North Star Air is a Canadian charter, passenger and cargo airline headquartered in Thunder Bay, Ontario,[6] with secondary passenger hub in Sioux Lookout, Ontario, and cargo hubs located in Pickle Lake, Red Lake, Kapuskasing and Thompson, Manitoba. The majority of destinations served are First Nations communities, with regular service to 18 airports under "Flex Flight Passenger Service",[5] and other regional destinations under an on-demand basis. Founded in 1997 as a floatplane operator with two DHC-2 Beaver aircraft based in Pickle Lake, the airline has grown over the years and came under new ownership in 2012. In 2015 Cargo North and North Star Air merged under the North Star banner. In 2022 North Star Air opened up their brand new cargo depot based in Winnipeg.
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| AOC # | 11025[2] | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hubs | Thunder Bay International Airport, Pickle Lake Airport, Red Lake Airport, Thompson Airport, Kapuskasing Airport | ||||||
| Secondary hubs | Sioux Lookout Airport | ||||||
| Fleet size | 15,[3] 18[4] | ||||||
| Destinations | 18[5] | ||||||
| Parent company | The North West Company | ||||||
| Headquarters | Thunder Bay, Ontario | ||||||
| Key people | Frank Kelner | ||||||
| Website | www | ||||||
On 28 April 2017, it was announced that North Star Air had been purchased by The North West Company for a sum of $31 million.[7]
First Nation Community Partners
editDestinations
edit- Flex Flight Passenger Services
As of 2023 North Star Air flies to the following destinations:[5]
- Bearskin Lake First Nation (Bearskin Lake Airport)
- Cat Lake First Nation (Cat Lake Airport)
- Deer Lake First Nation (Deer Lake Airport)
- Eabametoong First Nation (Fort Hope Airport)
- Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug First Nation (Big Trout Lake) (Big Trout Lake Airport)
- Muskrat Dam Lake First Nation (Muskrat Dam Airport)
- Neskantaga First Nation (Lansdowne House) (Lansdowne House Airport)
- North Caribou Lake First Nation (Round Lake (Weagamow Lake) Airport)
- North Spirit Lake First Nation (North Spirit Lake Airport)
- Marten Falls First Nation (Ogoki Post) (Ogoki Post Airport)
- Pikangikum First Nation (Pikangikum Airport)
- Poplar Hill First Nation (Poplar Hill Airport)
- Red Lake (Red Lake Airport)
- Sachigo Lake First Nation (Sachigo Lake Airport)
- Sioux Lookout (Sioux Lookout Airport)
- Thunder Bay (Thunder Bay International Airport)
- Wapekeka First Nation (Angling Lake/Wapekeka Airport)
- Webequie First Nation (Webequie Airport)
Fleet
editAs of March 2024, North Star Air had the following 15 aircraft registered with Transport Canada and list 18 on their website.[3][4]
| Aircraft | Number TC list |
Number North Star list |
Variants | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATR 72 | 4 | 5 | ATR 72-212A (ATR 72-500) | Based at Thompson, freight only[8] |
| De Havilland Canada Dash 8 | — | 2 | Series 100 | Combi aircraft, based at Thunder Bay, up to 39 passengers[9] |
| Douglas DC-3 | 3 | 3 | Basler BT-67 | Based at Kapuskasing, Pickle Lake, Red Lake and Thompson, freight only[10] |
| Pilatus PC-12 | 8 | 8 | PC-12/45, PC-12/47, PC-12/47E | Combi aircraft, based at Sioux Lookout and Thunder Bay, up to 9 passengers[11] |
| Total | 15 | 18 |
Bases
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "Domestic Designator and Telephony Assignments" (PDF). Nav Canada. 10 February 2023. p. 1. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
North Star Air: BF, BLACKFLY
- ^ Transport Canada (2 September 2019), Civil Aviation Services (CAS) AOC. wwwapps.tc.gc.ca.
- ^ a b "Canadian Civil Aircraft Register: Quick Search Result for North Star Air". Transport Canada. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
- ^ a b "Fleet". Retrieved 22 March 2024.
- ^ a b c "Route Map". Retrieved 20 January 2023. and "Schedules". Retrieved 20 January 2023.
- ^ "Contact Us - Charter. Passenger. Cargo". Retrieved 20 January 2023.
- ^ "North West Company spends $31M to buy its own airline". 29 April 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
- ^ "ATR 72-500F". Retrieved 20 January 2023.
- ^ "Dash 8-100". Retrieved 20 January 2023.
- ^ "Basler BT-67". Retrieved 20 January 2023.
- ^ "Pilatus PC-12". Retrieved 20 January 2023.