Air Djibouti (1963)
| Air Djibouti | |
|---|---|
|
|
| IATA code : | DJ |
| ICAO code : | DJI |
| Call sign : | DJIBOUTI |
| Founding: | 1963 |
| Operation stopped: | 1991 |
| Seat: |
Djibouti , Djibouti
|
| Home airport : | Djibouti airport |
| Fleet size: | 2 |
| Aims: | National and international |
| Air Djibouti ceased operations in 1991. The information in italics refer to the last status before the end of operation. | |
Air Djibouti (from 1973 under the brand name Air Djibouti - Red Sea Airlines ) was a state-owned airline in Djibouti that ceased operations in 1991.
history
Air Djibouti was founded in April 1963 by the French pilot and entrepreneur Bernard Astraud . Initially, the company operated contract flights within the French Somaliland colony with the Bristol 170 Wayfarer , De Havilland DH.89 Dragon Rapide and Beechcraft Model 18 aircraft . The company took on national liner services from the city of Djibouti to Dikhil , Obock and Tadjoura in April 1964 and shortly thereafter set up an international connection to Taizz in Yemen . In 1965 Air Djibouti acquired their first Douglas DC-3 and gradually unified the fleet with this type of aircraft in the 1960s. In addition, the company also operated helicopters from 1969 onwards.
Air Djibouti was bought in 1970 by Air Somali , an airline founded in 1962 , in which the French airline Air France held a majority stake. In July 1971 Air France took over a 50.7% stake in Air Djibouti and then used its aircraft for regional feeder services. The two subsidiaries of Air France were merged on March 14, 1972, with Air Somali in Air Djibouti . In addition to national routes, the company then served international scheduled connections to Aden , Asmara , Dire Dawa , Hargeisa , Mogadishu , Sanaa and Taizz. In addition, from April 1974 Air Djibouti deployed two Douglas DC-6 aircraft on charter flights to Europe and for freight transport to Nairobi . The remaining Douglas DC-3s were replaced by two De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otters in 1975 .
The newly established Republic of Djibouti took a 62.5% stake in the company in 1977 and took over additional shares in Air France at the beginning of 1981 , so that the state finally had a 90% stake in the company. At the same time, Air Djibouti opened a scheduled connection to Paris via Rome , on which the company's first jet aircraft was deployed, a Boeing 737 rented by Transavia Holland . After the nationalization, the company flew increasing losses. In May 1982 Air Djibouti acquired a Boeing 727 , but it had to be sold again in the spring of 1984 in order to avert the impending bankruptcy. Instead, in the 1980s, the company commissioned the Belgian Sobelair and the Yugoslavian Jugoslovenski Aerotransport (JAT) to operate their flights to Europe in wet lease. On January 22, 1991 Air Djibouti ceased operations for economic reasons. The state company was dissolved shortly afterwards and the two DHC-6 Twin Otters were sold. At this point, liabilities were $ 11 million.
fleet
Air Djibouti has operated the following aircraft and helicopters throughout its history:
- Alouette III
- Beechcraft Model 18
- Beechcraft musketeer
- Bell 47
- Bell 206B
- Boeing 737-200 and 737-200C
- Boeing 727-100 and 727-100C
- Bristol 170 Wayfarer
- Cessna 206
- De Havilland DH.89 Dragon Rapide
- de Havilland Canada DHC-6-200
- Douglas DC-3
- Douglas DC-6A and DC-6B
- Douglas DC-9-32
- Piper PA-32
Incidents
- On July 23, 1969, both engines of a Douglas DC-3 ( registration number : F-OCKT ) were damaged by a bird strike . The crew succeeded in ditching off the coast of Djibouti. The four people on board were uninjured.
- On October 17, 1977, two people attempted to hijack a De Havilland Canada DHC-6 at Tadjoura Airport . They shot the pilot and a passenger.
- On August 17, 1986, a Boeing 737-200 (OO-SBQ) rented by Sobelair was intercepted on a flight from Sanaa over the Red Sea by two fighter jets of the South Yemeni Air Force and forced to land in Aden . There, security forces searched the machine for followers of Ali Nasir Muhammad and arrested one person. As a result of the incident, the Republic of Djibouti severed diplomatic relations with the state of South Yemen .
See also
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Encyclopedia of African Airlines, Ben R. Guttery, Jefferson 1998
- ^ Flight International, March 31, 1984 [1]
- ^ Flight International, April 9, 1977 [2]
- ^ Aero Transport Data Bank, Air Djibouti
- ↑ Air Djibouti, flight plan 1973/1974 [3]
- ^ The Kenya Gazette, September 6, 1974
- ↑ jp airline-fleets international, Edition 76
- ↑ Flight International, July 26, 1980 [4]
- ↑ jp airline-fleets international, Edition 85/86
- ↑ jp airline-fleets international, Edition 91/92
- ^ Air Transport World, June 1, 1991.
- ↑ jp airline-fleets international, various issues
- ↑ Aviation Safety Network, July 23, 1969 [5]
- ↑ Aviation Safety Network, October 17, 1977 [6]
- ↑ Chicago Tribune, August 18, 1986