Golden Bay Air Limited is a small airline based at Tākaka Aerodrome in Tākaka, New Zealand. The airline currently operates three light aircraft from Tākaka to Wellington and Karamea, and also from Nelson to Tākaka and Karamea with connecting road shuttle services to the Abel Tasman National Park, the Heaphy Track in the Kahurangi National Park and to and from Tākaka township. Other services provided by the airline include charter flights around New Zealand flown on demand and preset scenic routes around the national parks as well as Farewell Spit.[5]
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| Founded | 27 September 2006 as Capital Air[2] 26 May 2009 as Golden Bay Air[3] | ||||||
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| Operating bases | Tākaka Aerodrome, Tākaka | ||||||
| Focus cities | Wellington | ||||||
| Fleet size | 4 | ||||||
| Destinations | 4 | ||||||
| Headquarters | Tākaka | ||||||
| Key people | Majority shareholders:[4] Lisa Sheppard Richard Molloy | ||||||
| Website | www | ||||||
History
editGolden Bay Air originated in November 2005 as Zephair Limited, and flights began in 2006 under the name Capital Air. The name of the company was legally changed to Capital Air Bookings Ltd in September of that year, and the airline changed its name to the one currently used in May 2009.[6]
The airline was originally based in Wellington, but moved its base of operations to Tākaka at the time of the name change in 2009.[7]
In 2010, Golden Bay Air commissioned a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) instrument approach system at Tākaka Aerodrome.[8][6]
In April 2018, Golden Bay Air ceased passenger operations temporarily as their air operator certificate issued by the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand had lapsed. The airline chartered flights from other airlines in order to honour bookings.[9] The airline announced on 19 May 2018 that the re-certification procedure had been completed.[10][11]
Fleet
editIn late 2022, the airline added a Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander to its fleet.[12] The following aircraft are operated by the airline:[13][14]
| Aircraft | Total | Orders | Passengers (Economy) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gippsland GA8 Airvan | 1
|
7 | |
| Piper Archer | 1
|
3 | |
| Piper Seneca | 1
|
5 | |
| Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander | 1
|
9 | |
| Total | 4 |
Destinations
editGolden Bay Air operates scheduled services to four airports:[15][14]
- Karamea (from Nelson and Tākaka)
- Nelson (from Tākaka and Karamea)
- Tākaka (hub)
- Wellington (from Tākaka)
In addition to the scheduled flights, on demand flights operate between Karamea and Motueka.
Notes
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "Approved Operator Call Signs" (PDF). Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand. March 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 June 2017. Retrieved 17 September 2018.
- ^ "Capital Air Ltd. – Particulars of name change". Retrieved 13 September 2010.
- ^ "Golden Bay Air Ltd. – Particulars of name change". Retrieved 13 September 2010.
- ^ "Shareholdings of Golden Bay Air Limited". Retrieved 27 November 2023.
- ^ "Golden Bay Air Scenic Flights". Retrieved 17 September 2010.
- ^ a b L, Steve (30 June 2011). "The Sun is Shining on Golden Bay Air". 3rd Level New Zealand. Retrieved 17 September 2018.
- ^ "Particulars of Shareholders". Retrieved 17 September 2010.
- ^ "Golden Bay Air Home Page". Retrieved 17 September 2010.
- ^ Rutherford, Hamish (9 April 2018). "Golden Bay Air chartering from rivals after operator certificate lapses". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 17 September 2018.
- ^ "Golden Bay Air Facebook Post". 19 May 2018. Archived from the original on 17 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018 – via Facebook.
Great news – Our 5 yearly re-certification is complete! Online bookings are now available out to 30 November 2019 for all our scheduled flights and shuttles between Wellington – Takaka – Nelson – Karamea – Brown Hut. Other services like on-demand shuttles, rental cars and charters are also available for booking.
- ^ L, Steve (20 May 2018). "Golden Bay Air – All Systems are Go". 3rd Level New Zealand. Retrieved 17 September 2018.
- ^ "Extra capacity on flights between Wellington and Golden Bay". The Guardian. 18 January 2023. p. 5.
- ^ "Golden Bay – Fleet". Retrieved 2 December 2021.
- ^ a b Granville, Alan (14 December 2020). "Come fly with me, a look at New Zealand's smaller airlines: Golden Bay Air". Stuff. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
- ^ "Golden Bay Air Scheduled Flights". Golden Bay Air. Archived from the original on 17 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018.
