totals 51 and the fleet includes just 2 aircraft, both Convair CV-440 Metropolitans. Orders are placed for a pair of Soviet-built Yakalov Yak-40s. Charters continue to be offered to destinations in South America and a new series of one-day Inclusive-Tour Charters (ITCs) are opened to various Caribbean vacation resorts. In all, 22,000 passengers are flown.
In 1974, the company takes delivery of the two Yak-40 airliners and begins scheduled interisland service. Construction of a large maintenance facility is also begun. Operations cease in 1977.
AIR CALYPSO, S. A.: Aeroport du Raizel, Abymes, Guadeloupe, F-97139, French West Indies; Phone 590 89 27 91; Fax 590 93 73 14; Http://www. air-calypso. gp; Code KLY; Year Founded 1997. Air Calypso is established at Guadeloupe in the fall of 1997 to offer regularly scheduled passenger services from its Pointe-a-Pitre base to Martinique and St. Martin. Simon Hayot is named general manager; he recruits a staff of 84, acquires a pair of Shorts 360-300s, and launches flights on December 9.
Service, including various charters, is maintained into the new millennium.
AIR CAMBODGE, S. A.: Cambodia (1970-1975). Renamed Air Cambodge, S. A. after the fall of Prince Sihanouk and the monarchy in March 1970, the former Royal Air Cambodge, S. A. (1) now provides often-intermittent flights. The fleet at the end of the year includes several Douglas DC-3s, 1 DC-4, 1 DC-6, 1 DC-6B, 1 Convair CV-440, 1 Britten Norman BN-2 Islander, 1 Ilyushin Il-14 received as a gift from China the previous year, and most important of all, 1 Sud Est SE-210 Caravelle III jetliner.
Pride of the mixed-fleet, the Caravelle III is destroyed on the ground at Phnom Penh on January 22, 1971 during a guerrilla attack. It will be replaced with a similar unit, which is employed to restart services to Bangkok suspended a decade earlier. On October 2, 1972, a DC-3 is hit by mortar fire at Kampot (nine dead).
En route from Svay Rieng to Phnom Penh on May 19, 1973, a DC-3 with two crew and nine passengers is hit by ground fire shortly after departure from its point of origin and crashes 130 km. SE of its destination. There are no survivors.
A CV-440 is destroyed in a rocket attack on Phnom Penh Airport on June 10.
With a fleet of 12 aircraft, including 3 DC-4s, several DC-3s, 1 Convair CV-440, and 1 Sud-Est SE-210 Caravelle III, many of which are leased from China Airlines, Ltd. (CAL) and the Singapore-based Southeast Asia Air Transport (SEAAT), Air Cambodge, S. A. transports 134,850 passengers during the year, a high water total in annual enplanements. A significant amount of freight is also hauled, some of it by an ATL-98 Carvair acquired via an SEAAT lease from Ansett Airlines of Australia (Pty.), Ltd. during the spring.
Airline employment in 1974 is 350. The ravages of political uprisings devastate traffic. Aircraft flying from Phnom Penh are employed to visit such outlying communities as Kompong Chhnang, Battambang, or Khompong Thom. These flights allow fresh food to enter the isolated capital city while permitting rice, much of it arriving as foreign aid from America, to be distributed to the country’s outposts.
On June 24, the Carvair crashes while taking off from Battambang (19 dead). An extreme left-wing Communist faction, the Khmer Rouge, now enters the Second Indochina War, turning the fighting in Cambodia into a particularly vicious civil war.
En route from Phnom Penh to Hong Kong on November 28, a DC-4 freighter with three crew is shot down near An Loc, 100 km. N of Saigon; there are no survivors.
Passenger boardings decline 55% to 87,000. Still, with 9.98 million FTKs flown, freight traffic is up by a full 16%.
The problems of war and continuing Communist successes make operations considerably more difficult for the airline as 1975 begins. Khmer Rouge gunners begin an intensive shelling of the capital city on January 1, destroying several company DC-3s on the ground. On January 15, a CV-440, descending to Phnom Penh, is hit by a “friendly fire” 105-mm. howitzer shell; although the Metropolitan is able to land safely, a young girl is dead and 19 other passenger are injured.
Following the defeat and overthrow of the government by the Khmer Rouge in April, the carrier ceases operations altogether. Several of its aircraft are abandoned, including the wrecked Carvair.
AIR CAMELOT, LTD.: United Kingdom (1986-1987). Bristol-based Aviation West, Ltd. changes its name to Air Camelot, Ltd. late in 1986. Early in 1987, Managing Director G. S. Mimms changes his fleet to an all-Trislander operation as his Aerospatiale helicopters and Pilatus-Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander are traded in for three more Pilatus-Britten-Norman BN Ills.
Services continue to the previous destinations of Alderney, Bournemouth, Cherbourg, and Exeter; however, the summer season does not prove sufficiently lucrative to cover mounting expenses and as a result, the small third-level carrier is forced to stop trading late in the year.
AIR CAMEROON (SOCIETE ANONYME DES AVIONS MEYER ET COMPAGNIE, S. A.): Cameroon (1953-1971). Cameroon is established by Meyer & Company, S. A. at Douala in July 1953 as successor organization to the earlier Regie Air Cameroun, S. A. Douglas DC-3 cargo and charter operations are undertaken over the next two years within the former French Cameroons and to adjacent nations. Two Curtiss C-46 Commandos are acquired from Air Maroc, S. A. in 1955 and are employed on the company’s all-cargo routes to Yaounde and Fort Lamy, the latter point in Chad. Flights continue without significant fanfare during the remainder of the decade.
The fleet is increased during the first half of the 1960s in order to provide for the initiation of scheduled services; a C-46 arrives in 1960, a DC-4 in 1961, a DC-3 and a replacement DC-4 in 1964, and another DC-4 in 1965. Scheduled thrice-weekly DC-4 services link Douala with Yaounde and Fort Lamy, while the DC-3 handles flights to eight domestic points.
Three aircraft are also lost during this period. A C-46F is lost at Bangui, Cameroon, on April 27, 1961; no other details are available. The new DC-4 with four crew and one passenger fails its initial climb from Douala on June 13 of the same year and crashes; there are no survivors. A C-46A with three crew and one passenger is lost at Garoua on February 3, 1965; again, there are no survivors.
Following the 1965 loss in an accident of one Curtiss freighter, a second is withdrawn in 1966.
In 1967-1969, freight and passenger services continue and a Lockheed L-1049 is acquired. The Constellation and several DC-4s now undertake flights to the Central African Republic, Chad, the Congo Republic, Gabon, Spanish Guinea, and Zaire. The last C-46 is withdrawn in 1970.
When Cameroon withdraws from Air Afrique, S. A. and announces plans to establish its own Cameroon Airlines, S. A., the government, in March 1971, also dissolves Air Cameroon, in order to pass its routes and assets along to the new entity.
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