The Allplane Podcast #12 - Air Chathams, the vintage airline fleet at the edge of the World

Father and son team, the Duanes are the founders of Air Chathams

Air Chathams is not your typical airline.

This family-owned airline is the only operator in the world that would give you the chance to fly a regular flight on a 1950s, Convair 580 aircraft. And, as it if this was not enough, you can round-up the experience by visiting one of the most remote inhabited outposts in the planet: the Chatham Islands, a tiny archipelago (pop.400) several hundred miles off the east coast of New Zealand.

The Convair 580, a rare 1950s airliner that Air Chathams still operates on regular services….but not for long!

Think that New Zealand is at the edge of the World? You can actually go a bit further and reach the Chatham Islands, some 400 miles off the east coast of New Zealand, where the South Pacific meets the Antarctic Ocean

But Air Chathams has also an eclectic fleet that combines vintage aircraft, such as the Convairs and a WW2-era DC-3 that is used on charter flights, with a modern fleet of turboprops for different sorts of air services in and around New Zealand (they also fly to another fascinating remote outpost Norfolk Island!).

I called Duane Emeny, the current Chief Operating Officer at Air Chathams and second-generation of the founding family, all the way across 12 time zones in order to talk about this rather unique airline business, about the Chatham Islands and, more generally, about what it takes to run an airline that operates 19140s and 1950s aircraft.

Check it out!

Download this episode on:

Apple Podcasts / iTunes, Spotify, Google Podcasts or Stitcher

Things we talk about in this episode:

The fascinating story of Air Chathams
Where are the Chatham Islands and how are they like
Operating a vintage airliner: the Convair 580 and the DC-3
Air Chathams modern fleet: ATR-72, Saab 340, Fairchild Metroline
Air Chathams airline venture in the Kingdom of Tonga
Air Chathams flights within New Zealand and to Norfolk Island
How to book a flight on a Convair 580
The future of the Convair vintage fleet

Resources

Air Chathams website, in case you wish to book your Convair 580 flight!

My article on CNN about vintage airliners you can still fly, featuring Air Chathams’ Convair 580

Podcast Music: Five Armies by Kevin MacLeod
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3762-five-armies
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Interview Transcript

(please note that, although we strive to make it as close as possible to the original recording, the transcript may not be 100% accurate)

Hello and welcome to the Allplane Podcast, where, every week, we explore different aspects of the aviation industry in the company of some of its most experienced, knowledgeable professionals

In order to record this episode I had to wake up way earlier than usual, since there was a twelve hour time difference with the time zone where today’s guest is based, but I think it was well worth it...

Because, today on the show, we are joined by the manager of a very, very unique airline…

Air Chathams is a unique airline, both because of the composition of its fleet and its network

It is the only airline left in the world to operate a fleet of 1950s Convair 580 aircraft on regular commercial services.

It is also unique because they act as a lifeline and link to the rest of the world, for one of the most remote and isolated communities anywhere in this planet, the Chathams Islands, a tiny archipelago several hundred miles off the coast of New Zealand, located right in the middle of the so called “roaring forties” where the South Pacific and Antarctic Ocean meet. But also, because Air Chathams is a family affair that has grown organically over the last three decades to cover a network of very interesting destinations in and around New Zealand

Duane Emeny, our guest today, is the second generation at the helm of Air Chathams.

We are going to talk about what it takes to build an airline in this part of the world, the story of its vintage fleet, which includes also a WW2-era DC-3, as well as the modern part of its fleet and the plans he holds for the future of this airline and, more generally, about the uniqueness of the destinations they fly to.

Without further ado, let me welcome Duane to the podcast!

-Hello, Duane! how are you?

-Very good. How are you?

-Very good. So you are joining us today from literally the other side of the world, from Auckland, New Zealand

-Auckland, New Zealand.

-Although you are additionally a while your company is originally based in an archipelago, it's even more remote than New Zealand and it's called the Chatham Islands and it’s 400 miles east of New Zealand's East Coast, right?

-That is correct. It's a very isolated island population 400 nautical miles off the east coast of mainland New Zealand place called the Chatham Islands and yeah, it's an island population that really has a very strong fishing and agricultural industry, so to predominantly export export products into mainland New Zealand and internationally. So it's a small island A small population that it actually has a very large GDP per capita based on the products that are harvested.

-And I guess your airline plays a role in this export activity, because you basically and that's the reason we have you here is that you operate the local airline in the islands. And that's an airline that caught my eye. A couple of years ago when I was writing an article for CNN about vintage airliners that are still operating. And I came across this airline called air chasms that you're still operating one of the few if not the only one. The only Convair 580 that is still operational, right. So that's a 1950s aircraft. You also have a DC-3 and then you have some other more modern aircraft like an ATR and I think some sign up turboprops as well. So can you please tell us a little bit about this airline and how it started and the type of very original unique fleet that you have.

-Yeah, absolutely no problem. So, yeah, it is. It is a very unique year line that we operate. The airline started in 1984 is my father Craig that started the company. He was actually living on the Chatham Islands. He was working for another very small airline at the time, and providing a service between the islands there's a main island, which is called Chatham, and then there's another small island called Pitt Island, and there are fishing communities on both of those islands. So his job at the time was making sure that the islands were connected and could go backwards and forwards using a Cessna 185, a very small airplane. And he would land on all sorts of grassy strips on both islands and transport cargo and yeah, as I say, people and everything you can imagine actually. So, you know, he spent a lot of time on the Chatham Islands and he got to know the people and he could see that there were some real issues getting produce into the mainland of New Zealand. The service at the time was very unreliable. It was subsidized by the government, but it was quite infrequent. And as I say, the reliability was affected for a number of reasons...weather...it was difficult getting to the Chatham Islands, because of its remoteness. And also, ultimately, because it was a subsidized service. the priorities of the airline providing that service was really elsewhere in their own network.

-So can I stop you here for a second, because I wanted to ask you about the islands as I checked a little bit about how they are. Do you have about 600 people living there? Something like that?

-Yeah, that's right. So the resident population currently is 600.

-It’s 6-0-0, not 600,000...

-Yeah. So that's to give an idea to our audience of how such a, this is such a, it's not just remote, but it's also kind of a small place. So it's, it's just like a village in many ways, right?

-Absolutely, it's a community where everyone knows everyone. You know, it's made up of a number of large family groups really, and and you know, those those family groups held back to the first settlers of the island in the US Like 100 sites, it is a very small community, very close community and I'm very proud community

-And how are the islands? Like, what sort of environment there is a lot?

-It's very rugged, very rugged landscape. It's part of the, what we call the roaring 40s. So it's 40 degrees latitude. And, and that brings some reasonably strong weather. We have, you know, very strong winds. The temperatures do get very cold, although we don't really have anything in the way of like heavy snow or frost. But it is quite cold with the Windchill, the windchill factor from the south is very cold because basically there's no there's no there's nothing between Antarctica and us when it comes to the wind. So it does play some challenges living on the island and it certainly poses some challenges operating aeroplanes.

-Mm hmm. Interesting. So I'm gonna post the link. Well, a few links if I can find some and transcript on the, on the show notes so that people can see how they look like I just had a look on on the internet earlier. And I found it really, really interesting. I really have a thing for this sort of unique remote, places. So that's something definitely to check out. But I interrupted you when you were explaining the story of the airline. So basically, your father realized that there was a market gap, or there was a need in the islands for better connections to the New Zealand mainland, right.

-Correct. And that's what he said. Yeah, he found that. Yeah, yeah. The, you know, with the help of the, the Chatham Islands people and some of the you know, He developed a relationship with during his time there, he was able to invest in a very small aircraft It was a Cessna 337 so they had a nickname called a push me pull you there was a centerline thrust the aircraft with one engine at the back and one in the front. So effectively It was a multi engine aircraft but on a single line thrust and any use any aircraft between Chatham Islands and pit Island but he also started flying Chad up into mainland New Zealand to a place called De Guzman and in Napier, which is on the Hawke's Bay and the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand.

-Hmm, I'm just checking now these aircraft Cessna 337. That's quite an interesting configuration, as you said, when you went into the front, one at the back

-That's right. So yeah, well, it's sort of they work at the same time both engines are. Okay, now they always had one And I guess if one stopped then you, you know, you still had one left, but I don't think it would get you very far.

-Interesting. I'm gonna post the link as well on the show notes.

-So, then you said that the small airline was a one aircraft airline. And I'm from there he kept growing it...

-Yeah, basically the demand for products of the island grew and, then, as it grew...And ultimately, you know, that takes us through to 1996. When we purchased our first Convair 580. And that was when we introduced that airplane into our fleet.

-And what did you get this Convair aircraft because that was already by the late 90s. That was already kind of vintage. I mean, that aircraft was flying already for 50 years, since the 50s and we could say it's one of the last large piston engine aircraft, right?

-Yeah, well, I mean, they all came out originally as piston radial aircraft. The one that we purchased in 1996 for the Chatham Islands was actually a Convair 340 variant with the piston radial engines. And then in the, I think it was throughout the mid 60s, that's when Convair started to retrofit the aircraft, with the Ellison propeller engines and that's really what, you know, ultimately was making those aircraft so popular with a lot of regional airlines throughout the United States and actually through Europe as well. So and, and you know, I mean, you're quite right, I mean to be introducing an aircraft like that in 1996...it certainly already had quite a life. I'm not I'm not entirely up to date with the full history of the aircraft we now call ZK-CIB, which is New Zealand registration. But it certainly did have an exciting life and had just one, one little mishap, I believe it was on takeoff where the aircraft was was departing on quite an icy runway and it actually came off the runway and the propeller went through the side fuselage, I think was a left hand prop detach and went through the side fuselage and almost right the aircraft off. So, you know, it was salvaged from the air and carried on flying and eventually ended up on, you know, one of the remotest islands in the world...

-And how did you procure this aircraft? Where did you find it?

-Yeah, it was a little bit before me, but Well, I mean, I was around, quite a bit younger, but my father went over to Canada, there's a place called Kelowna and they were actually retrofitting these aircraft. So they were buying existing hulls and they were converting them into these combi aircraft. So, effectively a combination of passenger and freight and, and also installing a large hydraulic cargo door on the rear side of the fuselage. So it could actually take a pelletized loading system using tag ons and flat pellets with straps in it so that that's really the key to it was that it allowed for the Chatham Island service you could run as a you know, it could be a full passenger aircraft carrying 39 people or it could be converted within one hour to a full freight aircraft and carry, you know, just under seven ton or you could decide to have it multiple configurations of, you know, 21 passengers with four and a half ton of freight, or a 31 passenger combination with around about two and a half ton of freight. So, it was a very versatile aircraft. And that's why it was so effective on the Chatham Islands.

-And right now you operate it in which configuration? Or you're also changing all the time?

-Yeah, all the time. We're changing it. Yeah. So depending on what the demand is, if it's a larger group that wants to come out to visit the island, and we get that quite a bit during the summer, then we'll run it as a full freight aircraft. Or if it's, you know...if the fish factories on the Chatham Islands have got a lot of product that they need to export quickly, they'll contact us and we'll fly it out as a full full freighter, so it's constantly being moved between configurations.

-So you're flying it regularly. And you could actually book it as a regular flight with any...

-Absolutely! All the flights to and from the Chatham Islands are still serviced 100% by Convair aircraft and they run on a schedule we operate. Currently it's on a very reduced period post COVID-19. But we're still operating three return flights from the Chatham Islands to the three main ports and New Zealand which is Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland. And you know, as we get closer to our summer, your winter, we will start to increase the schedule so to cater for the increase in passenger traffic demand and also a lot more fishing goes on because the weather starts to improve so the fishing boats can get out on the water and catch rock lobster and other fish species which they export.

-Wow, it must be quite an experience to fly such an aircraft.

-Yeah, we've had people from all over the world come and book on our airline, because they just love these airplanes and all they want to do is travel to the Chatahmas on a Convair and then fly again, so it is quite unique...

-And that's not the only vintage aircraft that you have in your fleet because you also have...you used to have a Douglas DC-3, right?

-Yeah, we still have a Douglas DC-3. It's a beautiful airplane. It's got a, you know, like all Douglas DC-3s that are still flying, it's got an amazing history. It came off the production line the day the the Russians invaded Berlin during WW2 so obviously at that stage the demand for aircraft going into Europe was less and so that particular plane was actually part of a number that was donated or gifted to the New Zealand Air Force and then they were used as trainers and they also saw some active duty. This particular one was on active duty in the Malayan crisis. When it came back to New Zealand it was sold what ultimately became Air New Zealand, but at the time it was called National Airways Corporation. And they were flown all around New Zealand. So initially, it was actually two airlines in New Zealand that were flying DC-3 and National Airways Corporation were actually in quite a heated competition environment so they upgraded the aircraft they implemented the what they called the skyline and mod so you know, it was soundproofing and improved cabin interiors in larger windows. So that's the shape that the aircraft is currently. From there, it went on leasing, it did some flying for an airline in Samoa, which is in the South Pacific, a South Pacific Island, from there it came back to New Zealand where it was used. Initially the plan was to use it to fly tourists around the country, but then it was actually converted to an agricultural aircraft. So it was spraying fertilizer on the farms around New Zealand, on certain parts of New Zealand. After that, it was a freighter, they pulled all the hopper equipment out for the fertilizing work and they turned it into a freighter. And it was flying between the two islands, so the North Island and the South Island of New Zealand, then it was reconverted back into a passenger aircraft. The intention was to use it on tours around the country again. But that never happened. And it found its way to the kingdom of Tonga where it was actually purchased by the Crown Prince, they have a monarchy in Tonga. And they actually had an airline up there and started operating two DC-3s. All through the Kingdom of Tonga. So they did that for quite some time. And that's really how we came to, to get our hands on the aircraft is that we took over the air service and Tonga, as we called it Chathams Pacific. It was a subsidiary of our mainline. And we purchased a hangar so that we could do our own airline maintenance at the hangar in Tongatapu, it’s an airport, which is their international airport, it connects the kingdom with New Zealand and other countries, Australia and through the Pacific. And there at the hangar was the Douglas DC-3 and my father is quite a passionate aviator. So he didn't want to see that aircraft turned into scrap. So we started a project, we got some help from Air New Zealand and some very experienced aircraft engineers that had worked on and flew the Douglas DC-3s in the past. And we slowly, but surely brought it back to life. Once we had it serviceable and certified, we actually decided to operate it ourselves. So we started flying passengers with that aircraft between Tongatapu and the Ha’apai Island group and also up into the Vava’u Island group, which is in the kingdom of Tonga. And it was actually very successful and was hands down one of the more reliable airplanes that we had because they were just so simple. They were built that way. So if you know you needed to change a cylinder, you could do that within a matter of hours. So they are very, very effective airplanes. We made the decision to exit that market, because there was at the time quite a large influence through government to accept an offer from the Chinese government for some MA-60 aircraft, and a whole aviation package around that so we just felt that it probably wasn't going to be a very fair environment to operate in and we decided that we would move out that part of our operation back to New Zealand and we took the DC-3s with us and since it got back into New Zealand we've been using it for predominantly for scenic flying and air shows so we take it to all the main shows around New Zealand and also it's based 24/7 these days in port city called Tauranga and that's on the western Bay of Plenty in the North Island of New Zealand and we've paired up with a company down there called Classic Fliers. So on the weekends and summer we take our DC-3 out for...I think, it's only 99 New Zealand dollars. I'm not sure what that is in euro...it's probably about 30 euro...we fly that aircraft for 30 minutes around the city as a sightseeing tour. It's very popular.

-Wow, that's quite a story. I'm trying to picture now this DC-3 flying in the South Pacific and then in the beautiful landscape of New Zealand that must be really, really an amazing experience. So that's only for on.demand panoramic flights. It's not on, let's say, on regular airline service, this DC-3...

-Yeah, that's right it's a line schedule days are well and truly over, but we do still use it on the on theme tours and and we do go to the shows and things like that as well. So it's beautiful. Everywhere it goes, it draws attention. And, you know, our goal now, because we are a family airline and we are very passionate about aviation, we want to make sure that people get to experience it here.

-I see some pictures online, you have it painted in a sort of retro livery…

-Yeah, so we've actually taken it back to its original paint scheme when it first started with a National Airways Corporation. And, and it was named “Pouwhaitere”, which is a Maori word for a yellow crested parakeet. And so that's the paint scheme that we've taken it back to.

-I can see you also have other aircraft in your fleet. I mean, I don't want the audience to have the impression that you are like a flying museum! I mean, you have some modern aircraft as well. You have an ATR 72, you have some SAAB 340s, Fairchild Metros...Cessnas...Can you tell us a bit more about the rest of the fleet, the modern part of the fleet?

-Yeah, no problem. So I guess it’s like anything...as an airline grows. You've got to move with the times and because we are family owned, we are limited by basically what we can afford as a family to operate. But as the airline has grown larger, we've been in a position to take advantage of some opportunities that have come our way. So we've expanded our domestic network within the North Island of New Zealand. We took over some flight routes that were previously operated by a New Zealand national carrier. And we implemented aircraft like the Metroliners...we bought into the Saab 340, which has been an extremely effective aircraft for our airline. And in more recent times, we have contracted with a company based in the United States to provide an aircraft for Tauck Tours, they are an international travel company that has guided itineraries throughout the world, including Australia and New Zealand. So we operate the New Zealand component of that with our ATR 72. So We're in a transitional state at the moment, we think we'll be retiring the Convairs within the next 12 months.

-One question, I didn't fully understand what last thing you said about the ATR 72. So that's it’s flying itineraries for groups, is it?

-Yes. So there's...if you google search...it's a company called Tauck, T-a-u-c-k, and they're an international travel company that does very high end fully guided tours all around the world. And they have an Australia and New Zealand component. So we operate the itineraries for New Zealand. So that aircraft, that ATR aircraft we purchased from Air New Zealand, we use it specifically on those charter services.

-Okay, interesting. And from what you said, you also operate on the New Zealand mainland so your route network is not only flying between the Chatham Islands and New Zealand but also inside New Zealand. And I think you also have a flight to the Norfolk island. Is this right?

-That's correct, yeah, we love flying to Norfolk Island!

-Just for the audience: it's an island, a small island, that is literally between Australia and New Zealand and it's got, from what I heard, a very unique environment and landscape.

-Right yeah! very similar to the Chathams except the temperatures are significantly better, it's a much warmer place, it's subtropical. They don't have any industry there, the only industry is tourism. So visitors from Australia and New Zealand predominantly, but in recent years, mainly from Australia. And, yes, we operate the Convair 580 from Auckland to Norfolk. So, interestingly, that's exactly the same distances as the flight from Auckland to Chatham Islands. And even more interestingly, if you flew directly from the Chatham Islands to Auckland and you carried on flying for another 580 nautical miles, you would land in Norfolk Island. So, go figure! We decided that was a route that was purpose-built for the Convair.

-So your airline should be on the agenda of pretty much everyone that is interested in these remote out spots in the south.

-Yeah, I think so

-A very unique destination network...

-Yeah. So it's probably for at least the next six months you can operate on, you know, fly on a very unique airplane to a very unique place.

-How is it like to operate such a diverse and unique fleet? I guess when you're flying a Convair 580, a 1950s Convair, a 1940s, DC-3...then you have some other aircraft...all the maintenance and all the other MRO stuff that goes around those airplanes. It must be quite complex to run an airline like that. I'm just thinking specifically about the Convair and the DC-3, they might require some maintenance work. And I don't know how easy it is to source spares and components that you might need eventually…

-Yeah, you're right. It is it is challenging and I think in the early days, you know, the mid 90s when my father first bought the Convairs, yeah, they had a lot of they had a lot of issues with just getting to grips with the aircraft, actually, because it is very complex and it's a beautifully designed airplane. Just like the DC-3, actually, it was so far ahead of its time. But it is very complex and there are a lot of systems And there are a lot of moving parts. And so, yeah, they had some interesting times. But I think, you know, having operated the aircraft for as long as we have, you know, 24 years, really then you see a lot of things and, and also in that time, we were able to build up a very good stock of space. So, we have the operating knowledge now, we have in the last decade the space to back that up. So, that actually became an extremely reliable airplane for us and they continue to be very reliable.The DC-3, it's similar, I mean, there is still a number of Douglas DC-3s around the world and there are a number of manufacturers that will provide overhaul and parts that the aircraft is obviously supported by Boeing. So, you know, all in all, it's, it is a challenge and like everything in aviation is very expensive, but yeah, it's still possible!

-What about the pilots? Do you need pilots with some specific training to fly the Convairs and the DC-3s?

-Yeah, absolutely! So we operate in accordance with our regulators. So that's the New Zealand Civil Aviation. And most of the framework of those rules come from ICAO and the FAA. So, it's very similar worldwide, with a lot of Western countries in terms of how those aviation industries are regulated. So we operate...they call it part one two five the Douglas DC-3, because that's the category that aircraft fits into, less than 30 seats. So that is operated to a very high standard of training. To give you an example, like anything if you want to fly that airplane, you have to do a ground school, you have to complete that then you have to type rating which consists of around about five hours of flying in the actual airplane that's running through a whole scenario of emergency and abnormal events. And then you have to go into line training, which, depending on whether it's an initial or upgrade training can be anywhere from sort of 10 to 15 hours online, so that's under Part one two five then with a Convairs, it's even, it's even more thorough with the Part 121, which is your larger aircraft category, over 30 seats and pilot and greater than 3.4 ton. So it's a ground school that consists of around two weeks in class. Then you go into simulators, we have one of only two fixed base Convair simulators in the world that's based on Chatham Islands. So you end up as a pilot, you'll spend probably about two weeks in the simulator, doing exercises then you'll get into the airplane itself. Complete your type rating because there's some things you can't do in a fixed base simulators, you complete your type writing in the airplane. And then you go online training for, you know, 100 hours 100 flight hours or 75 flight cycles. And then at the end of that if you've completed all your exercises, you make the grade that you'll be signed out to fly with on a regular lineup, so it's very thorough and terms of our training standards and has to be because, you know, you've got a lot of responsibility.

-Yes. Well, I guess there's not that many pilots out there that have followed this procedure. It's a pretty exclusive club.

-Yeah, yes. I mean, my father and I both fly the Convair and we both fly the Douglas DC-3. He still flies it, I haven't flown the DC-3 for a couple of years now...But, but yeah, they are complex airplanes, but they're great fun. The Convair 580 is still my favorite airplane to fly out of everything and I've flown you know, Metroliners and Saabs, as well, so yeah…!

-Wow. So they can find you out at the rudder when people come onboard! Very good and just one question that is inevitable these days: is about...well...the pandemic. You are in one of those parts of the world that have, let's say, they have best managed the whole situation. And so I guess you are now getting to normal almost close to normal?

-Yeah, it's getting normal in terms of our domestic environment. We have a level scale so it goes from level one to level four. Level four was locked down. Level three was not much different than lockdown. Level two was when a lot of those restrictions were lifted. We were in that environment for a number of weeks. And then we've just in the last two weeks transitioned back to level one, which is basically life as normal in New Zealand, but we still have very heavy restrictions on international travel into our country. So from a domestic point of view, it just feels like everything's normal again, we can go to sporting matches with stadiums full of people. You know, we can obviously get public transport...there's no restrictions on that. There's no social distancing mandated on the aircraft. So from a business point of view, it makes it a little bit easier to get things back on track, but I think it's going to take a very, very long time, and I think that the economic impact of, of COVID on our domestic market and also the global markets will be huge and is going to be realized over the next six to 12 months.

- Did the virus reach the Chatham Islands?

-No! didn't reach the Chathams and it didn't reach Norfolk Island. So yeah, that's another reason to travel there. Yeah!

-Yeah, definitely! So just for the people that might be interested in flying your airline, they should go and book on the website, right, AirChathams.co.nz and what other ways…? you also offer some tools, panoramic flights, etc. So everything is bookable there?

-Yeah, I mean, if you want to just have a look, an understanding of what we do and what aircraft we fly, just go to AirChathams.co.nz. Have a look. And if you want to book a flight, you can do that from the website. We are also on a lot of aggregators throughout the world that actually sell our products. So you can look on Skyscanner and things like that. Believe it or not, you can book a flight on a 1960s Convair via a modern platform. So it's quite quite unique.

-Yes, indeed. And I'm going to post a link on the show notes. So it's airchathams.co dot as I said. Great! So it's been so interesting to have this conversation. It's definitely a very unique airline, very unique fleet and very unique network that you are operating. So I guess that's going to be quite interesting. Too many of our listeners a derivation enthusiast and...who knows you might get some of them soon onboard your Convair or your DC-3 or your other aircraft…

-It's a very unique family and business and yeah, we're proud of what we've managed to achieve over the years since 1984. And of course you know, the future is going to be interesting as well as we unfortunately have to transition away from Convairs. It'll be a very sad day for us when we have to do that, but we're gonna move into operating more Saabs and potentially more ATRs and...just see where that takes us.

-Do you have already a calendar for the retirement of the Convairs?

-Yeah, it's been slowly been worked out. We're currently operating three Convairs. One's a a freight craft. So, that one does the flight between, predominantly, Auckland and Christchurch, which are two major cities and New Zealand. And then we have two passenger aircraft, the combis that I've spoken about mainly, and also another aircraft which we purchased from an airline called Era Aviation which were based in Alaska, that was a 50 seat on the air and it was passenger only, but you know, we called key Kiwi ingenuity and we installed seat backs. And we've actually managed to make that aircraft quite effective at carrying both passengers and freight. What we think will happen as towards the latter part of this year, will reduce our fleet to two Convairs and by around mid next year, we'll probably retire both of the Convairs, so we won't be operating anymore and our fleet. Yeah, things can change, but we're currently looking at programs to have our Saab and ATR aircraft upgraded to fly the oceanic routes out to Chatham Islands and Norfolk Island so that they can start to operate on those predominantly Convair sectors.

-Ok, so aviation enthusiasts that wish to fly the Convairs have a sort of narrow window of opportunity to do so, provided the travel restrictions are lifted, they will need to hurry up to experience these aircraft before they are gone. Good, thank you very much Duane!, it's been pleasure talking with you and learning about your very unique airline. I will post all the links and information on the show notes so that people can have a look. Thank you very much and have a great week!

-Thanks, Miquel!

PodcastMiquelJuly 10, 2020Comment