Freedom Air International
IATA ICAO Callsign
SJ FOM FREE AIR
Founded1995
Commenced operations8 December 1995
Ceased operations30 March 2008
HubsAuckland Airport
Fleet size11
Destinations13
Parent companyAir New Zealand
HeadquartersAuckland, New Zealand
Key peopleRob Fyfe (CEO)
Websitewww.freedomair.com

Freedom Air (legally Freedom Air International) was a New Zealand low-cost airline which operated since 8 December 1995 to March 2008. It was part of the Air New Zealand Group which ran scheduled passenger services from New Zealand to Australia and Fiji and charter services within New Zealand. Its main hub was Auckland Airport.[1]

History

Freedom Air's leased Boeing 757-200 at Hamilton Airport, used on its inaugural flight in 1995
A Freedom Air Airbus A320-200 at Christchurch Airport in 2006

The airline was established in 1995 as a response to the commencement of discount services between Australia and New Zealand by Kiwi Travel International Airlines[2] and started operations on 8 December 1995 with a single Boeing 757-200. It was ordinally formed as South Pacific Air Charters by Mount Cook Airline and renamed to Freedom Air International in 1998.

By 2004, its fleet had expanded to five Boeing 737-300[3] aircraft and it was providing direct non-stop services to the Australian cities of Brisbane, Gold Coast, Newcastle, Sydney and Melbourne from Hamilton, Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin and Palmerston North. Flights to Fiji were also operated. It briefly operated on the New Zealand main trunk domestic routes such as Auckland–Christchurch, but ceased these services to concentrate on providing value trans-Tasman flights.[2]

In June 2006, the aircraft from Freedom Air were combined with Air New Zealand's fleet of Airbus A320-200 under the air operator's certificate of Zeal320, which was then the sole operator of the Air New Zealand Group's Airbus fleet.[4] When the airline ceased Zeal320 had one aircraft painted in Freedom Air livery.[5] As such, Freedom Air has no aircraft or current air operator's certificate, and Freedom Air is no longer an operational entity.[6]

Air New Zealand ceased all Freedom Air operations from the end of March 2008.[7]

Destinations

Throughout its existence, Freedom Air flew to six destinations in New Zealand, five in Australia and one in Fiji.[8] When the airline shut down on 30 March 2008, all services were replaced by Air New Zealand flights, with the exception of flights out of Palmerston North, which left the airport without any international services.[9] Flights to Nadi and Newcastle were withdrawn prior to 2008.

Fleet

A Freedom Air Airbus A320-200 with a special livery to promote Warner Bros. Movie World

Freedom Air had operated the following aircraft:[12]

Freedom Air fleet
Aircraft Total Introduced Retired Notes
Airbus A320-200 13 2005 2008 3 leased from Air New Zealand
Boeing 737-200 2 2001 2001 1 leased from Airwork
Boeing 737-300 9 1996 2006 3 leased from Air New Zealand
1 leased from TACA Airlines
1 leased from Polynesian Airlines
1 leased from Transavia
Boeing 757-200 1 1995 1996 Leased from Britannia Airways

See also

References

  1. ^ "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 3 April 2007. p. 84.
  2. ^ a b "Air NZ's competitors on domestic market". Television New Zealand. 23 August 2007. Retrieved 30 September 2011.
  3. ^ Freedom Air Press Release - Freedom Air’s fifth aircraft takes to the skies Archived 24 October 2006 at the Wayback Machine, 10 December 2004
  4. ^ New Zealand Aircraft Register
  5. ^ Details on AviationPage New Zealand Archived 14 March 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ New Zealand Part 119 Air Operator certificate holders
  7. ^ "Air NZ to ground Freedom Air". Stuff.co.nz. 6 September 2007. Retrieved 30 September 2011.
  8. ^ "Freedom Air - Route Guide". Archived from the original on 26 June 2007. Retrieved 23 October 2007.
  9. ^ Air New Zealand Press Release - Air New Zealand to overhaul Tasman and Pacific Services[permanent dead link], 6 September 2007
  10. ^ Freedom Air flies into Newcastle, 15 December 2001
  11. ^ Freedom Air Press Release – Freedom Air Wellington – Fiji Service Takes Flight Archived 24 October 2006 at the Wayback Machine, 11 February 2005
  12. ^ "Freedom Air International Fleet Details and History". Planespotters.net. 11 April 2022.

External links

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