Air National was an

airline An airline is a company that provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for codeshare agreements, in wh ...

based in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. It operated domestic and international charter services and scheduled passenger services for

Air New Zealand Link Air New Zealand Link was a brand name under which Air New Zealand's subsidiary regional airlines operated flights. They primarily connected regional centres with New Zealand's three main international airports, Auckland Airport, Wellington Intern ...

. Its main bases were

Auckland International Airport Auckland Airport is the largest and busiest airport in New Zealand, with over 21 million passengers in the year ended March 2019. The airport is located near Māngere, a residential suburb, and Airport Oaks, a service hub suburb south of th ...

History

Air National has re-branded some of its corporate jet services under the brand of JetPlus and FBO operations under SkyCare International. In January 2011, Air National's operator's certificate was suspended by the

New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority The Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand (CAA; Māori: ''Te Mana Rererangi Tūmatanui o Aotearoa'') is the government agency tasked with establishing civil aviation safety and security standards in New Zealand. The CAA also monitors adherence ...

(CAA) over alleged training records irregularities . Air National appealed the decision in the High Court and the suspension was quashed pending a full investigation. The CAA appealed the high Court decision to the Court of Appeal and the lower court ruling was quashed in turn. As of January 2012, Air National no longer operates. All aircraft are now in use by other charter operators Vincent Aviation and

Airwork Airwork is an aviation business based in Auckland, New Zealand. The Airwork Group is New Zealand's largest general aviation company. It focuses on fixed wing and helicopter maintenance, leasing, and operations working with private and public e ...

and the company no longer holds an Air Operator's Certificate. In October 2014, Air National's BAe146-200 was returned from Vincent Aviation.

Destinations

Air National operated scheduled services for Air New Zealand Link to the following destinations: *Christchurch -

Hokitika Hokitika is a town in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island, south of Greymouth, and close to the mouth of the Hokitika River. It is the seat and largest town in the Westland District. The town's estimated population is as of ...

*Christchurch - Blenheim *Blenheim-Wellington Air National also provided ''ad hoc'' airline support for Eagle Air and Air Nelson throughout their respective networks.

Fleet

Air National (ZK-KFB) Gulfstream IV-SP at Sydney Airport

The Air National fleet consisted of the following aircraft (at November 2010): *4 BAe Jetstream 32EP *1 IAI Westwind II *1

Gulfstream G200 The Gulfstream G200, formerly known as the IAI Galaxy, is a twin-engine business jet. It was designed originally by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and was produced by IAI for Gulfstream Aerospace from 1999 through 2011. Design and development ...

*1 Gulfstream G-IV SP *1 Cessna Citation I *1

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 ...

Previously operated

The airline also operated: *1 Bombardier Dash 8 Q200 *1 BAe Jetstream 32EP

Incidents

* On 8 February 2008, the pilots of

Eagle Airways Flight 2279 Air New Zealand Flight 2279 (also known as Eagle Airways Flight 2279) was a commuter flight operated by Air National on behalf of Eagle Airways, a regional carrier division of Air New Zealand. The flight was the subject of an unsuccessful hijac ...

(operated by Air National) from Blenheim to

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

were attacked and stabbed by a female passenger who claimed to have two bombs on board. The woman was subdued and the aircraft made a safe landing.

References

External links

Official website
{{Airlines of New Zealand Defunct airlines of New Zealand Airlines established in 1989