Air Austral is an airline with its headquarters at Roland Garros Airport in Sainte-Marie, Réunion, France.[1][2][3] It operates scheduled and non-scheduled services from Réunion. Its main base is Roland Garros Airport.
[edit] History
- 1975 : Birth of Reunion commercial aviation, Mr Gérard Ethève creates Réunion Air Service.
- 1977 : RAS inaugurates the first route between Reunion Island and Mayotte with a Hawker Siddeley HS 748 equipped with 32 seats.
- 1986 : Reunion Air Service becomes Air Reunion.
- October 1990 : The airline activity of Air Reunion is repurchased by SEMATRA with financial partners. The capital is simultaneously opened with Air France, financial institutions and local private interests.
- November 1990 : Air Réunion becomes Air Austral, a French regional airline company in Indian Ocean.
- December 1990 : Acquisition of the first Boeing 737.
- 1994 : Acquisition of the second Boeing 737.
- 1997 : Acquisition of the third Boeing 737.
- 2000 : Acquisition of an ATR 72-500.
- Since this date, Air Austral serves South Africa, Comoros, Mauritius Island, Madagascar (Antananarivo, Tamatave, Nosy-Bé, Majunga), Mayotte and Seychelles Island from Roland Garros Airport, and Mauritius Island from Saint Pierre Airport.
- June 2003 : Air Austral develops its activities towards the long-distance carrier by opening the route Reunion to Paris Charles de Gaulle, with two Boeing 777-200ER.
- June 2005 : Acquisition of the third Boeing 777-200ER.
- July 2005 : Opening of a new route between Reunion and Marseille. Air Austral operates the Boeing 777-200ER to serve Mayotte.
- November 2005 : Opening of a new route between Reunion and Lyon (via Marseille).
- March 2007 : Opening of a new route between Reunion and Toulouse (via Marseille).
- April 2008: New uniforms for staff and crew members. Air Austral has retained the prestigious Parisian label Balenciaga.
- August 2008: Introduction of the ATR 72-500 aircraft.
- March 2009 : New ATR 72-500 for the airline, dedicated for regional flights between Reunion Island and Mauritius or Madagascar Island.
- April 2009 : Opening of a new route between Paris and Noumea (via Reunion and Sydney). Starting revenue flight of the first Boeing 777-300ER.
- May 2009 : Acquisition of the second Boeing 777-300ER.
- November 2009: Previously-announced options on two "High density" 840-seat Airbus A380s converted to firm orders at the Dubai Airshow.[4]
[edit] Destinations
Air Austral currently flies to 16 destinations worldwide.
The Air Austral fleet includes the following aircraft:
[edit] Frequent Flyer Program
Air Austral's frequent flyer program is called Capricorne, referring to the Tropic of Capricorn which runs just to the south of Réunion.
[edit] External links
[edit] References
| Members of the International Air Transport Association | | | | | | Asia-Pacific regional office | | | | | | | China and North Asia regional office | | | | | | | | | | Latin America and the Caribbean regional office | | | | | | | Middle East and North Africa regional office | | | | | | | North America regional office | | | | | | | Russia and the CIS regional office | | | | | |
