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Link Airways

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Vee H Aviation Pty Ltd, operating as Link Airways, formerly known as Fly Corporate, is an Australian regional airline based at Brisbane Airport, Queensland. The airline operates scheduled regional passenger services in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and the Australian Capital Territory. Link Airways operates a fleet of Saab 340B Plus and Fairchild Metro 23 turboprop aircraft.[2]

Link Airways
IATA ICAO Call sign
FC - FLY CORP
Founded2016
Frequent-flyer programVelocity Frequent Flyer[1]
Fleet size18
Destinations16
Parent companyCorporate Air
HeadquartersFyshwick, Australian Capital Territory
Key peopleAndrew Major (CEO)
Andrew Webb (COO)
Websitewww.linkairways.com

Overview

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Launching in 2016 under the Fly Corporate brand, the airline was established by parent company Corporate Air, an air charter company that has been operating since 1972, to fly scheduled air services. The airline bases its aircraft at Brisbane Airport and Canberra Airport, from where it operates to regional destinations across Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and Tasmania. It has its own heavy maintenance facility at Goulburn Airport in New South Wales.[3]

History

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The first scheduled route announced under the Fly Corporate brand was from Brisbane to Coffs Harbour.[4] During 2016, more routes were added from Brisbane to major centres in the New England and North West Slopes regions of New South Wales. The airline used a mixture of four Saab 340s and two Metroliners to serve this network.[5]

In September 2018, the airline successfully tendered to operate flights from Wollongong to Brisbane and Essendon in Melbourne, restoring both the city's air links that were lost when the previous carrier JetGo collapsed in June of that year.[6] Fly Corporate also began operating other former JetGo routes including to Orange and Dubbo from Essendon.[7]

On 11 August 2020 the company rebranded from Fly Corporate to Link Airways.[8]

In October 2020, Link Airways announced that it would begin scheduled flights between Canberra and Hobart (6 days per week)[9] as well as Canberra and Newcastle (11 times per week). On 30 January 2022 Link Airways commenced operating flights for Virgin Australia on the Sydney to Canberra route under a wet lease arrangement. [10]

On 18 January 2024, Virgin Australia announced it would codeshare with Link on 17 regional routes, including ten destinations from Brisbane, three from Melbourne and two each from Canberra and Sydney.[11][12] In the lead up to this announcement, Link Airways moved its Melbourne terminal from Essendon to Tullamarine on 7 January.[13]

Fleet

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Link Airways Fairchild Metro 23 at Sydney Airport in October 2020
 
Link Airways Saab 340B landing at Canberra Airport in November 2020

As of July 2022, the Link Airways fleet consists of the following aircraft:[14]

Link Airways fleet
Aircraft In-service Orders Passengers
Cessna 441 Conquest 4 — N/A
Fairchild Metro 23 3 — 19
SAAB 340B Plus 11 — 34
Total 18 —

Destinations

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Link Airways operates to the following destinations:[15]

Codeshare agreements

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As of January 2024, Link Airways has codeshare agreements with the following airlines:

Incidents and accidents

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  • On 21 November 2022, a Link Airways Saab 340B, registered VH-VEQ operating on behalf of Virgin Australia as flight VA-633 from Canberra to Sydney made an emergency landing shortly after takeoff. While accelerating on the runway, a ratchet strap used to secure the left-hand propeller while the aircraft is on the ground penetrated the side of the fuselage into the passenger cabin. The strap had not been removed before flight by the crew. The airline reported that the crew stopped the climb as soon as they became aware of the damage and aircraft landed safely seven minutes after departure, with no injuries to passengers.[20] However, the Australian Federal Police reported that three passengers had been treated for minor injuries after landing.[citation needed] The Australian Transport Safety Bureau classified the occurrence as a serious incident and opened an investigation. The final report subsequently confirmed that one passenger had been injured by debris that penetrated the cabin. The ATSB investigation identified four safety issues related to flight preparation and ground handling procedures by both Link Airways and contracted ground services provider Swissport.[21]

References

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  1. ^ "Velocity Frequent Flyer". Link Airways. Archived from the original on 30 August 2022. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  2. ^ "Our Fleet | Fly Corporate". flycorporate.com.au. Archived from the original on 24 September 2016. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  3. ^ "Link Airways Airline Profile". Centre for Aviation. Archived from the original on 16 February 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  4. ^ Announcement of Direct Flight Between Coffs Harbour and Brisbane Link Airways 11 March 2016
  5. ^ "Fly Corporate begins Brisbane-Tamworth flights". World of Aviation. 1 November 2016.
  6. ^ a b "New passenger flight provider for Illawarra airport announced". Illawarra Mercury. 4 September 2018. Archived from the original on 4 April 2019. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
  7. ^ "Fly Corporate begins flights from Wollongong". Australian Aviation. 12 November 2018. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
  8. ^ "Fly Corporate re-brands as Link Airways". Inverell Times. 11 August 2020. Archived from the original on 11 February 2022. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  9. ^ "Canberra Airport secures more flights as tourism opens up". Canberra Times. 1 October 2020. Archived from the original on 10 February 2022. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  10. ^ a b c Crowe, Alex (20 October 2020). "Direct flight service launched between Canberra and Newcastle". Canberra Times. Archived from the original on 10 February 2022. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  11. ^ Nelson, Jake (18 January 2024). "Virgin expands eastern regional footprint with Link codeshare tie-up". Australian Aviation.
  12. ^ Virgin expands regional footprint amid IPO uncertainty Sydney Morning Herald 18 January 2024
  13. ^ Melbourne (Tullamarine) Airport Terminal 4 Link Airways
  14. ^ "RegoSearch | Aircraft Registration Search". regosearch.com. Archived from the original on 12 August 2018. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
  15. ^ Airport information Link Airways
  16. ^ "FlyCorporate adds Sydney service from Sep 2017". routesonline. Archived from the original on 22 July 2017. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
  17. ^ "FlyCorporate adds Brisbane – Tamworth service from Nov 2016". routesonline. Archived from the original on 28 September 2016. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
  18. ^ "For all Melbourne flights from 7 January 2024 onwards". Link Airways. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  19. ^ "Virgin Australia / Link Airways Begins Codeshare Partnership From Jan 2024".
  20. ^ Simon Hradecky (10 November 2022). "Accident: Link SF34 at Canberra on Nov 10th 2022, propeller strap penetrates cabin in flight". The Aviation Herald. Archived from the original on 12 February 2023. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  21. ^ "Aircraft preparation occurrence involving SAAB 340B, registration VH-VEQ, at Canberra Airport, ACT on 10 November 2022". AO-2022-055. Australian Transport Safety Bureau. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
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