Air Georgian

Air Georgian Limited was a privately owned charter airline based at Toronto Pearson International Airport in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.[5][6] Between 2000 and 2020 its main business was its operation as Air Canada Express on a Tier III codeshare with Air Canada for scheduled services on domestic and trans-border routes. Starting in 2020 Air Georgian began focusing on air charters, before ceasing operations in May, after a sale of its assets to Pivot Airlines, a company run by the same executives.[7]

Not to be confused with Air Georgia.

For the flag carrier of the Republic of Georgia, see Georgian Airways.
Air Georgian Limited
IATA ICAO Callsign
ZX GGN GEORGIAN
Founded1994
Ceased operationsMay 29, 2020 (2020-05-29)[1]
AOC #Canada 5559[2]
United States SMQF162F[3]
Fleet size14[4]
HeadquartersShell Aerocentre at Toronto Pearson International Airport
Mississauga, Ontario
Key peopleEric Edmondson (President & CEO)
Troy Stephens (VP Flight Operations)
Scott Monsen (VP Finance)
Adeeb Haddadi (VP Maintenance)
Websitewww.airgeorgian.ca

Air Georgian operated under the Subparts 704 and 705 of the Canadian Aviation Regulations (CAR 704, CAR 705) and had completed the IATA Operational Safety Audit.[8] Air Georgian pilots were represented by the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA).[9]

History
Air Georgian Beechcraft 1900D in Canadian Airlines livery
Air Georgian Beechcraft 1900D (left) at Bradley International Airport in Air Canada Alliance livery

Air Georgian began as an airport developer in 1985. It began commercial operations in 1994 and subsequently developed its commercial air carrier business, which as of 2011 represented 87 percent of its total business. In 1997 It became a code share partner of Canadian Airlines, operating under the banner of Ontario Regional. Air Georgian was a partner of Canadian Airlines. In 2000 Air Georgian became a Tier III partner of Air Canada and operated as Air Canada Alliance.[10]

It had a long time cargo operation known as Georgian Express which was sold to Cargojet in 2007.[11]

On November 15, 2013, Air Georgian and Regional 1 completed a joint venture through the creation of a parent company, Regional Express Aviation Ltd. (REAL), based in Calgary, Alberta.[12] Air Georgian and R1 both benefit from having access to the world's largest private fleet of Dash 8 and CRJ aircraft, over CAD$100 million in spare parts and domestic maintenance bases located throughout Canada. The joint venture with R1 ended in February 2016.

In December 2013, Air Canada announced that commencing in mid-2014, Air Georgian would operate additional routes in Canada and the United States using Air Canada CRJ-100/200 aircraft.[13]

In 2019, Air Canada indicated it was ending its relationship with the company, consolidating its CRJ regional capacity into the Jazz Aviation operation.[14][15][16] On January 31, 2020, Air Georgian filed notice of intent for bankruptcy protection.[17][18] On March 16, 2020, Air Georgian received court approval for an asset purchase agreement with Pivot Airlines (2746904 Ontario Inc) for substantially all the assets, properties and undertakings of the company.[19] Pivot Airlines is a new company whose CEO as well as Maintenance Operations and Flight Operations Vice Presidents are the same as Air Georgian's.[7] On May 29, 2020, the transaction was completed, however, the June 1 deadline to make a proposal to exit bankruptcy protection passed and no proposal having been made, the company was declared bankrupt the following day.[1][20]

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Air Georgian had begun offering repatriation flights.[21][22]

Fleet

At the time of bankruptcy, the Canadian Civil Aircraft Register showed 14 aircraft registered for Air Georgian Limited.[4]

Air Georgian fleet
AircraftNo. of aircraft
Beechcraft 1900D10
Bombardier CRJ1004
Total 14

Transport Canada also lists a Bombardier CRJ100 with a cancelled certificate.[23]

Air Georgian ceased operations of Toronto-based Beechcraft 1900D on October 31, 2018,[24] and out of Calgary in on April 30, 2019. Air Georgian ceased operations as an Air Canada Express operator on January 31, 2020.[25]

References
  1. "Notice of bankruptcy and first meeting of creditors" (PDF). KPMG. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
  2. Transport Canada (August 29, 2019), Civil Aviation Services (CAS) AOC. wwwapps.tc.gc.ca.
  3. "Federal Aviation Administration - Airline Certificate Information - Detail View". av-info.faa.gov. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
  4. "Canadian Civil Aircraft Register: Quick Search Result for Air Georgian". Transport Canada. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  5. "Air Georgian". Air Georgian. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  6. "Air Georgian Limited". LinkedIn. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  7. "Our Team". Pivot Airlines. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
  8. "IOSA Registry - Air Georgian Limited". IATA. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  9. "Our Pilot Groups - Air Georgian". Air Line Pilots Association, International. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  10. Establishing the right path, Rob Seaman, in Wings Magazine Archived 2014-01-13 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2014-01-12
  11. "Cargojet 2007 Annual Report" (PDF). Cargojet. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  12. "Air Georgian and Regional 1 Complete Joint Venture". Retrieved February 26, 2018.
  13. Marowits, Ross (December 10, 2013). "Air Canada picks Air Georgian for additional regional routes". Toronto Star.
  14. "Regional airline loses 1.5-million passenger contract with Air Canada, but firms deny safety concerns a factor". National Post. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  15. "Air Canada closes C$100m Jazz investment". Flight Global. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  16. "Jazz Pilots Ratify Game-Changing Tentative Agreement". Financial Post. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  17. "CERTIFICATE OF FILING OF A NOTICE OF INTENTION TO MAKE A PROPOSAL Subsection 50.4 (1)" (PDF). KPMG. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  18. "Air Georgian Takes First Bankruptcy Step". February 9, 2020.
  19. https://home.kpmg/content/dam/kpmg/ca/pdf/creditorlinks/air-georgian/approval-and-vesting-order-dated-march-16-2020.pdf
  20. "CERTIFICATE OF ASSIGNMENT - Paragraph 50.4(8)(b.1) of the Act" (PDF). KPMG. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
  21. "Air Georgian Limited". LinkedIn. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  22. "Essential Travel Services". Air Georgian. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  23. Canadian Civil Aircraft Register: Aircraft Details C-FWJI
  24. "Air Canada / Air Georgian ends Beechcraft 1900 service in late-Oct 2018". Routes Online. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
  25. "Air Georgian, sub-contractor that flew 1.5 million Air Canada passengers a year, heading toward bankruptcy protection". Financial Post. Retrieved April 24, 2020.

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