Pacific Coastal Airlines Ltd is a Canadian regional

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 ...

that operates scheduled, charter and cargo services to destinations in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

. Its head office is located in the South Terminal of

Vancouver International Airport Vancouver International Airport is an international airport located on Sea Island in Richmond, British Columbia, serving the city of Vancouver and the Lower Mainland region. It is located from Downtown Vancouver. It is the second busie ...

Richmond, British Columbia Richmond is a coastal city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. It occupies almost the entirety of Lulu Island (excluding Queensborough), between the two estuarine distributaries of the Fraser River. Encompassing the adja ...

. Its main base is Vancouver International Airport, with a hub at

Port Hardy Airport Port Hardy Airport is located southeast of Port Hardy, British Columbia, Canada. The airport is classified as an airport of entry by Nav Canada and is staffed by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). CBSA officers at this airport can handle ...

History

Grumman G-21 C-GDDJ Pacific Coast VCR 04

The original Pacific Coastal Airlines was established in 1956 as Cassidair Services, operating from its base at Cassidy Airport, now

Nanaimo Airport Nanaimo Airport is a privately owned and operated regional airport located south southeast of Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada. In 1999, the air terminal was named in honour of World War I ace Raymond Collishaw who was born in Nanaimo. The ...

, south of Nanaimo. In early 1980, the airline was acquired by

Jim Pattison James Allen Pattison (born October 1, 1928) is a Canadian business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. He is based in Vancouver, British Columbia, where he holds the position of chief executive officer, chairman and sole owner of the Jim Pa ...

Industries and absorbed into Airwest Airlines, also recently acquired by Pattison. 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. On November 1, 1980, Airwest and several other local airlines recently acquired by Pattison were merged into

Air BC Air BC was a Canadian regional airline headquartered in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada. It later became part of Air Canada Jazz. This regional airline primarily flew turboprop aircraft but also operated jets as well as an Air Canada Connecto ...

. The current Pacific Coastal Airlines was established in 1987 by the merger of Powell Air and the

Port Hardy Port Hardy is a district municipality in British Columbia, Canada located on the north-east end of Vancouver Island. Port Hardy has a population of 4,132 as of the last census (2016). It is the gateway to Cape Scott Provincial Park, the North ...

division of Air BC. It acquired the shares and assets of Wilderness Seaplanes on April 1, 1998. As of 2015, it has over 300 employees. A new airline division, Wilderness Seaplanes, which started service on May 5, 2016 was established to take over the Pacific Coastal Airlines Seaplane Division and is based at

and Bella Bella. On November 24, 2017,

WestJet WestJet Airlines Ltd. is a Canadian airline headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, near Calgary International Airport. It is the second-largest Canadian airline, behind Air Canada, operating an average of 777 flights and carrying more than 66,130 ...

and Pacific Coastal announced a code sharing agreement to operate

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 ...

aircraft under the

WestJet Link WestJet Link is a brand name under which Pacific Coastal Airlines operates feeder flights for WestJet. Service was originally planned to commence March 7, 2018, but was delayed until June 21, 2018. The brand was created to primarily connect ...

brand commencing in June 2018. These aircraft are based at the WestJet hub at

Calgary International Airport Calgary International Airport , branded as YYC Calgary International Airport, is an international airport that serves the city of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It is located approximately northeast of downtown and covers an area of 20.82 squa ...

and serve destinations such as Lethbridge and

Lloydminster Lloydminster is a city in Canada which has the unusual geographic distinction of straddling the provincial border between Alberta and Saskatchewan. The city is incorporated by both provinces as a single city with a single municipal administrati ...

with aircraft also being based at

with service to Cranbrook, Kamloops, Nanaimo and Comox.

Destinations in British Columbia

Pacific Coastal Airlines operates services to the following destinations in British Columbia:Pacific Coastal Airlines
Destinations
Retrieved September 2019 * Anahim Lake ( Anahim Lake Airport) * Bella Bella (

Bella Bella (Campbell Island) Airport Bella Bella (Campbell Island) Airport is located northwest of Bella Bella on Campbell Island. British Columbia, Canada. The airport is connected by paved road to the village of Bella Bella, and forms a hub of sorts for the Central Coast, with ...

) * Bella Coola (

Bella Coola Airport Bella Coola Airport is located northeast of Bella Coola, British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse g ...

) * Campbell River ( Campbell River Airport) * Comox ( Comox Airport) * Cranbrook (

Cranbrook/Canadian Rockies International Airport Cranbrook/Canadian Rockies International Airport is an international airport located north of Cranbrook and south-east of Kimberley, British Columbia, in the Canadian Rockies. It is owned by the City of Cranbrook and operated by Elevate ...

) * Kamloops (

Kamloops Airport Kamloops Airport , also known as Fulton Field or John "Moose" Fulton Airfield, is a regional airport located west northwest of Kamloops, British Columbia, a city in the Thompson region of Canada. It is owned by the Kamloops Airport Authority ...

) * Kelowna (

Kelowna International Airport Kelowna International Airport is a Canadian airport located approximately 10 minutes or northeast of Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada, on Highway 97. The single runway airport operates scheduled air service to Vancouver, Victoria, Calgary, E ...

) *

Masset Masset , formerly ''Massett'', is a village in Haida Gwaii in British Columbia, Canada. It is located on Masset Sound on the northern coast of Graham Island, the largest island in the archipelago, and is approximately west of mainland British Col ...

(

Masset Airport Masset Airport is located northeast of Masset, British Columbia, Canada. In 2008 the airport began services using a 737 jet. History The airport was constructed in July 1943 as RCAF Station Masset. It was built by the RCAF's No. 9 Constructio ...

) *

Penticton Penticton ( ) is a city in the Okanagan Valley of the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada, situated between Okanagan and Skaha lakes. In the 2016 Canadian Census, its population was 33,761, while its census agglomeration The ce ...

( Penticton Airport) *

(

) * Powell River ( Powell River Airport) * Prince George (

Prince George Airport Prince George Airport (abbreviated in initials as PGA) is an airport that serves Prince George, British Columbia, Canada, and the surrounding area. It is located just within the southern boundary of the city, southeast, and is run by the Princ ...

) *

Tofino Tofino ( ) is a town of approximately 2,516 residents on the west coast of Vancouver Island in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The District of Tofino is located at the western terminus of Highway 4 on the tip of the Esowista Peninsu ...

(

Tofino/Long Beach Airport Tofino/Long Beach Airport is a non-towered airport that is located within the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. Immediately adjacent to Long Beach, it is southeast of Tofino, British Columbia, Canada. It is both a general aviation and commerc ...

) *

Trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. ...

(

Trail Airport Trail Airport is located southeast of Trail, British Columbia, Canada and is situated in a valley beside the Columbia River. The airport serves both Trail and nearby Nelson and Castlegar. The airport consists of one asphalt runway and provid ...

) *

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

(

) ''hub'' *

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

(

Victoria International Airport Victoria International Airport serves Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It is north northwest of Victoria on the Saanich Peninsula, with the bulk of the airport (including the passenger terminal) in North Saanich, and a small portion of the ...

) * Williams Lake ( Williams Lake Airport)

Fleet

As of October 2020, Pacific Coastal Airlines had twenty-one aircraft registered with

Transport Canada Transport Canada (french: Transports Canada) is the department within the Government of Canada responsible for developing regulations, policies and services of road, rail, marine and air transportation in Canada. It is part of the Transporta ...

, plus six registered to Wilderness Seaplanes:,

Incidents and accidents

*On August 3, 2008, a

Grumman G-21 Goose The Grumman G-21 Goose is an amphibious flying boat designed by Grumman to serve as an eight-seat "commuter" aircraft for businessmen in the Long Island area. The Goose was Grumman's first monoplane to fly, its first twin-engined aircraft, a ...

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.CBC
Investigators head to site of B.C. plane crash that killed 5
3 August 2008 *On November 16, 2008, a Grumman G-21 Goose aircraft with seven passengers and one pilot crashed on South Thormanby Island off British Columbia's Sunshine Coast, during a flight from Vancouver International Airport to Toba Inlet, BC. The plane was flown into a hillside and exploded into a mass of burning wreckage according to the lone survivor, who was rescued by the

Canadian Coast Guard The Canadian Coast Guard (CCG; french: links=no, Garde côtière canadienne, GCC) is the coast guard of Canada. Formed in 1962, the coast guard is tasked with marine search and rescue (SAR), communication, navigation, and transportation issues ...

.CBC
7 Dead In Plane Crash Off B.C. Coast
16 November 2008CTV
A look inside the doomed B.C. plane
17 November 2008

References

External links

* {{Airlines of Canada Airlines established in 1956 Airlines established in 1987 Canadian companies established in 1956 Canadian companies established in 1987 Regional airlines of British Columbia Air Transport Association of Canada Companies based in Richmond, British Columbia Seaplane operators 1956 establishments in British Columbia 1987 establishments in British Columbia