Safair

Safair

IATA ICAO Callsign FA SFR SAFAIR
Founded	1965
Hubs	O.R. Tambo International Airport
Fleet size	10
Company slogan	Experience. Expertise. Excellence
Parent company	ASL Aviation Group Limited
Headquarters	Kempton Park, Gauteng, South Africa
Website	www.safairoperations.co.za

Safair is an aviation company based at the O.R. Tambo International Airport in Kempton Park South Africa.^[1] Operator of one of the world's largest fleets of civil Lockheed L-100 Hercules cargo aircraft,^[2] it also conducts aircraft chartering; leasing and sales; contract operations and leasing services; flightcrew leasing and training; aircraft maintenance and modification; aviation safety and medical training; and operations support.^[3]

History

Safair Operations as we know it today was established in 1965. At the time it was known as Tropair (Pty) Ltd and was a general aviation charter company. In 1970 the company name changed to Safair Freighters (Pty) Ltd when the company was purchased by Safmarine and the new entity began operations on 18 March 1970. Its primary client in the 1980s was the South African Defence Force. Until the 1990s it mainly served the local and regional air cargo market. In 1991 it diversified into aircraft maintenance and overnight courier operations before concentrating on leasing and chartering. In 1998 it purchased a 49% stake in Air Contractors, based in Ireland, and was itself acquired by Imperial Holdings for $40 million in December 1998. In July 1999 Safair acquired control of National Airways Corporation and Streamline Aviation (a charter and aircraft sales company). It is wholly owned by ASL Aviation Group Ltd based in Dublin, Ireland,^[4] a subsidiary of the Belgian group Compagnie Maritime Belge.^[5] Humanitarian Aid and Relief operations has always been Safair's "niche" market. Safair assists aid and relief agencies such as the United Nations, World Food Programme and the International Committee of the Red Cross in delivering much needed humanitarian aid to stricken regions on the African continent as well as other areas in the world where such assistance is required. In 2007, Safair obtained its IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA)^[6] approval.

Fleet

Safair Boeing 737-300 at Sharjah International Airport

Safair Lockheed L-100-30 Hercules

As of July 2014 the Safair fleet consists of the following aircraft:^[7][8]

Previously operated

• ATR 72^[9]
• Beechcraft 1900D^[10]
• Boeing 707-320
• Boeing 727-100
• Boeing 727-200^[11]
• Boeing 737-200^[12]
• British Aerospace 146-100QT
• British Aerospace 146-200QC
• CASA CN-235^[13]
• Convair 580
• Lockheed L-100-20 Hercules^[14]
• McDonnell Douglas MD-81^[15]
• McDonnell Douglas MD-82^[16]
• Partenavia P.68B
• Partenavia AP.68TP-600 Viator

FlySafair

In 2013, Safair created a low-cost carrier subsidiary called FlySafair. The initial plan to operate flights in October 2013 had to be cancelled, as a result of a high-court application by Comair.^[17] FlySafair is currently operational with the first flight having taken place on 16 October 2014.^[18] FlySafair operates to Cape Town, George, Port Elizabeth, Johannesburg, Durban and East London.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Safair.

• Safair
• Safair aircraft

Airlines of South Africa
Major carriers	Comair South African Airways
Regionals	Airlink Interair South Africa Fly Blue Crane South African Express
Low Cost Carriers	FlySafair Kulula Mango Skywise
Air Shuttles	Federal Air
Cargo	Safair Imperial Air Cargo
Charter	Civair Comair Flight Services Egoli Air Global Aviation National Airways Norse Air Phoebus Apollo Aviation Rovos Air Safair Solenta Aviation
Defunct	1time Airline AirQuarius Aviation Flitestar Nationwide Airlines Naturelink Sun Air Trek Airways Velvet Sky