Pacific Coastal Airlines
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| Founded | 1987 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hubs |
Vancouver International Airport Port Hardy Airport | |||
| Fleet size | 25[1] | |||
| Destinations | 15 | |||
| Headquarters |
Vancouver International Airport Richmond, British Columbia | |||
| Key people | Smith family | |||
| Website | http://www.pacificcoastal.com | |||
Pacific Coastal Airlines Ltd is a Canadian airline. It operates scheduled, charter and cargo services to destinations in British Columbia. Its head office is located in the South Terminal of Vancouver International Airport in Richmond, British Columbia.[2] Its main base is Vancouver International Airport, with a hub at Port Hardy Airport.
History
The original Pacific Coastal Airlines was established in the 1960s, operating from its base at Cassidy Airport near Nanaimo.[3] In early 1980, the airline was acquired by Jim Pattison Industries and absorbed into Airwest Airlines, also recently acquired by Pattison.[4] At the time of the acquisition, Pacific Coastal was operating on the Nanaimo-Vancouver, Victoria-Nanaimo-Comox-Campbell River-Port Hardy, and Nanaimo-Qualicum-Port Alberni routes.[5] On November 1, 1980, Airwest and several other local airlines recently acquired by Pattison were merged into Air BC.[6]
The current Pacific Coastal Airlines was established in 1987 by the merger of Powell Air and the Port Hardy division of Air BC.[7] It acquired the shares and assets of Wilderness Airlines on 1 April 1998. It has 300 employees (at March 2007).[8]
Destinations
Pacific Coastal Airlines operates services to the following destinations in British Columbia:[9]
- Anahim Lake
- Bella Bella
- Bella Coola
- Campbell River
- Comox
- Cranbrook
- Kelowna
- Klemtu
- Masset
- Port Hardy
- Powell River
- Trail
- Vancouver
- Victoria
- Williams Lake
Former destinations
Incidents and accidents
- On November 28, 2007 a Short 360 aircraft landing in Victoria International Airport reported that the cockpit landing gear light was not indicating that the gear had fully deployed. The aircraft returned and landed at Vancouver International Airport without incident.[10]
- On August 3, 2008, a Grumman Goose aircraft with seven passengers and crew crashed during a flight from Port Hardy to Chamiss Bay. The aircraft was completely destroyed by a fire. There were only two survivors.[11]
- On November 16, 2008 a Grumman Goose aircraft with 8 passengers and crew crashed during a flight from Vancouver International Airport to Toba Inlet, BC. The plane exploded into a mass of burning wreckage according to the lone survivor. This person was rescued up by the Coast Guard on South Thormanby Island off British Columbia's Sunshine Coast.[12][13][14][15]
Fleet
As of December 2013, the Pacific Coastal Airlines fleet consisted of 25 aircraft:[1][16]
| Aircraft | Count | Variants | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saab 340 | 6 | 340A | 30 passengers, based in Vancouver |
| Beechcraft 1900 | 7 | 1900C | 19 passengers, based in Vancouver |
| Beechcraft Super King Air | 1 | 200 | 11 passengers, based in Vancouver |
| de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter | 1 | DHC-3T Turbo Otter | 10-14 passengers, based in Port Hardy |
| de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver | 4 | Beaver I | 5-6 passengers, based in Port Hardy |
| Short 360 | 2 | 300 | stored out of service |
| Grumman Goose | 4 | G-21A | stored out of service |
| Total | 25 |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Canadian Civil Aircraft Register Retrieved 1 December 2013
- ↑ "Contact Us." Pacific Coastal Airlines. Retrieved on December 4, 2011. "Pacific Coastal Airlines Head Office Vancouver International Airport - South Terminal 4440 Cowley Crescent Unit 204 Richmond BC V7B 1B8"
- ↑ FLIGHT International. March 20, 1976, p.703.
- ↑ Ladysmith-Chemainus Chronicle (Ladysmith, British Columbia). February 6, 1980, p.17
- ↑ North Island Gazette (Port Hardy, British Columbia). February 20, 1980, p.15
- ↑ FLIGHT International. November 7, 1981, p.1388.
- ↑ Schofield, Jack. A Pilot's Journey Log: Daryl Smith and Pacific Coastal Airlines. Mayne Island, BC: CoastDog Press, 2010.
- ↑ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 2007-04-10. p. 60.
- ↑ Pacific Coastal Airlines: Route map Retrieved on 15 January 2010
- ↑ Victoria Times Colonist: Flight Aborts Landing Over Gear Scare 29 November 2007
- ↑ The Globe And Mail: 5 Dead In B.C. Plane Crash 3 August 2008
- ↑ CBC: 7 Dead In Plane Crash Off B.C. Coast 16 November 2008
- ↑ Vancouver Sun: Thick fog may be to blame for B.C. crash 17 November 2008
- ↑ Daily Commercial News: Victims of Thormanby Island plane crash identified 19 November 2008
- ↑ CTV: A look inside the doomed B.C. plane 17 November 2008
- ↑ Pacific Coastal Airlines: Fleet Retrieved on 15 January 2010
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pacific Coastal Airlines. |
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