Poste Air Cargo
IATA ICAO Callsign
M4[1] MSA[2] MISTRAL WINGS
Founded1981
HubsBrescia Airport
Fleet size6
Destinations15
Parent companyPoste italiane
HeadquartersRome, Italy
Key peopleBud Spencer (Carlo Pedersoli), Founder
Websiteposte.it/posteaircargo

Poste Air Cargo, named Mistral Air until 30 September 2019, is an Italian cargo and former passenger airline headquartered in Rome[3] and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Poste italiane. Its hubs are Brescia Airport and Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport in Rome.[4] The airline used to serve domestic scheduled and international charter passenger services which it ceased in mid 2018 while focusing on cargo operations since then.

History

Mistral Air logo, used until September 2019.

Mistral Air was established in 1981 by actor and former swimmer Bud Spencer (Carlo Pedersoli) and started operations in 1984.

It was wholly owned by TNT N.V.[4] until March 2002 when TNT sold a 75% stake to Poste Italiane. The airline has also been contracted by the Holy See of the Vatican to fly Pilgrims to holy sites such as Lourdes, Fátima, Santiago de Compostela, Medjugorje across Mostar, Israel/Palestine (Holy Land), Poland and Mexico. The first flight went from Rome to Lourdes on 27 August 2007 transporting the vicar of Rome, Cardinal Camillo Ruini.[5]

In May 2018, owner Poste Italiane announced that Mistral Air will cease all scheduled and charter passenger flights to focus on cargo operations from now on. The airline has been loss-making for years and recently lost a PSO contract for Italian domestic services as well.[6][7]

An ATR 72-500 at Naples Airport in the last Mistral Air livery.

Since October 1, 2019, Mistral Air was rebranded in Poste Air Cargo.

Destinations

As of April 2021, Poste Air Cargo operates scheduled cargo flights to the following domestic destinations as well as 7 international services from their hub in Rome:[8]

Country City Airport Notes Refs
Italy Bari Bari Karol Wojtyła Airport
Italy Brescia Brescia Airport Hub
Italy Cagliari Cagliari Elmas Airport
Italy Catania Catania Fontanarossa Airport
Italy Lamezia Terme Lamezia Terme International Airport
Italy Naples Naples International Airport
Italy Palermo Falcone Borsellino Airport
Italy Rome Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport Hub

Latest passenger destinations served by Mistral Air brand were Cagliari, Catania, Naples, Palermo, Perugia, Brescia and Pescara in Italy as well as Tirana in Albania which all ceased by August 2018.

Fleet

A Boeing 737-400F of Poste Air Cargo.

As of May 2023, the Poste Air Cargo fleet consists of the following aircraft:[9]

Poste Air Cargo fleet
Aircraft In service Orders Notes
ATR 72-500 1[10] —
Boeing 737-400F 5[11] —
Total 6 —

References

  1. ^ "Airline and Airport Code Search". IATA. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  2. ^ "Elenco delle imprese titolari di licenza di trasporto aereo". Italian Civil Aviation Authority. 3 June 2016. Archived from the original on 22 April 2015. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  3. ^ "Mistral Air - Contatti". Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  4. ^ a b "Directory: World Airlines". Flight International. 10 April 2007. p. 51.
  5. ^ Willey, David (27 August 2007). "Vatican flight service launches". BBC News. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  6. ^ "Il piano Mistral Air Charter addio, non resta che il cargo".
  7. ^ "Mistral Air: Bud-Spencer-Airline fliegt nur noch Pakete". 3 June 2018.
  8. ^ poste.it - Il Network retrieved 17 April 2021
  9. ^ "Poste Air Cargo Fleet Details and History". www.planespotters.net. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  10. ^ "Planespotters.net fleet of Poste Air Cargo". 31 May 2023.
  11. ^ "Poste Air Cargo : il quinto B737-490 (F) arriva a Shannon" [Poste Air Cargo: fifth B737-490 (F) is arrived in Shannon]. italiavola.com (in Italian). Retrieved 23 January 2020.

External links

Media related to Poste Air Cargo at Wikimedia Commons

Airlines of Italy
Members of the International Air Transport Association
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