Dutch Antilles Express
Encyclopedia
Dutch Antilles Express is a regional airline
of the former territory of Curaçao
. It operates high-frequency scheduled services in the Dutch Caribbean and to Venezuela
, Colombia
, and the Dominican Republic
. Its main base is at Hato International Airport
, Curaçao. The head office is at Pietermaai, Willemstad
, Curaçao
. Dutch Antilles Express announced on December 13, 2010 that Arnold B. Leonora had purchased the airline from Niek Sandman, who left to pursue other interests. In acquiring the Curaçao-based regional carrier, Leonora said his plan would be to “help Curaçao become one of the important hubs in the region,” making use of Aruba to expand the airline’s operations. Leonora noted, “DAE will be a true Dutch Caribbean airline servicing Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao with flights originating in all three islands."
Due to an escalating debt from poor performing market condition the government of Curaçao
has stepped in on May 31, 2011 to keep the airline in the air. The airline has been purchased from Arnold Leonora by the Curaçao government for a cash injection sum of two injections of 1.5m guilders.
The airline is currently operating a much reduced schedule with a reduced fleet of 2 aircraft Fokker 100 .
in 2003 as BonairExel
(part of the Exel Aviation Group) and soon expanded to encompass most of the Dutch Antilles and Aruba. Although an Embraer ERJ 145
was used on the Bonaire-Aruba flights, the aircraft was soon disposed of again, returning to Air Exel
. Although BonairExel flew its aircraft in the Exel color scheme; operated with Air Exel aircraft; and flew with Air Exel cabin staff; the airline was wholly owned by a Dutch millionaire residing on Bonaire, and operated simply as a franchise carrier. As the local market was rather small, a subsidiary was formed on Curaçao, named Curaçao Exel. Dutch Caribbean Airlines
(DCA) declared bankruptcy not long after. Exel Aviation noticed that the Caribbean airlines were very profitable, and set up its own Aruba Exel, causing distress amongst the other franchise carriers.
With the Exel empire expanding too rapidly in Europe and the Caribbean, it was no surprise that the dream would not last long. In a lawsuit against Nick Sandman (owner of Bonaire and Curaçao Exel) to demand back the invested amount, and confiscate back the ATR 42
aircraft, ties dissolved between the Exel Aviation Group and the Caribbean franchise carriers. With minimal funds, the airline made an attempt to distance itself from its partner, changing its names to BonairExpress and CuraçaoExpress. This move permantently broke up the alliance, causing no more profits to go to the ailing Exel Aviation Group. All Exel airlines disappeared, including fellow Aruba Exel.
Previously the airline's head office was in the Plasa Medardo SV Thielman in Kralendijk
, Bonaire. In April 2007 the airline moved its head office from Bonaire to Curaçao, where the airline's flight operations have been based. The airline's call centre and its revenue accounting and handling departments remained in Bonaire.
After numerous lawsuits, Bonaire (now called Bonaire Express) and Curaçao Express
merged to form Dutch Antilles Express, which started operations on 30 April 2005 with flights between the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba. On 9 December 2005, its first international services to Valencia, Venezuela, were launched.
After the airline's reconstruction ,two ATR 42s were sent for a C-Check and received the new color scheme , with a green flyDAE logo. While this was taking place, the airline leased two Fokker 50s from Denim Air
, which flew the Curaçao-St. Maarten route until the return of the ATR 42s.
There are several differences in the liveries of Dutch Antilles Express aircraft.
On the ATR 42-300 the aircraft has the standard flydae.com website address on the left side of the aircraft and the phone number +599-7170808 on the right side, but the aircraft does not have a logo on the tail section.
In the case of the ATR 42-320 and -500, the aircraft have the web address on the left side of the aircraft and the phone number on the right side; and both aircraft have the green, blue & yellow DAE logo on the tail section.
The two Fokker 100s both have the web address on the left side and on the right side of the aircraft, although Alpha has the logo displayed on the engine cowlings and the tail and Bravo lacks these logos.
Oranjestad, Aruba
(Queen Beatrix International Airport
) Kralendijk, Bonaire (Flamingo International Airport
) Willemstad, Curaçao
(Hato International Airport
)Hub Las Américas, Santo Domingo
(Las Américas International Airport
) Philipsburg, St. Maarten (Princess Juliana International Airport
) Valencia, Venezuela (Arturo Michelena International Airport
) Caracas, Venezuela
(Simón Bolívar International Airport
) Bogotá, Colombia
(El Dorado International Airport
) Cartagena
(Rafael Núñez International Airport
) Panama (Tocumen International Airport
)
Past aircraft of The Dutch Antilles Express consists of the following: (at October 2011):
DAE is the only Jet Fokker
operator in the Caribbean. It has been revealed on the airline's Facebook page that the airline has recently acquired MD80's for it's new fleet after the airline's restructuring and that the airline has successfully negotiated for the return of the ATR's in the beginning of 2012.
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...
of the former territory of Curaçao
Curaçao
Curaçao is an island in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan coast. The Country of Curaçao , which includes the main island plus the small, uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao , is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
. It operates high-frequency scheduled services in the Dutch Caribbean and to Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
, Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, and the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
. Its main base is at Hato International Airport
Hato International Airport
Hato International Airport or Curaçao International Airport is the airport of Willemstad, Curaçao. It has services to the Caribbean region, South America, North America and Europe...
, Curaçao. The head office is at Pietermaai, Willemstad
Willemstad
Willemstad can refer to:*Willemstad, the capital of Curaçao*Willemstad , a town in Moerdijk, the Netherlands*Willemstad , a hamlet near Marum, the Netherlands*Willemstad , a hamlet in the Netherlands...
, Curaçao
Curaçao
Curaçao is an island in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan coast. The Country of Curaçao , which includes the main island plus the small, uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao , is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
. Dutch Antilles Express announced on December 13, 2010 that Arnold B. Leonora had purchased the airline from Niek Sandman, who left to pursue other interests. In acquiring the Curaçao-based regional carrier, Leonora said his plan would be to “help Curaçao become one of the important hubs in the region,” making use of Aruba to expand the airline’s operations. Leonora noted, “DAE will be a true Dutch Caribbean airline servicing Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao with flights originating in all three islands."
Due to an escalating debt from poor performing market condition the government of Curaçao
Curaçao
Curaçao is an island in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan coast. The Country of Curaçao , which includes the main island plus the small, uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao , is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
has stepped in on May 31, 2011 to keep the airline in the air. The airline has been purchased from Arnold Leonora by the Curaçao government for a cash injection sum of two injections of 1.5m guilders.
The airline is currently operating a much reduced schedule with a reduced fleet of 2 aircraft Fokker 100 .
History
The airline started operations with a single ATR 42ATR 42
-Civil operators:The largest operators of the ATR-42 are FedEx Express, Airlinair, TRIP Linhas Aéreas,and Mexico City-based Aeromar respectively. Number of aircraft as of 2010:Some 70 other airlines operate smaller numbers of the type....
in 2003 as BonairExel
Bonaire Express
Bonaire Express was an airline based in Bonaire, Netherlands. It was the regional airline for the Netherlands Antilles and also acted as a feeder to KLM for its long-haul services to Europe...
(part of the Exel Aviation Group) and soon expanded to encompass most of the Dutch Antilles and Aruba. Although an Embraer ERJ 145
Embraer ERJ 145 family
The Embraer ERJ 145 family is a series of regional jets produced by Embraer, a Brazilian aerospace company. Family members include the ERJ 135 , ERJ 140 , and ERJ 145 , as well as the Legacy business jet and the R-99 family of military aircraft. The ERJ 145 is the largest of the group...
was used on the Bonaire-Aruba flights, the aircraft was soon disposed of again, returning to Air Exel
Air Exel
Air Exel was an airline based in Maastricht in the Netherlands, operating scheduled and chartered flights out of Eindhoven Airport and Maastricht Aachen Airport to several domestic and international destinations.-History:...
. Although BonairExel flew its aircraft in the Exel color scheme; operated with Air Exel aircraft; and flew with Air Exel cabin staff; the airline was wholly owned by a Dutch millionaire residing on Bonaire, and operated simply as a franchise carrier. As the local market was rather small, a subsidiary was formed on Curaçao, named Curaçao Exel. Dutch Caribbean Airlines
Dutch Caribbean Airlines
Dutch Caribbean Airlines was an airline based in Curaçao, part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It was founded after the demise of Curaçao's first airline, Air ALM...
(DCA) declared bankruptcy not long after. Exel Aviation noticed that the Caribbean airlines were very profitable, and set up its own Aruba Exel, causing distress amongst the other franchise carriers.
With the Exel empire expanding too rapidly in Europe and the Caribbean, it was no surprise that the dream would not last long. In a lawsuit against Nick Sandman (owner of Bonaire and Curaçao Exel) to demand back the invested amount, and confiscate back the ATR 42
ATR 42
-Civil operators:The largest operators of the ATR-42 are FedEx Express, Airlinair, TRIP Linhas Aéreas,and Mexico City-based Aeromar respectively. Number of aircraft as of 2010:Some 70 other airlines operate smaller numbers of the type....
aircraft, ties dissolved between the Exel Aviation Group and the Caribbean franchise carriers. With minimal funds, the airline made an attempt to distance itself from its partner, changing its names to BonairExpress and CuraçaoExpress. This move permantently broke up the alliance, causing no more profits to go to the ailing Exel Aviation Group. All Exel airlines disappeared, including fellow Aruba Exel.
Previously the airline's head office was in the Plasa Medardo SV Thielman in Kralendijk
Kralendijk
Kralendijk is the capital city and main port of the island of Bonaire in the Caribbean Netherlands. The language spoken in the town is Papiamentu, but Dutch and English are widely used. In Dutch, Kralendijk means "coral reef" or "coral dike". The Papiamentu name for the town is Playa or "beach"...
, Bonaire. In April 2007 the airline moved its head office from Bonaire to Curaçao, where the airline's flight operations have been based. The airline's call centre and its revenue accounting and handling departments remained in Bonaire.
After numerous lawsuits, Bonaire (now called Bonaire Express) and Curaçao Express
Curaçao Express
Curaçao Express was a regional airline based in Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles. It operated services between the islands of the Netherlands Antilles, mostly flights between Curaçao's Hato International Airport and St Maarten's Princess Juliana International Airport.- History :The airline started...
merged to form Dutch Antilles Express, which started operations on 30 April 2005 with flights between the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba. On 9 December 2005, its first international services to Valencia, Venezuela, were launched.
After the airline's reconstruction ,two ATR 42s were sent for a C-Check and received the new color scheme , with a green flyDAE logo. While this was taking place, the airline leased two Fokker 50s from Denim Air
Denim Air
Denim Air B.V. is a charter airline based in Mijdrecht, the Netherlands. It provides ACMI wet lease services to other airlines. Its main base is Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.It is wholly owned by Panta Holdings and had 242 employees ....
, which flew the Curaçao-St. Maarten route until the return of the ATR 42s.
Livery
On the ATR 42-300 the aircraft has the standard flydae.com website address on the left side of the aircraft and the phone number +599-7170808 on the right side, but the aircraft does not have a logo on the tail section.
In the case of the ATR 42-320 and -500, the aircraft have the web address on the left side of the aircraft and the phone number on the right side; and both aircraft have the green, blue & yellow DAE logo on the tail section.
The two Fokker 100s both have the web address on the left side and on the right side of the aircraft, although Alpha has the logo displayed on the engine cowlings and the tail and Bravo lacks these logos.
Destinations
Dutch Antilles Express serve the following destinations, as at August 2011:Oranjestad, Aruba
Aruba
Aruba is a 33 km-long island of the Lesser Antilles in the southern Caribbean Sea, located 27 km north of the coast of Venezuela and 130 km east of Guajira Peninsula...
(Queen Beatrix International Airport
Queen Beatrix International Airport
Queen Beatrix International Airport , in Oranjestad, Aruba, is an aviation facility. It has flight services to the United States, most countries in the Caribbean, the northern coastal countries of South America, Canada and some parts of Europe, notably the Netherlands...
) Kralendijk, Bonaire (Flamingo International Airport
Flamingo International Airport
Flamingo International Airport or Bonaire International Airport is an international airport located at Kralendijk, Bonaire, Netherlands. The Flamingo Airport serves as a connecting point for flights of KLM to some airports in South America...
) Willemstad, Curaçao
Curaçao
Curaçao is an island in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan coast. The Country of Curaçao , which includes the main island plus the small, uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao , is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
(Hato International Airport
Hato International Airport
Hato International Airport or Curaçao International Airport is the airport of Willemstad, Curaçao. It has services to the Caribbean region, South America, North America and Europe...
)Hub Las Américas, Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo, known officially as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city in the Dominican Republic. Its metropolitan population was 2,084,852 in 2003, and estimated at 3,294,385 in 2010. The city is located on the Caribbean Sea, at the mouth of the Ozama River...
(Las Américas International Airport
Las Américas International Airport
-Cargo airlines:-Accidents and incidents:*On February 15, 1970, a Dominicana de Aviación DC-9 flying to Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico, crashed, killing all 102 persons on board ....
) Philipsburg, St. Maarten (Princess Juliana International Airport
Princess Juliana International Airport
Princess Juliana International Airport serves the Dutch part of the island of Sint Maarten. In 2007, the airport handled 1,647,824 passengers and 103,650 aircraft movements. The airport serves as a hub for Windward Islands Airways and is the major gateway for the smaller Leeward Islands,...
) Valencia, Venezuela (Arturo Michelena International Airport
Arturo Michelena International Airport
Arturo Michelena International Airport serves the fast-growing industrial city of Valencia in Venezuela two hours from Caracas . It is an active airport but with few facilities, located at 10° 9' 29.46 North latitude, 67° 55' 36.31 W longitude....
) Caracas, Venezuela
Caracas
Caracas , officially Santiago de León de Caracas, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela; natives or residents are known as Caraquenians in English . It is located in the northern part of the country, following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range...
(Simón Bolívar International Airport
Simón Bolívar International Airport (Venezuela)
Simón Bolívar International Airport of Maiquetia is an international airport located in Maiquetía, Venezuela, about 13 miles from downtown Caracas....
) Bogotá, Colombia
Bogotá
Bogotá, Distrito Capital , from 1991 to 2000 called Santa Fé de Bogotá, is the capital, and largest city, of Colombia. It is also designated by the national constitution as the capital of the department of Cundinamarca, even though the city of Bogotá now comprises an independent Capital district...
(El Dorado International Airport
El Dorado International Airport
El Dorado International Airport is an international airport located in Bogotá, Colombia. It is the largest Latin America airport in terms of cargo movements with 593,946 tons and the third in terms of passenger traffic, only behind São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport and Mexico City's...
) Cartagena
Cartagena, Colombia
Cartagena de Indias , is a large Caribbean beach resort city on the northern coast of Colombia in the Caribbean Coast Region and capital of Bolívar Department...
(Rafael Núñez International Airport
Rafael Núñez International Airport
Rafael Núñez International Airport is an airport located in the city of Cartagena, Colombia. It is the second largest airport on the Caribbean coast of Colombia, and the largest in the region in terms of passenger movement....
) Panama (Tocumen International Airport
Tocumen International Airport
Tocumen International Airport is an international airport located from Panama City, Panama. In 2006, it underwent a major expansion and renovation program in order to modernize and improve its facilities...
)
Fleet
The Dutch Antilles Express fleet consists of the following aircraft (at October 2011):| Aircraft | In Service | On Order | Passengers | Aircraft Registration | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fokker 100 | 2 | 0 | 100 | PJ-DAA, PJ-DAB | |
| McDonnell Douglas MD83 | 0 | 2 | TBA | TBA | To begin operations in December 2011 |
| Total | 2 |
Past aircraft of The Dutch Antilles Express consists of the following: (at October 2011):
| Aircraft | Total | Passengers | Aircraft Registration | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATR 42-320 ATR 42 -Civil operators:The largest operators of the ATR-42 are FedEx Express, Airlinair, TRIP Linhas Aéreas,and Mexico City-based Aeromar respectively. Number of aircraft as of 2010:Some 70 other airlines operate smaller numbers of the type.... |
2 | 46 | PJ-XLM | Returned to Lessor on 07/2011 |
| 46 | PJ-SLH | Returned to Lessor on 09/2011 | ||
| ATR 42-500 ATR 42 -Civil operators:The largest operators of the ATR-42 are FedEx Express, Airlinair, TRIP Linhas Aéreas,and Mexico City-based Aeromar respectively. Number of aircraft as of 2010:Some 70 other airlines operate smaller numbers of the type.... |
1 | 48 | PJ-XLN | Returned to Lessor on 05/2011 |
| Total | 3 |
DAE is the only Jet Fokker
Fokker
Fokker was a Dutch aircraft manufacturer named after its founder, Anthony Fokker. The company operated under several different names, starting out in 1912 in Schwerin, Germany, moving to the Netherlands in 1919....
operator in the Caribbean. It has been revealed on the airline's Facebook page that the airline has recently acquired MD80's for it's new fleet after the airline's restructuring and that the airline has successfully negotiated for the return of the ATR's in the beginning of 2012.