Air Panama
Encyclopedia
Air Panama is an airline
Airline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...

 based in Panama City
Panama City
Panama is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Panama. It has a population of 880,691, with a total metro population of 1,272,672, and it is located at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, in the province of the same name. The city is the political and administrative center of the...

, Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...

, which offers scheduled and chartered passenger flights out of its hub
Airline hub
An airline hub is an airport that an airline uses as a transfer point to get passengers to their intended destination. It is part of a hub and spoke model, where travelers moving between airports not served by direct flights change planes en route to their destinations...

 at Albrook "Marcos A. Gelabert" International Airport, mostly on domestic routes with a low passenger volume. Air Panama is currently the second largest airline in the country, being surpassed only by Copa Airlines
Copa Airlines
Compañía Panameña de Aviación, S.A., operating as Copa Airlines ', is an airline based in Panama City, Panama, and serves as Panama's flag carrier...

.

History

The airline was founded in 1980 as PARSA, though certain services were operated as Turismo Aéreo. In 2005 the Air Panama branding rights were acquired, which had been unused since the demise of Air Panamá Internacional
Air Panamá Internacional
Air Panamá Internacional, also known as Air Panama International or just Air Panama, was a state owned airline from Panama that served as the flag carrier of the country between 1968 and 1989...

 in 1990, and adopted the new name in 2006. Over the years, the company has grown to account for more than half of the domestic commercial air travel in Panama, offering more destinations than any other regional carrier in the country.

Destinations

Air Panama offers scheduled flights to the following destinations:

Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....

  • San José
    San José, Costa Rica
    San José is the capital and largest city of Costa Rica. Located in the Central Valley, San José is the seat of national government, the focal point of political and economic activity, and the major transportation hub of this Central American nation.Founded in 1738 by order of Cabildo de León, San...

     - Juan Santamaría International Airport
    Juan Santamaría International Airport
    Juan Santamaría International Airport is located in Alajuela Province, about from downtown San José, Costa Rica. It is a hub airport for TACA/Lacsa, and focus city airport for Copa Airlines. It is named after Costa Rica's national hero Juan Santamaría, a courageous drummer boy who died in 1856...



Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...

  • Bocas del Toro - Bocas del Toro "Isla Colón" International Airport
  • Cartí Sugtupu
    Cartí Sugtupu
    - Sources :* – World-Gazetteer.com...

     - Cartí Airport
  • Changuinola
    Changuinola
    -Transportation:Changuinola is accessible by air, land, or sea. Visitors can fly into Captain Manuel Nino International Airport from Panama City and Bocas del Toro. Direct flights from the United States, Canada, and Mexico are not available. Airlines may include , Aeroplas, Air Panama, and Nature Air...

     - Changuinola "Capitán Manuel Niño" International Airport
    Changuinola "Capitan Manuel Niño" International Airport
    Changuinola "Capitan Manuel Niño" International Airport is an airport serving Changuinola, the capital city of the Changuinola District in the Bocas del Toro Province in Panama.-Facilities:...

  • Chitré
    Chitré
    Chitré is the capital of the Panamanian province Herrera. Chitré is located about 7 km inland from the Gulf of Panama on the Azuero Peninsula The name Chitre comes from the native tribe Chitra . In the city, there is a district, also called Chitré, which is subdivided into five corregimientos...

     - Chitré "Alonso Valderrama" Airport
  • Contadora Island - Contadora Airport
  • Corazon de Jesus- Corazon de Jesus Airport
  • David
    David, Panama
    David is a city located in the west of Panama. It is the capital of the province of Chiriquí and has an estimated population of 144,858 inhabitants as confirmed in 2010. It is a relatively affluent city with most families and houses having basic living requirements, such as concrete houses, clean...

     - Enrique Malek International Airport
    Enrique Malek International Airport
    -Accidents and incidents:On July 13, 1943, there was an accident at this airfield that claimed the life of 12 airmen when their B-17 Flying Fortress stalled during approach and crashed in the runway....

     (focus city)
  • El Porvenir - El Porvenir Airport
  • El Real
    El Real
    El Real is a town in Panama. It is located near Yaviza....

     - El Real Airport
  • Garachiné
    Garachiné
    Garachiné is a town in the Darién province of Panama.- Sources :* – World-Gazetteer.com...

     - Garachiné Airport
  • Isla del Rey (Panama) - San Miguel Isla del Rey Airport
  • Isla San José
    Isla San José (Panama)
    Isla San José is the second largest island in the Panama area, and has an area of over 14,000 acres.-References:...

     - Isla San José Airport
  • Jaqué
    Jaqué
    Jaqué is a town in the Darién province of Panama.- Sources :* – World-Gazetteer.com...

     - Jaqué Airport
  • La Palma - Captain Ramon Xatruch Airport
  • Mulatupo
    Mulatupo
    Mulatupo is a town in the Kuna Yala province of Panama.- Sources :* – World-Gazetteer.com...

     - Mulatupo Airport
  • Panama City
    Panama City
    Panama is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Panama. It has a population of 880,691, with a total metro population of 1,272,672, and it is located at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, in the province of the same name. The city is the political and administrative center of the...

     - Albrook "Marcos A. Gelabert" International Airport (hub)
  • Pedasí
    Pedasí township, Los Santos
    Pedasí is a town situated on the south-eastern tip of the Azuero Peninsula on Panama’s Pacific coast. It is located in the Pedasí District, in the Los Santos province. It is principally a fishing village with a population of about 2000 people....

     - Pedasí Airfield
  • Piña, Darién - Piña "Bahía Piña - Darién" Airport
  • Playón Chico
    Ukupseni
    Ukupseni, also called Playón Chico, is one of the most populous islands in the Kuna Yala territory of Panama, 200 yards from the mainland...

     - Playón Chico Airport
  • Rio Sidra
    Rio Sidra
    Rio Sidra is a town in Kuna Yala territory, Panama....

     - Rio Sidra Airport
  • Tubualá
    Tubualá
    Tubualá is a town in the Kuna Yala province of Panama.- Sources :* – World-Gazetteer.com...

     - Tubualá Airport
  • Tupile
    Tupile (town)
    Tupile is a town in Panama....

     - Tupile Airport
  • Ustupo
    Ustupo
    Ustupo is a town in the Kuna Yala province of Panama.- Sources :* – World-Gazetteer.com...

     - Ustupo Airport


Further destinations are served on a chartered on-demand basis.

Fleet

As of June 2011, the Air Panama fleet consists of the following aircraft:
Air Panama Fleet
Aircraft In Service Orders Passengers Notes
J Y Total
Britten-Norman Islander
Britten-Norman Islander
The Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander is a 1960s British light utility aircraft, regional airliner and cargo aircraft designed and originally manufactured by Britten-Norman of the United Kingdom. The Islander is one of the best-selling commercial aircraft types produced in Europe. Although designed in...

1 -
9
9
Cessna 182
Cessna 182
The Cessna 182 Skylane is an American four-seat, single-engine, light airplane, built by Cessna of Wichita, Kansas. It has the option of adding two child seats, installed in the baggage area....

1 -
4
4
Cessna Grand Caravan 1 -
12
12
de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter
De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter
The DHC-6 Twin Otter is a Canadian 19-passenger STOL utility aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada and currently produced by Viking Air. The aircraft's fixed tricycle undercarriage, STOL abilities and high rate of climb have made it a successful cargo, regional passenger airliner and MEDEVAC...

2 -
20
20
Fokker 50 1 -
50
50
Delivered on September 19, 2011, Bought from SAS
Fokker 70 2 -
72
72
Piper PA-34 Seneca
Piper PA-34 Seneca
The Piper PA-34 Seneca is an American twin-engined light aircraft, produced by Piper Aircraft since 1971 and still in production in 2011.The Seneca is primarily used for personal and business flying.-Development:...

2 -
5
5
Saab 340B
Saab 340
The Saab 340 is a discontinued Swedish two-engine turboprop aircraft designed and initially produced by a partnership between Saab and Fairchild Aircraft in a 65:35 ratio...

2 -
34
34
Air Panama Cargo Fleet
Fokker F27 Friendship 4
N/A
CASA C-212 Aviocar 1
N/A
Total 17 -


Accidents and incidents

  • On 31 December 1997 at 07:45 local time, a PARSA Britten-Norman Islander
    Britten-Norman Islander
    The Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander is a 1960s British light utility aircraft, regional airliner and cargo aircraft designed and originally manufactured by Britten-Norman of the United Kingdom. The Islander is one of the best-selling commercial aircraft types produced in Europe. Although designed in...

     (registered
    Aircraft registration
    An aircraft registration is a unique alphanumeric string that identifies a civil aircraft, in similar fashion to a licence plate on an automobile...

     HP-986PS) crashed into a jungle area 6.5 kilometres short of Rio Sidra Airport following a flight from Panama City
    Panama City
    Panama is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Panama. It has a population of 880,691, with a total metro population of 1,272,672, and it is located at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, in the province of the same name. The city is the political and administrative center of the...

     in bad weather conditions. The nine passengers and the pilot on board lost their lives.
  • On 29 December 2002 at 16:06 local time, ATC
    Air traffic control
    Air traffic control is a service provided by ground-based controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and in the air. The primary purpose of ATC systems worldwide is to separate aircraft to prevent collisions, to organize and expedite the flow of traffic, and to provide information and other...

     contact with a PARSA Britten-Norman Islander (registered HP-1016PS) was lost during an empty ferry flight from Bocas del Toro to Panama City, when the aircraft was over the Caribbean Sea
    Caribbean Sea
    The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....

    . The aircraft and its pilot could never found.
  • On 1 June 2006 at 07:55 local time, Air Panama Flight 680, which was operated using a British Aerospace Jetstream
    British Aerospace Jetstream
    The British Aerospace Jetstream is a small twin-turboprop airliner, with a pressurised fuselage, developed as the Jetstream 31 from the earlier Handley Page Jetstream-Development:...

     (registered HP-1477PS), overshot the runway upon landing at Bocas del Toro "Isla Colón" International Airport after heavy rain completing a flight from Panama City. The aircraft was substantially damaged, but all 16 passengers and two crew members walked out from the wreckage.
  • On 31 October 2007 at 20:40 UTC, an Air Panama Fokker F27 Friendship (registered HP-1541PST) was damaged beyond repair when it did not gain sufficient height upon take-off from Albrook "Marcos A. Gelabert" International Airport and crashed back on the runway. The aircraft had planned to leave for a scheduled passenger flight to Bocas del Toro and was carrying nine passengers and four crew members, none of which was injured.
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