Air Transat
Encyclopedia
Air Transat is an airline
based in Saint-Laurent
, Montreal
, Quebec
, Canada
, operating scheduled and charter flights, serving 60 destinations in 25 countries. The airline is owned and operated by Transat A.T. Inc. During the summer season its main destinations are Europe and in the winter season the Caribbean
, Mexico
, USA and Central America. Its main Canadian gateways are Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport
, Toronto Pearson International Airport
and Vancouver International Airport
. The airline also has operations at Calgary International Airport
, Québec/Jean Lesage International Airport
and others.
Air Transat made its inaugural flight on November 14, 1987, travelling from Montreal
to Acapulco
. Six years later, Air Transat assumed defunct Nationair's maintenance base and aircraft. Today, the company books over 3.5 million passengers a year. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Transat A.T. Inc. Today Air Transat is one of Canada
's largest airlines, after Air Canada
and WestJet
. Air Transat has 2,100 (2010) employees. On February 13, 2011, Air Transat Flight TS163, operated with their first all female flight crew from Cancun to Vancouver.
, Enerjet
and Thomas Cook Airlines
.
The A310s will gradually leave the fleet. As of May 27, 2011, the Air Transat average fleet age was 15.5 years.
Latest A330, C-GTSJ acquired on November 20th 2011 painted in revised new livery
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 Saint-Laurent
Saint-Laurent, Quebec
Saint-Laurent is a former city on the Island of Montreal in southwestern Quebec, Canada. It is now the largest in area of the boroughs of the city of Montreal....
, Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, operating scheduled and charter flights, serving 60 destinations in 25 countries. The airline is owned and operated by Transat A.T. Inc. During the summer season its main destinations are Europe and in the winter season the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, USA and Central America. Its main Canadian gateways are Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport
Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport
Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport or Montréal-Trudeau, formerly known as Montréal-Dorval International Airport, is located on the Island of Montreal, from Montreal's downtown core. The airport terminals are located entirely in Dorval, while the Air Canada headquarters complex...
, Toronto Pearson International Airport
Toronto Pearson International Airport
Toronto Pearson International Airport is an international airport serving Toronto, Ontario, Canada; its metropolitan area; and the Golden Horseshoe, an urban agglomeration that is home to 8.1 million people – approximately 25% of Canada's population...
and Vancouver International Airport
Vancouver International Airport
Vancouver International Airport is located on Sea Island in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada, about from Downtown Vancouver. In 2010 it was the second busiest airport in Canada by aircraft movements and passengers , behind Toronto Pearson International Airport, with non-stop flights daily to...
. The airline also has operations at Calgary International Airport
Calgary International Airport
Calgary International Airport, , is the international airport that serves Calgary, Alberta, Canada and the surrounding region; it is situated approximately northeast of downtown Calgary...
, Québec/Jean Lesage International Airport
Québec/Jean Lesage International Airport
Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport, also known as Jean Lesage International Airport was established in 1939, a year after the closure of the Aérodrome Saint-Louis. It is located west southwest of Quebec City, Quebec, Canada...
and others.
History
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
to Acapulco
Acapulco
Acapulco is a city, municipality and major sea port in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific coast of Mexico, southwest from Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep, semi-circular bay and has been a port since the early colonial period of Mexico’s history...
. Six years later, Air Transat assumed defunct Nationair's maintenance base and aircraft. Today, the company books over 3.5 million passengers a year. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Transat A.T. Inc. Today Air Transat is one of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
's largest airlines, after Air Canada
Air Canada
Air Canada is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transport for passengers and cargo to 178 destinations worldwide. It is the world's tenth largest passenger airline by number of destinations, and the airline is a...
and WestJet
WestJet
WestJet Airlines Ltd. is a Canadian low-cost carrier that provides scheduled and charter air service to 71 destinations in Canada, the United States, Mexico and the Caribbean. Founded in 1996, WestJet is currently the second largest Canadian air carrier, behind Air Canada, operating an average of...
. Air Transat has 2,100 (2010) employees. On February 13, 2011, Air Transat Flight TS163, operated with their first all female flight crew from Cancun to Vancouver.
Incidents
- On August 24, 2001, Air Transat Flight 236Air Transat Flight 236Air Transat Flight 236 was an Air Transat route between Toronto, Canada and Lisbon, Portugal flown by Captain Robert Piché and First Officer Dirk De Jager. On August 24, 2001, the flight ran out of fuel over the Atlantic Ocean with 306 people aboard...
, an Airbus A330-200Airbus A330The Airbus A330 is a wide-body twin-engine jet airliner made by Airbus, a division of EADS. Versions of the A330 have a range of and can accommodate up to 335 passengers in a two-class layout or carry of cargo....
, en route from TorontoTorontoToronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
to LisbonLisbonLisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
with 306 crew and passengers, made an emergency landingEmergency landingAn emergency landing is a landing made by an aircraft in response to a crisis which either interferes with the operation of the aircraft or involves sudden medical emergencies necessitating diversion to the nearest airport.-Types of emergency landings:...
in the AzoresAzoresThe Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
without engine power due to fuel starvationFuel StarvationFuel starvation and fuel exhaustion are problems that can affect internal combustion engines fuelled by either diesel, kerosene, petroleum or any other combustible liquid or gas. If no fuel is available for an engine to burn, it cannot function...
over the Atlantic OceanAtlantic OceanThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
. The aircraft safely landed at Lajes Air BaseLajes FieldLajes Field or Lajes Air Base , officially designated Air Base No. 4 , is a multi-use air field, home to the Portuguese Air Force Base Aérea Nº4 and Azores Air Zone Command , a United States Air Force detachment , and a regional air passenger terminal located near Lajes...
, on the island of Terceira. The aircraft was evacuated in 90 seconds. All 306 passengers on board survived. An investigation revealed that the cause of the accident was a fuel leak in the number two engine which was caused by an incorrect part installed in the hydraulicsHydraulicsHydraulics is a topic in applied science and engineering dealing with the mechanical properties of liquids. Fluid mechanics provides the theoretical foundation for hydraulics, which focuses on the engineering uses of fluid properties. In fluid power, hydraulics is used for the generation, control,...
system by Air Transat maintenance staff. The part did not maintain adequate clearance between the hydraulic lines and the fuel line, allowing vibration in the hydraulic lines to degrade the fuel line and cause the leak. The aircraft involved in the incident was repaired and remains in service with Air Transat.
- On March 6, 2005, Air Transat Flight 961Air Transat Flight 961Air Transat Flight 961 was a flight from Varadero, Cuba to Quebec City, Canada on March 6, 2005. The aircraft experienced a structural failure in which the rudder detached in flight...
, an Airbus A310-300Airbus A310The Airbus A310 is a medium- to long-range twin-engine widebody jet airliner. Launched in July 1978, it was the second aircraft created by Airbus Industrie,a consortium of European aerospace companies, Airbus is now fully owned by EADS and since 2001 has been known as Airbus SAS. the consortium of...
, en route from CubaCubaThe Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
to Quebec CityQuebec CityQuebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
with nine crew and 261 passengers on board, experienced a structural failure in which the rudder detached in flight. The crew returned to VaraderoVaraderoVaradero is a resort town in the province of Matanzas, Cuba, and one of the largest resort areas in the Caribbean. Varadero is also called Playa Azul, which means "blue beach" in Spanish.-Geography:...
, Cuba, where they made a safe landing. It has been established that no unusual rudder inputs had been used by the crew during the flight, they were not manipulating the rudder when it failed and there was no obvious fault in the rudder or yaw-damper system. The investigation that followed determined that the manufacturer's inspection procedure for the composite rudder was not adequate. Inspection procedures for composite structures on airliners were changed because of this accident.
Services
Air Transat specializes in charter flights from Canadian cities to vacation destinations, mainly in the south during the winter months and in Europe during the summer. Unlike other airlines Air Transat has a very restrictive refund or exchange policy. No tickets can be exchanged or refunded within 45 days prior to departure.Codeshare
Certain flights are operated by CanJetCanJet
CanJet Airlines is a low-cost chartered airline based in Enfield and in the Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia, Canada at the Halifax International Airport. It operates contract and ad hoc charters throughout Canada and the United States...
, Enerjet
Enerjet
Enerjet is a charter airline with its headquarters on the grounds of Calgary International Airport in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It used to operate flights to holiday destinations in the Caribbean and Mexico from Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto , Winnipeg, and Vancouver...
and Thomas Cook Airlines
Thomas Cook Airlines
Thomas Cook Airlines is a British charter airline based in Manchester, England. It serves main holiday resorts worldwide, from its main bases at Manchester and Gatwick.The airline also operates services from nine other bases in the United Kingdom....
.
Fleet
The Air Transat fleet consists of the following aircraft (as of May 2011):| Aircraft | Total | Passengers | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Y | Total | |||
| Airbus A310-300 Airbus A310 The Airbus A310 is a medium- to long-range twin-engine widebody jet airliner. Launched in July 1978, it was the second aircraft created by Airbus Industrie,a consortium of European aerospace companies, Airbus is now fully owned by EADS and since 2001 has been known as Airbus SAS. the consortium of... |
12 | 20 | 229 230 |
249 250 |
Exit from service 2013-2016 |
| Airbus A330-200 Airbus A330 The Airbus A330 is a wide-body twin-engine jet airliner made by Airbus, a division of EADS. Versions of the A330 have a range of and can accommodate up to 335 passengers in a two-class layout or carry of cargo.... |
7 | 21 | 321 | 342 | 2 are ex-Mexicana Mexicana de Aviación Founded in 1921, Compañía Mexicana de Aviación, S.A. de C.V. was Mexico's oldest airline, before ceasing operations on August 28, 2010. The group's closure was announced by the company's recently installed management team a short time after the group filed for Concurso Mercantil and US Chapter 15... 1 is ex-Edelweiss Air Edelweiss Air Edelweiss Air AG is a charter airline with its head office in the Edwelweiss Air Operations Center on the property of Zurich Airport and in Kloten, Switzerland, operating mainly out of Zurich Airport, with a smaller base at Geneva International Airport... |
| Airbus A330-300 Airbus A330 The Airbus A330 is a wide-body twin-engine jet airliner made by Airbus, a division of EADS. Versions of the A330 have a range of and can accommodate up to 335 passengers in a two-class layout or carry of cargo.... |
4 | 21 | 322 | 343 | Ex-Dragonair Dragonair Hong Kong Dragon Airlines Limited , operating as Dragonair, is an international airline and flag carrier headquartered in Hong Kong; with its corporate headquarters, Dragonair House Hong Kong Dragon Airlines Limited (T: 港龍航空有限公司, S: 港龙航空有限公司, Cantonese: gong2 lung4 hong4 hung1 jau5 haan6 gung1 si1,... |
| Total | 23 | ||||
The A310s will gradually leave the fleet. As of May 27, 2011, the Air Transat average fleet age was 15.5 years.
Latest A330, C-GTSJ acquired on November 20th 2011 painted in revised new livery