Air Panama

This article is about the current airline. For the 1968-1990 airline of a similar name, see Air Panamá Internacional.

Air Panama

IATA 7P ICAO PST Callsign AIR PANAMA
Founded	1980 (as PARSA)
Hubs	Albrook "Marcos A. Gelabert" International Airport
Focus cities	Enrique Malek International Airport
Frequent-flyer program	Todos Quieren Volar[citation needed]
Fleet size	17 (+2 orders)
Destinations	24
Company slogan	We Are Flying! (Estamos Volando!)
Parent company	PARSA, S.A.
Headquarters	Panama City, Panama
Key people	George Novey (President and CEO)
Website	flyairpanama.com

Air Panama is an airline based in Panama City, Panama, and is currently the second largest airline in the country, being surpassed only by Copa Airlines. It offers scheduled and chartered passenger flights to 24 destinations out of its hub at Albrook "Marcos A. Gelabert" International Airport, mostly on domestic routes with a low passenger volume.

History

An Air Panama Fokker 70 at Albrook "Marcos A. Gelabert" International Airport (2011).

The airline was founded in 1980 as PARSA, though certain services were operated as Turismo Aéreo. In 2005 the Air Panama branding rights were acquired, which had been unused since the demise of Air Panamá Internacional in January 1990, and adopted the new name in 2006. Over the years, the company has grown to account for more than half of the domestic commercial air travel in Panama, offering more destinations and charter flights than any other regional carrier in the country. Actually, it is competing with another airline of Panama, Aeroperlas Regional, which is one of the grupo TACA Airlines members.

Starting from 2006, Air Panama has modernized his aging fleet with advanced aircraft like the Fokker 70, Saab 340 and the -300 version of the Dash 8. Recently, the company started from 19 September, 2011, to acquire older, but new Fokker 50 from Scandinavian Airlines System. Two more were ordered and expected to arrive on 2012. In 2009, Air Panama transportated more than a million passengers, reflecting like that the growing of the company. Actually, it employs around 200 people, between news and people who worked in the Air Panama I (1968-1989).

Also, the company made an codeshare agreement with Copa Airlines (Panama's flag carrier and largest airline) in which consist of linking all the tourist destinations of Panama with those of Latin America. Is expected that the agreement will be effective on June 2012, when Air Panama begin with the flights from Tocumen airport to Isla Colón, Bocas del Toro and to further more destinations like David, Chiriqui. [1]

Destinations

Air Panama offers scheduled flights to the following destinations as of January 2012:

Costa Rica

• San José - Juan Santamaría International Airport

Panama

• Bocas del Toro - Bocas del Toro "Isla Colón" International Airport
• Cartí Sugtupu - Cartí Airport
• Changuinola - Changuinola "Capitán Manuel Niño" International Airport
• Chitré - Chitré "Alonso Valderrama" Airport
• Contadora Island - Contadora Airport
• Corazon de Jesus- Corazon de Jesus Airport
• David - Enrique Malek International Airport (focus city)
• El Porvenir - El Porvenir Airport
• El Real - El Real Airport
• Garachiné - Garachiné Airport
• Isla del Rey (Panama) - San Miguel Isla del Rey Airport
• Isla San José - Isla San José Airport
• Jaqué - Jaqué Airport
• La Palma - Captain Ramon Xatruch Airport
• Mulatupo - Mulatupo Airport
• Panama City - Albrook "Marcos A. Gelabert" International Airport (hub)
• Panama City - Tocumen International Airport (starts June, 2012)
• Pedasí - Pedasí Airfield
• Piña, Darién - Piña "Bahía Piña - Darién" Airport
• Playón Chico - Playón Chico Airport
• Rio Sidra - Rio Sidra Airport
• Tubualá - Tubualá Airport
• Tupile - Tupile Airport
• Ustupo - Ustupo Airport

Further destinations are served on a chartered on-demand basis.

Fleet

As of June 2011, the Air Panama fleet consists of the following aircraft:

Air Panama Fleet

Aircraft	In Service	Orders	Passengers			Notes
			J	Y	Total
Britten-Norman Islander	2	-	—	9	9
Cessna 182	1	-	—	4	4
de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter	2	-	—	20	20
Fokker 50	2	2	—	50	50	Previously opereted by SAS
Fokker 70	2	-	12	60	72
Piper PA-34 Seneca	2	-	—	5	5
Saab 340B	2	-	—	34	34
Air Panama Cargo Fleet
Fokker F27 Friendship	3	—	N/A
CASA C-212 Aviocar	1	—	N/A
Total	17	2

Codeshare agreements

Air Panama has codeshare agreements with the following airlines:
(This list does not include Star Alliance airlines)

• Copa Airlines (June 2012)

Accidents and incidents

• On 31 December 1997 at 07:45 local time, a PARSA Britten-Norman Islander (registered HP-986PS) crashed into a jungle area 6.5 kilometres short of Rio Sidra Airport following a flight from Panama City in bad weather conditions. The nine passengers and the pilot on board lost their lives.

• On 29 December 2002 at 16:06 local time, ATC contact with a PARSA Britten-Norman Islander (registered HP-1016PS) was lost during an empty ferry flight from Bocas del Toro to Panama City, when the aircraft was over the Caribbean Sea. The aircraft and its pilot could never found.

• On 1 June 2006 at 07:55 local time, Air Panama Flight 680, which was operated using a British Aerospace Jetstream (registered HP-1477PS), overshot the runway upon landing at Bocas del Toro "Isla Colón" International Airport after heavy rain completing a flight from Panama City. The aircraft was substantially damaged, but all 16 passengers and two crew members walked out from the wreckage.

• On 31 October 2007 at 20:40 UTC, an Air Panama Fokker F27 Friendship (registered HP-1541PST) was damaged beyond repair when it did not gain sufficient height upon take-off from Albrook "Marcos A. Gelabert" International Airport and crashed back on the runway. The aircraft had planned to leave for a scheduled passenger flight to Bocas del Toro and was carrying nine passengers and four crew members, none of which was injured.