Air Panama is a regional airline based at Albrook "Marcos A. Gelabert" International Airport in

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

, and is currently the second-largest air carrier in the country, surpassed only by

Copa Airlines Compañía Panameña de Aviación, S.A., (commonly referred to as Copa and branded simply as "Copa Airlines") is the flag carrier of Panama. It is headquartered in Panama City, Panama, with its main hub at Tocumen International Airport. Copa i ...

. The carrier offers both scheduled and charter passenger flights to more than 31 destinations from its hub at Albrook International Airport.

History

Inauguration

The airline was founded in 1980 as PARSA, though certain services were operated as Turismo Aéreo. At the time of its startup, Panama had been ruled by a military dictatorship government since 1968, but together with Aeroperlas, the company became one of the biggest and most prominent airlines in the country. On 20 December 1989, in the wake of the

United States invasion of Panama The United States invasion of Panama, codenamed Operation Just Cause, lasted over a month between mid-December 1989 and late January 1990. It occurred during the administration of President George H. W. Bush and ten years after the Torrijos� ...

, two Britten-Norman Islander aircraft owned by PARSA were damaged beyond repair in fighting action. Despite this, the airline expanded rapidly to other destinations around Panama and Costa Rica during the 1990s, and began to acquire newer aircraft. On New Year's Eve 1997, PARSA suffered its first fatal accident when a Britten-Norman Islander crashed into the jungle 6.5 kilometres short of Rio Sidra Airport, Darien, killing all on board. In January 1999, the airline moved its headquarters to the new Albrook - Marcos A. Gelabert International Airport, when the old airport located at Paitilla was shut down after 70 years of operation. In 2005, the Air Panama trademark rights were acquired. The name had been unused since the demise of

Air Panamá Internacional Air Panamá Internacional (also known as simply just ''Air Panama'') was a state owned airline from Panama that served as the flag carrier of the country between 1968 and 1989. From its hub at Tocumen International Airport in Panama City, schedu ...

in January 1990, and PARSA formally adopted the new name that year.

Expansion years

After the purchase of the trademark rights in 2005, Chairman George Novey unveiled on a Fokker F-27 aircraft PARSA's new identity Air Panama. Shortly afterward, the airline introduced new scheduled services to other regional destinations around Panama and began to acquire turboprop aircraft such as the

Saab 340 The Saab 340 is a Swedish twin-engine turboprop aircraft designed and initially produced by Saab AB and Fairchild Aircraft. It is designed to seat 30-36 passengers and, as of July 2018, there were 240 operational aircraft used by 34 different o ...

and the Bombardier Dash 8-300 series, replacing the aging

British Aerospace Jetstream 31 The British Aerospace Jetstream is a small twin-turboprop airliner, with a pressurised fuselage, developed as the ''Jetstream 31'' from the earlier Handley Page Jetstream. A larger version of the Jetstream was also manufactured, the British ...

and

Fokker F27 Friendship The Fokker F27 Friendship is a turboprop airliner developed and manufactured by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker. It is the most numerous post-war aircraft manufactured in the Netherlands; the F27 was also one of the most successful Eur ...

fleet. In 2009, Air Panama reached a historic milestone when it transported its one millionth passenger. That same year, the airline entered the jet age when it acquired two Fokker 70s. In 2011, Air Panama bought two used Fokker 50s previously owned by Scandinavian Airlines System and transported around 172,154 people. In January 2012, Air Panama announced a

codeshare agreement A codeshare agreement, also known simply as codeshare, is a business arrangement, common in the aviation industry, in which two or more airlines publish and market the same flight under their own airline designator and flight number (the "airli ...

with

, Panama's flag carrier and largest airline, linking all tourist destinations within Panama with several in Latin America. The agreement became effective five months later when the company started charter regional flights to Isla Colon from Tocumen International Airport. As of 2016, this codeshare is no longer active. Air_Panama_Fokker_100_-_6

On 29 February 2012, domestic competitor Aeroperlas Regional ceased operations due to financial troubles, leaving Air Panama as the sole regional carrier in the country. The same month, the airline expressed an interest in initiating a non-stop international route from Panama to the Cayman Islands, using jet-powered aircraft. In anticipation for these flights, Air Panama ordered two

Fokker 100 The Fokker 100 is a regional jet produced by Fokker in the Netherlands. The Fokker 100 is based on the Fokker F28 with a fuselage stretched by to seat up to 109 passengers, up from 85. It is powered by two newer Rolls-Royce Tay turbofans, ...

aircraft, receiving the first one in June and the second two months later. As of February 2015, the planned service to Cayman Islands is on standstill. Almost six months after Aeroperlas' bankruptcy, Air Panama assumed all of its domestic routes. In November 2012, Air Panama launched an updated version of its website (www.airpanama.com), with a new operational system that allowed travelers to purchase tickets in real time, and to see flight schedules and status. It was the first time the airline extensively overhauled its website since its official rebranding in 2006. In 2013, Air Panama sold the two Fokker 70s in favour of more spacious Fokker 100s. Between August and November of the same year, the airline acquired two Boeing 737-300s as part of a strategic expansion plan into the international market, which started with the launch of scheduled commercial services to Medellín, Colombia, in June 2014. In 2015, the airline added three more Fokker 100 aircraft. In July 2015 the airline began daily non-stop flights from Panama to San José, Costa Rica. Services to Costa Rica from David, Chiriqui are still maintained. On December 1, of the same year, Air Panama started services to Armenia, its second destination in Colombia.

Destinations

Air Panama offers scheduled regional flights to 28 destinations inside Panama, and one in Costa Rica.. Further destinations are served on a chartered on-demand basis during the summer travelling season.

Fleet

Current fleet

The Air Panama fleet consists of the following aircraft (as of November 2020):

Former fleet

Air Panama previously operated the following aircraft: *

BAe 146-200 The British Aerospace 146 (also BAe 146) is a short-haul and regional airliner that was manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2001. Manufacture by Avro Internationa ...

BAe Jetstream 32 The British Aerospace Jetstream is a small twin-turboprop airliner, with a pressurised fuselage, developed as the ''Jetstream 31'' from the earlier Handley Page Jetstream. A larger version of the Jetstream was also manufactured, the Britis ...

* Boeing 737-300BDQC *

Boeing 737-300QC The Boeing 737 Classic is a series of narrow-body airliners produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes, the second generation of the Boeing 737 series of aircraft. Development began in 1979 and the first variant, the 737-300, first flew in Februa ...

Bombardier Dash 8 Q300 The De Havilland Canada DHC-8, commonly known as the Dash 8, is a series of turboprop-powered regional airliners, introduced by de Havilland Canada (DHC) in 1984. DHC was later bought by Boeing in 1988, then by Bombardier Aerospace, Bombard ...

* Britten-Norman Islander * CASA C-212 Aviocar *

Cessna 182 Skylane The Cessna 182 Skylane is an American four-seat, single-engined light airplane built by Cessna of Wichita, Kansas. It has the option of adding two child seats in the baggage area. Introduced in 1956, the 182 has been produced in a ...

* Cessna 206 * de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter *

* Fokker 70 *

Saab 340B The Saab 340 is a Swedish twin-engine turboprop aircraft designed and initially produced by Saab AB and Fairchild Aircraft. It is designed to seat 30-36 passengers and, as of July 2018, there were 240 operational aircraft used by 34 different op ...

Accidents and incidents

During its history, Air Panama (PARSA) had the following incidents and accidents:

References

External links

* {{Airlines of Panama Airlines of Panama Airlines established in 1980 Panamanian brands 1980 establishments in Panama Companies based in Panama City