Pionair Australia is a passenger and cargo airline based at
Bankstown Airport
Bankstown Airport is an airport and business park located in the City of Canterbury-Bankstown, approximately from the Sydney Central Business District (CBD), Australia and west of Sydney Airport. It is situated on of land and has three pa ...
in
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
.
On 3 April 2023, Irish based global aviation services company,
ASL Aviation Holdings acquired Pionair, which will be rebranded to ASL Airlines Australia.
History
Pionair Australia specialises in both dangerous and non-dangerous cargo transport, FIFO operations and charter transport.
The airline holds an IAOC permit, allowing the airline to operate and carry passengers and cargo worldwide. From 2016 to early 2020, Pionair Australia operated
Virgin Australia
Virgin Australia, the trading name of Virgin Australia Airlines Pty Ltd, is an Australian-based airline. It is the largest airline by fleet size to use the Virgin Group, Virgin brand. It commenced services on 31 August 2000 as ''Virgin Blue ...
Cargo flights under contract via
TNT
Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reagen ...
. Since March 2020 the contract has moved to Qantas and Pionair is operating up to 3 Bae146 freighters on the same schedule for Qantas Cargo and TNT.
On 3 April 2023, ASL Aviation Holdings acquired Australian airline Pionair for an undisclosed amount. The airline will eventually be re-branded to ASL Airlines Australia.
Fleet
The Pionair Australia fleet consists of the following aircraft:
Fleet development
The first of two Embraer E190-E2 were delivered in January 2020 for operations on behalf of
Air Kiribati
Air Kiribati (pronounced Air Kiri'bas) is the flag carrier of the Republic of Kiribati and operates scheduled passenger services to 20 atolls spread over an area of 3.5m sq km.
It is headquartered at Bonriki International Airport on the island o ...
, scheduled to start in mid-2020 (now delayed due to
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
). These aircraft are brand new. One used Embraer E190-E1 (built in 2011) had been purchased by Pionair and was delivered in November 2020 for company growth and expansion, however this was later sold to
Alliance Airlines
Alliance Airlines Pty Limited based in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia with operational bases in Adelaide, Cairns, Melbourne, Perth, Townsville, Darwin and Rockhampton. Alliance Airlines owns and operates a fleet of Fokker and Embraer aircra ...
to allow the company to focus on the E190-E2. As of March 2024, Pionair also operates seven
British Aerospace BAe146 aircraft, five are freighters and the remaining two are passenger aircraft.
In February 2022, it was announced that Pionair Australia had acquired two surplus
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
British Aerospace BAe 146 transports, these will not join the Pionair fleet and will be parted out to support the operational fleet.
The airline previously operated two
Convair 580s within Australia. Both of the airline's Convair 580s are preserved at the Parkes HARS Museum.
As part of its acquisition by ASL Aviation Holdings, the airline will eventually be allocated with its first
Boeing 737-800BCF aircraft.
See also
*
List of airlines of Australia
The airline industry in Australia began in the early 1920s with Western Australian Airways on the west coast, and Australian Aircraft and Engineering Company on the east coast. In 1921, Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services (QANTAS) ...
References
External links
*
{{Airlines of Australia
Cargo airlines of Australia
Companies based in Sydney