Jump to content

Air Nunavut

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Air Nunavut
A Dassault Falcon 10 departing Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport
IATA ICAO Call sign
N/A BFF[1] AIR BAFFIN[1]
Founded1989
AOC #Canada: 5343[2]
United States: Q1NF069F[3]
HubsIqaluit Airport
Oshawa Executive Airport
Fleet size15[4]
DestinationsAir charter/MEDEVAC
HeadquartersIqaluit, Nunavut and
Oshawa, Ontario[5]
Key peopleJeff Mahoney (president)
WebsiteAir Nunavut / SmoothAir Charter

Air Nunavut (Inuktitut: ᓄᓇᕗᑦ ᕐᑲᖓᑕᓲᖏᑦ; Nunavut Qangatasuungit), trading as Smooth Air,[2] is an airline based in Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada. It is the only local and Inuit-owned[6][7] air carrier in the eastern Arctic, operating charter services throughout Canada's Arctic, northern Quebec, Greenland and Iceland.[8] Its main base is Iqaluit Airport.[9]

History

[edit]

The airline was established and started charter operations in 1989 as Air Baffin. Scheduled services were inaugurated in May 1992.[9] It was renamed to Air Nunavut in 1996. In February 1998, Transport Canada temporarily suspended Air Nunavut's services due to flaws on its aircraft maintenance procedures following numerous incidents involving its fleet throughout the 90s, and specifically an incident involving its Piper PA 31-350 a month prior.[10]

In April 2018, Air Nunavut was given a warning by the Canadian Transportation Agency due to contraventions of the Canada Transportation Act and Air Transportation Regulations based on investigations done in previous February.[11] In 2019, an aircraft temporarily stopping at Clyde River Airport for refueling in a charter flight from Qaanaaq in Greenland to Iqaluit brought Air Nunavut to a penalty by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) after letting its passengers out for a bathroom break in the airport, thus being considered as an immigration breach; the airport was alleged to be barely staffed at the time other than airport regulators, but was noticed by a CBSA staff. Air Nunavut argued that the "breach" was necessary for the passengers' dignity and safety, and fought back against the penalty as of 2022.[12]

Operations

[edit]

The airline also has two main bases of operations, Oshawa Executive Airport and Iqaluit Airport. Under the division company name SmoothAir Charter operate Dassault Falcons out of Oshawa Executive Airport offering charter services.[13] The Beechcraft King Air 200s remain in Iqaluit servicing the surrounding communities.

Fleet

[edit]

According to Transport Canada the Air Nunavut fleet consists of the following aircraft (as of February 2025):[4]

Air Nunavut fleet
AircraftNumberVariantsNotes
Beechcraft Super King Air42008, 11 or 13 passengers, gravel strip capable.
Dassault Falcon 107Falcon 10Listed by Air Nunavut as Falcon 10 Jet, 7 passengers, gravel strip capable. One aircraft is listed by Transport Canada as having an expired temporary registration certificate.[14] Only two listed at the SmoothAir Charter site.[13]
Dassault Falcon 204Mystère/Falcon 20F5
Falcon 200
Fan Jet Falcon		Only two listed at the SmoothAir Charter site.[13]

The first Falcon 10 was purchased in 2001, making it the first small charter jet to operate out of Iqaluit within Nunavut.[15] Air Nunavut obtained its first Falcon 900EX aircraft in December 2024, which was purchased from an American private ownership.[16]

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 "ICAO Designators for Canadian Aircraft Operating Agencies, Aeronautical Authorities and Services" (PDF). Nav Canada. 20 May 2025. p. 1. Retrieved 24 February 2023. Air Nunavut: BFF, BAFFIN
  2. 1 2 Transport Canada (2019-09-05), Civil Aviation Services (CAS) AOC. wwwapps.tc.gc.ca.
  3. ↑ "Federal Aviation Administration - Airline Certificate Information - Detail View". av-info.faa.gov. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
  4. 1 2 "Canadian Civil Aircraft Register: Quick Search Result for Air Nunavut". Transport Canada. Retrieved 4 February 2025.
  5. ↑ "Air Nunavut Contact". Archived from the original on 8 May 2014. Retrieved 7 May 2014.
  6. ↑ To be registered with Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated as an Inuit firm Article 24 of the Nunavut Land Claims Agreement requires that the owner, or 51% ownership of the companies shares, be Inuit. Full details at Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Archived 24 March 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ↑ Firm Details for - Air Nunavut
  8. ↑ "Where We Fly". Air Nunavut. Retrieved 21 May 2026.
  9. 1 2 "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 27 March 2007. p. 64.
  10. ↑ "Transport Canada clips Air Nunavut's wings". Nunatsiaq News. 20 February 1998. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
  11. ↑ "Air Nunavut Ltd". Canadian Transportation Agency. 30 April 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2026.
  12. ↑ Murray, Nick (26 January 2021). "Air Nunavut takes feds to court over fine for unauthorized bathroom break". CBC News. Retrieved 21 May 2026.
  13. 1 2 3 "Smoothair Charter – A Division of Air Nunavut Ltd". Retrieved 21 October 2023.
  14. ↑ "CCAR - Aircraft Details C-GNVT". 28 August 2013. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  15. ↑ Blackduck, Alison (11 May 2001). "Air Nunavut adds speed to its line-up". Nunatsiaq News. Retrieved 21 May 2026.
  16. ↑ Braganca, Luciano (31 December 2024). "Canada's Air Nunavut adds first Falcon 900EX". ch-aviation. Retrieved 21 May 2026.
[edit]
  • Wikimedia Commons logo Media related to Air Nunavut at Wikimedia Commons
  • Air Nunavut / SmoothAir Charter website
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Air_Nunavut&oldid=1355459256"