Skytrans Airlines
Encyclopedia
Skytrans is an Australian airline and air charter business with bases in Cairns, Townsville, Darwin, Brisbane and Perth. The airline flies regularly from Cairns to Cooktown, Lockhart River, Coen, Aurukun, and from Townsville to Palm Island.
. In January 2005, the airline began to operate in competition with QantasLink
on the Cairns — Townsville route, operating from its own terminals in both cities.
In December 2006, the airline was acquired from its founders by Australian Aviation Holdings, which also owns Queensland Regional Airlines
and Inland Pacific Air
. Skytrans and QRA have now merged under the Skytrans banner.
In July 2009 Skytrans changed its IATA designator from NP to Q6.
As of July 2011 the Skytrans fleet consists of:
charter services to many large companies within the mining sector.
Scheduled flights operate from Cairns to Lockhart River, Coen, Aurukun, Mount Isa, Bamaga, Edward river, Normanton, Doomadgee, Gununa, Burketown and Kowanyama.
Scheduled flights operate from Brisbane to Toowoomba, Charleville, Quilpie, Windorah, Birdsville, Bedourie, Boulia, Mount Isa, St George, Cunnamulla and Thargomindah.
Charter operations operate to Comoro airport (Dili, East Timor) under an agreement with PDL Toll (for the Australian Defence Force).
Skytrans wet lease
s two of its Dash 8s to Maroomba Airlines
.
in the NBL
and supports various causes such as AFL
Kickstart, Choice Business Australia, The Queensland Cancer Council, and Harold's House.
History
Skytrans was formed in October 1990 as a charter airline, and began scheduled flights in 1993. In November 2000, Skytrans merged with AirSwift Aviation, another small regional airline based in Cairns. In June 2001, Skytrans took over services to Cooktown and Karumba from MacAir AirlinesMacair Airlines
MacAir Airlines Pty Ltd was a regional airline based in Townsville, Queensland, Australia. It operated scheduled passenger services throughout Queensland from major regional locations, as well as regular and ad hoc charters for the minerals industry in Queensland...
. In January 2005, the airline began to operate in competition with QantasLink
QantasLink
QantasLink is a regional brand of Australian airline Qantas and is an affiliate member of the Oneworld airline alliance. It is a major competitor to Regional Express Airlines, Virgin Australia and Skywest Airlines. As of September 2010 QantasLink provides 1900 flights each week to 54 domestic and...
on the Cairns — Townsville route, operating from its own terminals in both cities.
In December 2006, the airline was acquired from its founders by Australian Aviation Holdings, which also owns Queensland Regional Airlines
Queensland Regional Airlines
Queensland Regional Airlines was an airline based in Cairns, Queensland, Australia. It was established and started operations in 2003 and operates passenger services, as well as contract and ad-hoc charter and aircraft leasing...
and Inland Pacific Air
Inland Pacific Air
Inland Pacific Air is an airline based in Garbutt, Queensland, Australia. It was established and started operations in 1993 and operated passenger services from Townsville, Queensland. Its main base is Townsville International Airport. Regular passenger operations were operated to Palm Island,...
. Skytrans and QRA have now merged under the Skytrans banner.
In July 2009 Skytrans changed its IATA designator from NP to Q6.
Fleet
- 11 de Havilland Canada Dash 8-100
- 1 de Havilland Canada Dash 8-300
Operations
Skytrans provides scheduled service flights to a number of North Queensland destinations and operates charter flights throughout Australia, Papua New Guinea and the SW Pacific. The airline also provides fly-in fly-outFly-in fly-out
Fly-in fly-out is a method of employing people in remote areas. It is often abbreviated to FIFO when referring to employment status. This is common in large mining states in Australia...
charter services to many large companies within the mining sector.
Scheduled flights operate from Cairns to Lockhart River, Coen, Aurukun, Mount Isa, Bamaga, Edward river, Normanton, Doomadgee, Gununa, Burketown and Kowanyama.
Scheduled flights operate from Brisbane to Toowoomba, Charleville, Quilpie, Windorah, Birdsville, Bedourie, Boulia, Mount Isa, St George, Cunnamulla and Thargomindah.
Charter operations operate to Comoro airport (Dili, East Timor) under an agreement with PDL Toll (for the Australian Defence Force).
Skytrans wet lease
Wet lease
Aircraft leases are a number of types of leases used by airlines and other aircraft operators. Airlines lease aircraft from other airlines or leasing companies for two main reasons; to operate aircraft without the financial burden of buying them, and to provide temporary increase in capacity...
s two of its Dash 8s to Maroomba Airlines
Maroomba Airlines
Nantay Pty. Ltd., trading as Maroomba Airlines, is a small airline and air charter company based in Western Australia. Founded in 1985, the airline operates regular passenger services to Mount Magnet as well as-hoc charter services around Western Australia....
.
Scheduled destinations
As of March 2011, Skytrans offers scheduled service at the following locations:- Aurukun – Aurukun Airport
- Bamaga – Northern Peninsula Airport
- Bedourie – Bedourie Airport
- Birdsville – Birdsville AirportBirdsville AirportBirdsville Airport is an airport serving Birdsville, Queensland, Australia.-Airlines and destinations:...
- Boulia – Boulia AirportBoulia AirportBoulia Airport is an airport in Boulia, Queensland, Australia.-Airlines and destinations:...
- BrisbaneBrisbaneBrisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
– Brisbane AirportBrisbane AirportBrisbane Airport is the sole passenger airport serving Brisbane and the third busiest in Australia, after Melbourne and Sydney Airports. Brisbane Airport has won many awards. Located in the suburb with the same name, the airport serves the city of Brisbane and the surrounding metropolitan area... - Burketown – Burketown AirportBurketown AirportBurketown Airport is an airport in Burketown, Queensland, Australia.-Airlines and destinations:...
- Cairns – Cairns Airport
- CharlevilleCharleville, QueenslandCharleville is a town in south western Queensland, Australia, 758 kilometres by road west of Brisbane . It is the largest town and administrative centre of the Murweh Shire, which covers an area of 43,905 square kilometres...
– Charleville AirportCharleville AirportCharleville Airport is an airport in Charleville, a town in the state of Queensland in Australia.-Airlines and destinations:-History:During World War II, the United States Army Air Force 63d Bombardment Squadron, assigned to the Fifth Air Force 43d Bombardment Group, flew B-17 Flying Fortresses... - ClermontClermont, QueenslandClermont is an agricultural town in the Isaac Region, Queensland, Australia. It is 274 km south-west of Mackay on the junction of the Gregory and Peak Downs highways...
– Clermont Airport - CoenCoen, QueenslandCoen is a small inland town on the main road heading up the Cape York Peninsula in far northern Queensland, Australia. It is in the Cook Shire Local Government Area. At the 2006 census, Coen had a population of 253....
– Coen AirportCoen AirportCoen Airport is an airport in Coen, Queensland, Australia.-Airlines and destinations:... - Cunnamulla – Cunnamulla AirportCunnamulla AirportCunnamulla Airport is an airport in Cunnamulla, Queensland, Australia. The airport is 6 km from the town.-Airlines and destinations:...
- Doomadgee – Doomadgee AirportDoomadgee AirportDoomadgee Airport is an airport in Doomadgee, Queensland, Australia . The airport recently received $200,853 for security upgrades.-Airlines and destinations:...
- Edward RiverEdward River (Queensland)The Edward River is a river in Queensland, Australia.The mouth of the Edward River is located at , on the western shore of Cape York Peninsula, the eastern edge of the Gulf of Carpentaria....
(Pormpuraaw) – Edward River AirportEdward River AirportEdward River Airport is an airport in Pormpuraaw, Queensland, Australia.-External links:*... - Gununa (Mornington IslandMornington IslandMornington Island is the northern most of 22 islands that form the Wellesley Islands group. The island is located in the Gulf of Carpentaria at and is part of the Gulf Country region in the Australian state of Queensland. The Manowar and Rocky Islands Important Bird Area lies about 40 km to...
) – Mornington Island AirportMornington Island AirportMornington Island Airport is an airport on Mornington Island, Queensland, Australia. in 2006 the airport received $200,853 in funds to improve security.-Airlines and destinations:... - Kowanyama – Kowanyama AirportKowanyama AirportKowanyama Airport is an airport in Kowanyama, Queensland, Australia. The airport recently received $107,448 for security upgrades.-External links:* from Airservices Australia...
- Lockhart River – Lockhart River AirportLockhart River AirportLockhart River Airport is an airport in Lockhart River, Queensland, Australia, located approximately 800 km north of Cairns on the eastern coast of Cape York Peninsula...
- Mount Isa – Mount Isa AirportMount Isa AirportMount Isa Airport is an airport serving the western Queensland city of Mount Isa, Australia. It is served by a variety of scheduled regional airlines, with flights to Brisbane, Townsville and Cairns as well as several other regional centres....
- NormantonNormanton, Queensland-External links:****...
– Normanton AirportNormanton AirportNormanton Airport is an airport in Normanton, Queensland, Australia. A new terminal was opened in February 2006. The airport received $132,100 for security upgrades in 2006.-Airlines and destinations:... - Quilpie – Quilpie AirportQuilpie AirportQuilpie Airport is an airport serving Quilpie, Queensland, Australia. It is located northwest of Quilpie and operated by the Quilpie Shire Council. The airport received $242,666 for security upgrades from the Australian Government in 2006.-Facilities:...
- St GeorgeSt George, QueenslandSt George is a town of approximately 2400 people in south-western Queensland, Australia. It is the administrative centre for the Shire of Balonne. It was named by Major Thomas Mitchell who crossed the Balonne River on St George's Day, 23 April 1846. At the 2006 census, St George had a population of...
– St George Airport - Thargomindah – Thargomindah AirportThargomindah AirportThargomindah Airport is an airport near Thargomindah, Queensland, Australia....
- Toowoomba – Toowoomba AirportToowoomba AirportToowoomba Airport is an airport located 4 km west from the CBD of Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia.-Other Services:*Southern Queensland base for Royal Flying Doctor Service *Darling Downs Aeroclub*RACQ CareFlight South West-Future Development:...
- Townsville – Townsville Airport
- Windorah – Windorah AirportWindorah AirportWindorah Airport is an airport serving Windorah, Queensland, Australia. It is operated by the Barcoo Shire Council. The airport received $183,578 in funds for security upgrades from the Australian Government in 2006.-Facilities:...
In the community
Skytrans is the major sponsor of the Cairns TaipansCairns Taipans
The Cairns Taipans are an Australian professional basketball team competing in the Australasian National Basketball League. The club is based in the northern Queensland city of Cairns. The Taipans, named after a species of venomous snake native to Australia, entered the NBL in the 1999/2000 season...
in the NBL
National Basketball League (Australia)
The National Basketball League, also known as the iiNet NBL Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in Australasia....
and supports various causes such as AFL
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
Kickstart, Choice Business Australia, The Queensland Cancer Council, and Harold's House.