Nature Air was a regional airline headquartered in San José, Costa Rica that offered a scheduled service to a range of tourist destinations in Costa Rica, Panama and Nicaragua. It operated scheduled domestic and international services, as well as charter services with

turboprop A turboprop is a turbine engine that drives an aircraft propeller. A turboprop consists of an intake, reduction gearbox, compressor, combustor, turbine, and a propelling nozzle. Air enters the intake and is compressed by the compressor. ...

aircraft. Its hub, operations and maintenance base was

Juan Santamaría International Airport Juan Santamaría International Airport ( es, Aeropuerto Internacional Juan Santamaría) is the primary airport serving San José, the capital of Costa Rica. The airport is located in the city of Alajuela, 20 km (12 miles) west of downto ...

(SJO) having moved in 2013 from its original location at Aeropuerto Internacional Tobías Bolaños (SYQ). Claiming to be the world's first

carbon neutral Carbon neutrality is a state of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions. This can be achieved by balancing emissions of carbon dioxide with its removal (often through carbon offsetting) or by eliminating emissions from society (the transition to the "p ...

airline, it was one of the first airlines to publicize its sustainability credentials during a period of rapidly-expanding interest in eco-tourism. Nature Air received a number of awards, including a Global Vision Award for Sustainability from Travel + Leisure magazine in 2011. Its fleet consisted primarily of

DHC-6 Twin Otter The de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter is a Canadian STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) utility aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada, which produced the aircraft from 1965 to 1988; Viking Air purchased the type certificate, then restarted ...

and Cessna 208 Grand Caravan turboprop aircraft that were ideally suited to

short takeoff and landing A short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft is a conventional fixed-wing aircraft that has short runway requirements for takeoff and landing. Many STOL-designed aircraft also feature various arrangements for use on airstrips with harsh condition ...

characteristics of its destinations which often featured gravel or limited-paved landing strips. In 2010, Nature Air advertised 74 daily flights to 15 destinations in Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Panama. On 31 December 2017, all 10 passengers and two pilots aboard Nature Air Flight 9916 were killed in an aerodynamic stall shortly after takeoff from Punta Islita airstrip. Although the accident was ultimately determined by the

NTSB The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and inci ...

to have been caused by

pilot error Pilot error generally refers to an accident in which an action or decision made by the pilot was the cause or a contributing factor that led to the accident, but also includes the pilot's failure to make a correct decision or take proper a ...

, Nature Air stopped flying in January 2018 and its operating license was indefinitely suspended by the civil aviation authority of Costa Rica on May 2, 2018 leading to the closure of the airline.

History

The airline had its origins in 1989 with the founding of Travelair, a scheduled domestic air service in Costa Rica. In 2001, an international tourism consulting company called Naturegate, run by American entrepreneur Alex Khajavi, assumed control of the airline together with a group of Costa Rican staff and renamed it ''Nature Air'' with Khajavi as its CEO. Between 2001 and 2016, the airline grew under its new management team and brand, boosted by the increasing popularity of Costa Rica as an eco-tourism and adventure travel destination. The short-haul destinations served by Nature Air offered foreign visitors a way to reach the most popular tourist areas of Costa Rica more quickly than by road particularly in the case of destinations without road access. In around 2003, Nature Air introduced several

series 300 aircraft to its fleet configured for 19 passengers and 2 pilots. The aircraft featured the 'Vistaliner' upgrade which refers to an

FAA The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...

-approved modification to install larger windows to allow sightseeing by passengers. In 2004 Nature Air declared itself the World's first Carbon Neutral airline as a result of its participation in a Costa Rica government certified carbon offsetting program. The airline calculated the tons of carbon released from the fuel burned each year in flight and ground operations and donated a corresponding amount of money t
FONAFIFO
a rainforest financing division of the Environment Ministry. FONAFIFO operates a scheme to pay landowners to preserve important tracts of forest in the

Osa Peninsula The Osa Peninsula ( es, Península de Osa) is a peninsula located in southwestern Costa Rica, in the Puntarenas Province, with the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Golfo Dulce to the east. The peninsula was formed geologically by a faulting sy ...

, a rainforest peninsula located in southwestern Costa Rica. Nature Air around this time also publicized its use of biodiesel derived from waste cooking oil in its ground vehicles. In November 2011, Nature Air introduced two Cessna 208 Grand Caravan aircraft to its fleet for the first time, configured for 12 passengers and 2 pilots. By 2013, the airline was operating a mixed fleet of 3 Twin Otter and 2 Grand Caravan aircraft. In 2013, Nature Air moved its hub from Aeropuerto Internacional Tobías Bolaños (SYQ), a secondary airport, to the main international airport of Costa Rica

(SJO). In November 2015, Nature Air changed its fleet to four leased Let 410 Turbolet turboprop aircraft configured for 19 passengers and 2 pilots. The company simultaneously announced that new routes would be added with the larger aircraft. On 19 July 2017, the four Let 410 aircraft were grounded and subsequently repossessed amid rumors of financial difficulties at the company and a dispute between Nature Air and the lessor of the aircraft. In November 2017, Nature Air announced a new fleet of Twin Otter and Cessna Grand Caravan aircraft. At the same time, the company announced a series of new international routes. The airline established the NatureKids Foundation, a non-profit entity that provided English language and basic computer education to young children living in the Drake Bay district of the Osa Peninsula of Costa Rica. Drake Bay was a popular destination served by the airline.
DGAC
the civil aviation authority of Costa Rica, indefinitely suspended Nature Air's operating permit on May 2, 2018. The reason given by the authority was the abandonment by Nature air of its authorized flight segments and a lack of aircraft.

Destinations

Note: Nature Air's operating license was indefinitely suspended by the civil aviation authority of Costa Rica on May 2, 2018. Nature Air operated scheduled air passenger services to the following destinations: Costa Rica domestic routes *

Arenal, Costa Rica Nuevo Arenal is a town located in the Arenal district of Tilarán Canton in the Guanacaste Province, Costa Rica. It is located on the north shore of Lake Arenal. The former village of Arenal near the La Fortuna area was inundated in 1978 with ...

Drake Bay, Costa Rica Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * ...

* Golfito, Costa Rica *

Liberia, Costa Rica Liberia () is a district and the largest city in the Guanacaste Province of Costa Rica, located northwest of the national capital, San José, in the canton with the same name, of which it is the head city or capital. It is a major center for t ...

* Limon, Costa Rica * Nosara, Costa Rica *

Puerto Jiménez Puerto Jiménez is the thirteenth canton of the Puntarenas province of Costa Rica. It is located in the Osa Peninsula next to the Golfo Dulce and the Pacific Ocean, it is the main gateway to the Corcovado National Park. History As a distr ...

, Costa Rica * Punta Islita Airport, Costa Rica * Quepos, Costa Rica * San José, Costa Rica * Tamarindo, Costa Rica *

Tambor, Costa Rica Tambor is a town in Costa Rica. Geography Tambor is located in the portion of the Nicoya Peninsula that is located in the Province of Puntarenas. Within that province it is located in the cantón of the same name in the district of Cóbano. Ta ...

Tortuguero, Costa Rica Tortuguero is a village on the Northern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica in the Limón Province. The small village, which can be reached only by boat or airplane, is sustained almost entirely by eco-tourism. The population is estimated at aroun ...

International *

Bocas del Toro, Panama Bocas del Toro (), also known colloquially as Bocas Town, is the capital of the Panamanian province of Bocas del Toro and the district of Bocas del Toro. It is a town and a tourist resort located on the southern tip of Colón Island in the Boca ...

Managua, Nicaragua ) , settlement_type = Capital city , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Nicara ...

Fleet

During the period 2003 to 2015, Nature Air operated DHC-6-300 Twin Otter and Cessna 208 Grand Caravan turboprop aircraft with as many as 7 aircraft in total in its fleet. From November 2015 to July 2017 it operated four Let 410 Turbolets. From October 2017 until the cessation of operations in January 2018, the Nature Air fleet consisted of 2 Cessna 208B Grand Caravan aircraft:

Incidents and accidents

The following incidents and accidents have occurred on flights operated by Nature Air:

References

External links

Nature AirNature Air VacationsNature Kids
{{Airlines of Costa Rica Airlines established in 1990 Airlines disestablished in 2018 1990 establishments in Costa Rica 2018 disestablishments in Costa Rica Defunct airlines of Costa Rica