Strategic Airlines
Encyclopedia
Strategic Airlines Pty Ltd, trading as Air Australia Airways is a scheduled passenger and charter airline
with its head office in Hendra
, Brisbane, Australia
,. The airline currently has dual Luxembourgish and Australian Air Operator's Certificate
s and focuses primarily on providing ACMI (aircraft, crews, maintenance and insurance) or 'wet-leased' aircraft to other operators around Europe and Asia-Pacific.
s, Ilyushin IL-76
s and Boeing 747
freighters. In 2002, Michael James joined the company as an Executive Director and equal shareholder. With a background at Ansett and air charter, James assisted the company to successful bid for the Australian Defence Force
Troop Lift Contract. With this diversification, the trading name was dropped and the company rebranded as Strategic. The airline established charter flights from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport and Luxembourg-Findel Airport to Greece and Portugal. The Airline was forbid of charter flights because of alleged degradations. Strategic's certificate was cancelled. Two months later, the airline received a new certificate from the Luxembourg authorities. The airline
was now authorised to operate flights from Europe.
This contract was initially serviced with a leased Airbus A330
from Portuguese
Airline HiFly
utilising Australian crews. Former OzJet
operations director David Blake was appointed CEO in 2008 to assist with the expansion of the airline side of the business.
The airline was first awarded its French Air Operator's Certificate
in August 2009 to begin services using Airbus A320
F-GSTR. This aircraft was then leased to Solomon Airlines
and painted with a mixed Solomon's/Strategic livery
. The second French registered A320
F-GSTS was delivered one month later to be marketed by the airlines European office, based in Gatwick.
The first Australian (VH-) registered aircraft, A330-200 VH-SSA was delivered in July 2009, and the Australian AOC was awarded soon after in September. This was complemented by the third A320 VH-YQA in December 2009.
In June 2009 Strategic purchased the troubled airline OzJet
along with its staff (ensuring full entitlements were paid), its Air Operators Certificate and the Perth-Derby RPT route. The route was serviced by a chartered Fokker 100 from Alliance Airlines
until Strategic's first Australian registered Airbus A320
was introduced in early 2010.
In The Sydney Morning Herald
on 2 April 2011, it was first claimed that the airline would change its name by the end of the year, in order to create a brand more identifiable with its Australian roots. The name change was confirmed in August 2011, with the airline also planning on becoming a low-cost carrier and announcing service from Brisbane and Melbourne to Honolulu to begin in December 2011.
Strategic Airlines relaunched as Air Australia on November 15 2011 .
brokerage services under the Strategic Aviation banner, which also utilises aircraft from Air Australia when required.
For 2011 and 2012 Strategic Airlines Luxembourg will be operating a series of Charter flights from the UK to destinations in Greece and Cyprus for a British Tour operator. Flights will operate from Manchester and London Gatwick to Corfu, Crete, Heraklion, Kos, Rhodes, Skiathos and Zante in Greece along with Paphos and Larnaca in Cyprus.
Air Australia currently operates scheduled services to:
Strategic has been allocated an additional 1,514 seats per week to Indonesia from the International Air Services Commission (IASC). This is enough for Strategic to operate 10 more A320 services per week; presumably this capacity will be utilised on four additional Perth-Denpasar flights, three Melbourne-Denpasar and three Sydney-Denpasar per week each.
Strategic has also been granted 6 A330 services per week to Phuket from the IASC. Soon after, Strategic announced that they will be flying to Phuket from Brisbane and Melbourne, 2 times per week each.
Most recently, Strategic Airlines applied for rights to fly to the United States
from September 2011. In its application to the United States Department of Transportation
, the Airline indicated that it is intending to initially commence services from Brisbane to Honolulu from late 2011, utilising a second A330-200 from Swiss International Airlines.. Strategic have annouced a 2 per week Brisbane to Honolulu and a 2 per week Melbourne to Honolulu A330 flights to begin on 14th December 2011.
Additionally, in May 2011, Strategic Airlines lodged an application with the Australia-based International Air Services Commission for 1,911 seats weekly on the Australia to China route (no specific routes were mentioned). In its application, the Airline requested the capacity be made available from September 2011 onwards. On 6 June 2011, the International Air Services Commission granted Strategic Airlines 1,911 seats each week on the Australia to China route and media reports suggested that the airline was planning on 3 times weekly services from Brisbane to Beijing or Shanghai.
Air Australia has applied to operate 4 services per week to Vietnam to begin in March 2012 from the IASC.
Strategic's orders for Airbus A330-200s consist of 6 for expansion in new markets of China and India from both their Melbourne and Brisbane bases. and two for Australian market set for delivery in late 2011 and early 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...
with its head office in Hendra
Hendra, Queensland
Hendra is a suburb of the city of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It lies roughly six kilometres north-east of Brisbane central business district.- History :...
, Brisbane, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
,. The airline currently has dual Luxembourgish and Australian Air Operator's Certificate
Air Operator's Certificate
An air operator's certificate is the approval granted from a national aviation authority to an aircraft operator to allow it to use aircraft for commercial purposes. This requires the operator to have personnel, assets and system in place to ensure the safety of its employees and the general public...
s and focuses primarily on providing ACMI (aircraft, crews, maintenance and insurance) or 'wet-leased' aircraft to other operators around Europe and Asia-Pacific.
History
Founded in 1991 as an air freight broker and trading as Air Charter Logistics, Strategic Aviation Pty Ltd was established by Executive Director, Shaun Aisen. The company specialised in the transportation of oversize or unique cargo, chartering flights on Antonov An-124Antonov An-124
The Antonov An-124 Ruslan is a strategic airlift jet aircraft. It was designed by the Ukrainian SSR's Antonov design bureau, then part of the Soviet Union. It is the world's largest ever serially-manufactured cargo airplane and world's second largest operating cargo aircraft...
s, Ilyushin IL-76
Ilyushin Il-76
The Ilyushin Il-76 is a multi-purpose four-engined strategic airlifter designed by Ilyushin design bureau. It was first planned as a commercial freighter in 1967. Intended as a replacement for the Antonov An-12, the Il-76 was designed for delivering heavy machinery to remote, poorly-serviced areas...
s and Boeing 747
Boeing 747
The Boeing 747 is a wide-body commercial airliner and cargo transport, often referred to by its original nickname, Jumbo Jet, or Queen of the Skies. It is among the world's most recognizable aircraft, and was the first wide-body ever produced...
freighters. In 2002, Michael James joined the company as an Executive Director and equal shareholder. With a background at Ansett and air charter, James assisted the company to successful bid for the Australian Defence Force
Australian Defence Force
The Australian Defence Force is the military organisation responsible for the defence of Australia. It consists of the Royal Australian Navy , Australian Army, Royal Australian Air Force and a number of 'tri-service' units...
Troop Lift Contract. With this diversification, the trading name was dropped and the company rebranded as Strategic. The airline established charter flights from Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport and Luxembourg-Findel Airport to Greece and Portugal. The Airline was forbid of charter flights because of alleged degradations. Strategic's certificate was cancelled. Two months later, the airline received a new certificate from the Luxembourg authorities. The 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...
was now authorised to operate flights from Europe.
This contract was initially serviced with a leased Airbus A330
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....
from Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
Airline HiFly
Hi Fly (airline)
Hi Fly is an airline with its head office in Lisbon, Portugal, which has specialised in the worldwide aircraft lease on medium to long term contracts for airlines, tour operators, governments, companies and individuals...
utilising Australian crews. Former OzJet
OzJet
Ozjet Airlines Pty Ltd was a scheduled and charter airline with its head office in Tullamarine, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, operating within Australasia from Melbourne Airport, Sydney Airport and Perth Airport. In 2008 the airline was sold to HeavyLift Cargo Airlines, and on 20 May 2009 it...
operations director David Blake was appointed CEO in 2008 to assist with the expansion of the airline side of the business.
The airline was first awarded its French Air Operator's Certificate
Air Operator's Certificate
An air operator's certificate is the approval granted from a national aviation authority to an aircraft operator to allow it to use aircraft for commercial purposes. This requires the operator to have personnel, assets and system in place to ensure the safety of its employees and the general public...
in August 2009 to begin services using Airbus A320
Airbus A320 family
The Airbus A320 family is a family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger jet airliners manufactured by Airbus Industrie.Airbus was originally a consortium of European aerospace companies, and is now fully owned by EADS. Airbus's name has been Airbus SAS since 2001...
F-GSTR. This aircraft was then leased to Solomon Airlines
Solomon Airlines
Solomon Airlines is the national airline of the Solomon Islands, based in Honiara.- History :Solomon Airlines was established in 1962 as a charter airline by Laurie Crowley. Crowley had been flying around Papua New Guinea when he started to fly charter flights on a single Piper Aztec plane to the...
and painted with a mixed Solomon's/Strategic livery
Livery
A livery is a uniform, insignia or symbol adorning, in a non-military context, a person, an object or a vehicle that denotes a relationship between the wearer of the livery and an individual or corporate body. Often, elements of the heraldry relating to the individual or corporate body feature in...
. The second French registered A320
Airbus A320
The Airbus A320 family is a family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger jet airliners manufactured by Airbus Industrie.Airbus was originally a consortium of European aerospace companies, and is now fully owned by EADS. Airbus's name has been Airbus SAS since 2001...
F-GSTS was delivered one month later to be marketed by the airlines European office, based in Gatwick.
The first Australian (VH-) registered aircraft, A330-200 VH-SSA was delivered in July 2009, and the Australian AOC was awarded soon after in September. This was complemented by the third A320 VH-YQA in December 2009.
In June 2009 Strategic purchased the troubled airline OzJet
OzJet
Ozjet Airlines Pty Ltd was a scheduled and charter airline with its head office in Tullamarine, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, operating within Australasia from Melbourne Airport, Sydney Airport and Perth Airport. In 2008 the airline was sold to HeavyLift Cargo Airlines, and on 20 May 2009 it...
along with its staff (ensuring full entitlements were paid), its Air Operators Certificate and the Perth-Derby RPT route. The route was serviced by a chartered Fokker 100 from Alliance Airlines
Alliance Airlines
Alliance Airlines is a charter airline based in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It specialises in long-term contract charter to the mining and resources industry and governments in Australia, as well as ad-hoc charter operations and aircraft leasing to international airlines...
until Strategic's first Australian registered Airbus A320
Airbus A320 family
The Airbus A320 family is a family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger jet airliners manufactured by Airbus Industrie.Airbus was originally a consortium of European aerospace companies, and is now fully owned by EADS. Airbus's name has been Airbus SAS since 2001...
was introduced in early 2010.
In The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald is a daily broadsheet newspaper published by Fairfax Media in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831 as the Sydney Herald, the SMH is the oldest continuously published newspaper in Australia. The newspaper is published six days a week. The newspaper's Sunday counterpart, The...
on 2 April 2011, it was first claimed that the airline would change its name by the end of the year, in order to create a brand more identifiable with its Australian roots. The name change was confirmed in August 2011, with the airline also planning on becoming a low-cost carrier and announcing service from Brisbane and Melbourne to Honolulu to begin in December 2011.
Strategic Airlines relaunched as Air Australia on November 15 2011 .
Current services and destinations
The Strategic Aviation group continues to provide air charter and air freightCargo airline
Cargo airlines are airlines dedicated to the transport of cargo. Some cargo airlines are divisions or subsidiaries of larger passenger airlines.-Logistics:...
brokerage services under the Strategic Aviation banner, which also utilises aircraft from Air Australia when required.
For 2011 and 2012 Strategic Airlines Luxembourg will be operating a series of Charter flights from the UK to destinations in Greece and Cyprus for a British Tour operator. Flights will operate from Manchester and London Gatwick to Corfu, Crete, Heraklion, Kos, Rhodes, Skiathos and Zante in Greece along with Paphos and Larnaca in Cyprus.
Air Australia currently operates scheduled services to:
| † | Base |
| City | Airport Code | Airport Name | Notes | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IATA | ICAO | ||||
 AustraliaAustralia Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... |
|||||
| Brisbane Brisbane Brisbane 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... |
BNE | YBBN | Brisbane Airport Brisbane Airport Brisbane 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... † |
||
| Derby Derby, Western Australia Derby is a town in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. At the 2006 census, Derby had a population of 3,093. Along with Broome and Kununurra, it is one of only three towns in the Kimberley to have a population over 2,000... |
DCN | YCIN | RAAF Curtin RAAF Curtin RAAF Base Curtin is a Royal Australian Air Force base located near the town of Derby on the north coast of Western Australia. As it is one of the RAAF's three 'bare bases' no Air Force units are currently based at Curtin and it is maintained by a small caretaker staff during peacetime... |
||
| Melbourne Melbourne Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater... |
MEL | YMML | Melbourne Airport Melbourne Airport Melbourne Airport , also known as Tullamarine Airport, is the primary airport serving the city of Melbourne and the second busiest in Australia. It was opened in 1970 to replace the nearby Essendon Airport. Melbourne Airport is the sole international airport of the four airports serving the... † |
||
| Perth Perth, Western Australia Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000.... |
PER | YBBH | Perth Airport Perth Airport Perth Airport is an Australian domestic and international airport serving Perth, the capital and largest city of Western Australia. The airport itself is located in the suburb of Perth Airport.... |
||
| Port Hedland Port Hedland, Western Australia Port Hedland is the highest tonnage port in Australia and largest town in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, with a population of approximately 14,000 .... |
PHE | YPPD | Port Hedland Airport | ||
 IndonesiaIndonesia Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an... |
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| Denpasar (Bali) Denpasar Denpasar is the capital city of the province of Bali, Indonesia. It has a rapidly expanding population of 788,445 in 2010, up from 533,252 in the previous decade. It is located at .-History:... |
DPS | WADD | Ngurah Rai International Airport | ||
 ThailandThailand Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the... |
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| Phuket | HKT | VTSP | Phuket International Airport Phuket International Airport Phuket International Airport is an airport serving the Phuket Province of Thailand. It is located in the north of Phuket Island, 32 kilometres from the centre of Phuket City. The airport plays a major role in Thailand's tourism industry, as Phuket Island is a popular resort destination... |
||
 United States of America |
|||||
| Honolulu | HNL | PHNL | Honolulu International Airport Honolulu International Airport Honolulu International Airport is the principal aviation gateway of the City & County of Honolulu and the State of Hawaii and is identified as one of the busiest airports in the United States, with traffic now exceeding 21 million passengers a year and rising.It is located in the Honolulu... |
Begins 14 December | |
Strategic has been allocated an additional 1,514 seats per week to Indonesia from the International Air Services Commission (IASC). This is enough for Strategic to operate 10 more A320 services per week; presumably this capacity will be utilised on four additional Perth-Denpasar flights, three Melbourne-Denpasar and three Sydney-Denpasar per week each.
Strategic has also been granted 6 A330 services per week to Phuket from the IASC. Soon after, Strategic announced that they will be flying to Phuket from Brisbane and Melbourne, 2 times per week each.
Most recently, Strategic Airlines applied for rights to fly to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
from September 2011. In its application to the United States Department of Transportation
Department of Transportation
The Department of Transportation is the most common name for a government agency in North America devoted to transportation. The largest is the United States Department of Transportation, which oversees interstate travel. All U.S. states, Canadian provinces, and many local agencies also have...
, the Airline indicated that it is intending to initially commence services from Brisbane to Honolulu from late 2011, utilising a second A330-200 from Swiss International Airlines.. Strategic have annouced a 2 per week Brisbane to Honolulu and a 2 per week Melbourne to Honolulu A330 flights to begin on 14th December 2011.
Additionally, in May 2011, Strategic Airlines lodged an application with the Australia-based International Air Services Commission for 1,911 seats weekly on the Australia to China route (no specific routes were mentioned). In its application, the Airline requested the capacity be made available from September 2011 onwards. On 6 June 2011, the International Air Services Commission granted Strategic Airlines 1,911 seats each week on the Australia to China route and media reports suggested that the airline was planning on 3 times weekly services from Brisbane to Beijing or Shanghai.
Air Australia has applied to operate 4 services per week to Vietnam to begin in March 2012 from the IASC.
Fleet
As of May 2010, the fleet consists of:| Aircraft | In fleet | On order | Seats | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Y | Total | ||||
| Airbus A320-200 Airbus A320 family The Airbus A320 family is a family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger jet airliners manufactured by Airbus Industrie.Airbus was originally a consortium of European aerospace companies, and is now fully owned by EADS. Airbus's name has been Airbus SAS since 2001... |
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| Airbus A330-200 | |
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Strategic's orders for Airbus A330-200s consist of 6 for expansion in new markets of China and India from both their Melbourne and Brisbane bases. and two for Australian market set for delivery in late 2011 and early 2012.
See also
- QantasQantasQantas Airways Limited is the flag carrier of Australia. The name was originally "QANTAS", an initialism for "Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services". Nicknamed "The Flying Kangaroo", the airline is based in Sydney, with its main hub at Sydney Airport...
- Jetstar AirwaysJetstar AirwaysJetstar Airways is an Australian low-cost airline headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. It is a subsidiary of Qantas, created in response to the threat posed by low-cost airline Virgin Blue...
- Virgin Australia
- Transport in AustraliaTransport in Australia-Roads:Australia has the second highest level of car ownership in the world. It has three to four times more road per capita than Europe and seven to nine times more than Asia. Australia also has the third highest per capita rate of fuel consumption in the world. Perth, Adelaide and Brisbane are...