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| Founded | 1971 | |||
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| Hubs | Prince George | |||
| Secondary hubs | Vancouver, Smithers | |||
| Alliance | Central Mountain Air | |||
| Fleet size | 10 | |||
| Destinations | ||||
| Parent company | Northern Thunderbird Air Limited | |||
| Headquarters | Prince George, British Columbia, Canada | |||
| Website | http://www.ntair.ca/ | |||
NT Air or Northern Thunderbird Air Inc. is a Canadian charter airline with a head office at Prince George, British Columbia and bases in Vancouver and Smithers.
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NT Air was formed in 1971 with the amalgamation of two of northern British Columbia's Airlines - Northern Mountain and Thunderbird.
Northern Mountain began operations at Fort St. James in 1959 and by 1971 was one of the larger Airlines in British Columbia. With a mixed fleet of Cessnas, de Havilland Beavers, Beechcraft Model 18s, Grumman Goose, and helicopters; Northern Mountain had spread its wings over most of the North including Alberta, Yukon and Northwest Territories. By spinning off its airplane division to merge with Thunderbird in 1971, Northern Mountain was able to concentrate its efforts on helicopters only and did so through the year 2000.
Thunderbird started in the early sixties when it acquired the Bush Operations of Pacific Western Airlines in Prince George. From its base at Tabor Lake, Thunderbird operated Cessnas, Beavers and Otters on floats and skis servicing the new town of Mackenzie and the northern villages and logging camps of Williston Lake. In the early seventies, Thunderbird secured a subcontract from Pacific Western Airlines to service the smaller communities of B.C. to feed that traffic into PWA's jet aircraft at Prince George, Kamloops and Kelowna. The need for a hangar on the Prince George Airport to fulfill this contract was the catalyst for the merger talks that resulted in the formation of Northern Thunderbird Air in 1971.
In the 35 years since its inception NT Air has ebbed and flowed with the times. The early eighties saw the company with 18 aircraft, 3 bases, 21 scheduled points and numerous employees while the late nineties saw the company with 1 aircraft, 1 base, 2 scheduled points and 5 employees. In the ever changing world of aviation, Northern Thunderbird Air has proven its ability to adapt to new challenges whether they are economical, technical or a customer's unique requirement.
NT Air has grown to 10 aircraft, 3 bases, 7 scheduled points and 50 employees. NT Air is strategically positioned throughout British Columbia and offers a wide variety of aircraft services.
The Northern Thunderbird Air fleet includes the following aircraft (as of November 2010):[1][2]
| Aircraft | Count | Variants | Notes | Serial Numbers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beechcraft 1900 | 3 | 1900C | 19 passengers | UC-61, UC94, UC120 |
| Beechcraft Super King Air | 1 | 350 | Air Ambulance | FL-502 |
| Beechcraft King Air | 2 | 100 | 9 passengers | B 36, B-210 |
| Cessna Grand Caravan | 1 | 208B | 9 passengers | 208B0541 |
The Northern Thunderbird website also lists the Beechcraft 1900D as part of the company's fleet, but the company has no 1900D's registered with Transport Canada, and these planes are likely registered with sister company Central Mountain Air.
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