Air Djibouti
IATA ICAO Callsign
DJ DJU AIR DJIB
FoundedApril 1963 (1963-04)
Commenced operationsApril 1964 (1964-04); August 2015 (2015-08)
HubsDjibouti-Ambouli International Airport
HeadquartersDjibouti
Key people
Websitewww.air-djibouti.com

Air Djibouti, also known as Red Sea Airlines, is the flag carrier of Djibouti.[2] It first flew in 1963 and ceased all operations in 2002. In 2015, the airline was relaunched, first as a cargo airline and then, in 2016, with passenger services as well. It is headquartered in the capital, Djibouti.[3][4]

History

Air Djibouti (1963–1970)

An Air Djibouti McDonnell Douglas DC-9 leased from JAT Yugoslav Airlines (1991).
An Air Djibouti Boeing 737-200 at the Paris-Orly Airport (1980).
An Air Djibouti Airbus A310-200 at the Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport (1999).

Air Djibouti was set up as Compagnie Territoriale de Transports Aériens de la Cote Française des Somalis in April 1963 by B. Astraud, who had been operating an air ambulance service in Madagascar and believed Djibouti was in condition to support an airline that would help boost the country's economy.[5][6] Operations commenced in April 1964 with a fleet of a Bristol 170, a De Havilland Dragon Rapide and two Beechcraft Model 18 aircraft, initially serving Dikhil, Obock and Tadjoura. A brand new Douglas DC-3 helped the airline starting services between Dire Dawa and Aden, Addis Ababa and Taiz. The successfulness of this service prompted the airline to buy five more DC-3s from Air Liban, which rapidly replaced the smaller aircraft in the fleet. The carriage of mail and personal for the government and charter and Hajj flights complemented the carrier's revenues. A five-seater Aérospatiale Alouette III helicopter was purchased in 1969.[6]

Air Djibouti–Red Sea Airlines (1971–2002)

Air Djibouti–Red Sea Airlines was formed in April 1971 as a result of Air Somalie (founded by Air France and Les Messagéries Maritimes in 1962) taking over the former Air Djibouti founded in 1963. In 1977, following the independence of Djibouti, the government boosted its participation in the carrier to 62.5%; Air France held 32.29% and banks and private investors held the balance. At July 1980, the number of employees was 210 and the fleet consisted of two Twin Otter aircraft. At this time, a domestic network was served along with international flights to Aden, Hodeida and Taiz; Addis Ababa, Cairo and Jeddah were also served in conjunction with Air France.[7] With a fleet of two DC-9-30s and two Twin Otters, at March 1990 Air Djibouti had Abu Dhabi, Aden, Addis Ababa, Cairo, Dire Dawa, Hargeisa, Jeddah, Nairobi, Paris, Rome and Sana'a as part of the airline's international network, and flew domestically to Obock and Tadjoura. The president was Aden Robleh Awaleh, who employed 229.[8] The airline ceased operations in 1991.[9]

The carrier was refounded in 1997 and operations started again in July 1998 using a leased ex-Kuwait Airways 194-seater Airbus A310-200.[10][11] At March 2000, the A310 was deployed on scheduled routes to Addis Ababa, Asmara, Cairo, Dar-es-Salaam, Dubai, Jeddah, Johannesburg, Karachi, Khartoum, Mogadishu, Mombasa, Muscat, Nairobi, Rome and Taiz.[10] Operations ceased in 2002.[2]

Relaunch

Air Djibouti was set to relaunch service in late 2015 and 2016 with Chairman Aboubaker Omar Hadi and CEO Mario Fulgoni. The company is also supported by South Wales-based Cardiff Aviation.[12][13] In late 2015 Air Djibouti relaunched service with a Boeing 737 freighter. The government wishes to establish the country as a regional logistics and commercial hub for trade in East Africa, and chose to relaunch the airline as part of this plan.[13][14] The airline started regional services with the Boeing 737-400 on 16 August 2016 and planned to introduce two British Aerospace 146-300 aircraft before the end of 2016.[15]

Destinations

As of December 2019, Air Djibouti served the following destinations.

Country City Airport Notes Ref(s)
DjiboutiDjibouti CityDjibouti–Ambouli International AirportHub[16]
EthiopiaAddis AbabaAddis Ababa Bole International Airport—[16]
EthiopiaDire DawaDire Dawa International Airport—[16]
SomaliaMogadishuAden Adde International Airport—[16]
SomaliaHargeisaHargeisa Airport—[16]
YemenAdenAden International Airport—[16]
An Air Djibouti British Aerospace 146 at the Aden Adde International Airport (2016)

Fleet

Current

Air Djibouti relaunched service in 2015 using a wet-leased Fokker 27. In 2016, the company leased a Boeing 737-400 from Cardiff Aviation, which was the first aircraft the new airline operated. Air Djibouti later entered a wet-lease for a BAe 146-300.[17] By September 2017, all three aircraft had been returned to their lessors.[18]

Historic fleet

In the 1960s, the airline operated Douglas DC-3s, a Beechcraft Model 18, and a Beechcraft Musketeer.[3] In the early 1970s, the fleet also included a Douglas DC-6; the two Beechcrafts had been replaced by a Bell JetRanger helicopter, and a Piper Cherokee Six.[19]

Before operations were suspended Air Djibouti operated 1 Airbus A310 and 5 Boeing 737-200 aircraft.

Accidents and incidents

  • On 23 July 1969, an Air Djibouti Douglas C-47 (registered F-OCKT) ditched 9 nautical miles (17 km) off Djibouti after having collided with several cranes at an altitude of 300 feet (91 m). The aircraft was operating a domestic flight from Tadjoura Airport to Djibouti–Ambouli International Airport. All four people on board survived.[20]
  • On 17 October 1977, two gunmen entered an Air Djibouti de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter at Tadjoura Airport shortly before the aircraft's planned take-off, shooting the pilot and one passenger.[21]
  • On August 17, 1986, a leased Boeing 737-200 (OO-SBQ) was intercepted by two fighter aircraft from the South Yemeni Air Force and forced to land in Aden. There it was ransacked by security forces and one person was arrested. Due to the incident, the Republic of Djibouti broke off diplomatic relations with South Yemen.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Cardiff Aviation Delivers First Boeing 737 For New Air Djibouti Commercial Fleet". CAPA Centre for Aviation. 12 August 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-08-21.
  2. 1 2 Dron, Alan (11 August 2016). "Africa's Air Djibouti continues re-fleeting". Air Transport World. Archived from the original on 21 August 2016.
  3. 1 2 "World Airline Survey", Flight International, 13 April 1967, p.554 (online archive version) retrieved 6 April 2011
  4. ↑ Air Djibouti entry at airlineupdate.com Archived 2012-07-17 at archive.today
  5. ↑ "World airline survey—Compagnie Territoriale de Transports Aériens de la Cote Française des Somalis". Flight International. 89 (2979): 609. 14 April 1966. Archived from the original on 20 July 2017.
  6. 1 2 Guttery (1998), p. 46.
  7. ↑ "World airline directory—Air Djibouti (Red Sea Airlines)". Flight International. 118 (3716): 274. 26 July 1980. ISSN 0015-3710. Archived from the original on 20 July 2017.
  8. ↑ "World Airline Directory–Air Djibouti (Red Sea Airlines)". Flight International. 137 (4207): 54. 14–20 March 1990. ISSN 0015-3710. Archived from the original on 20 July 2017.
  9. ↑ "World Airline Directory–Air Djibouti (Red Sea Airlines)". Flight International. 143 (4362): 53. 24–30 March 1993. ISSN 0015-3710. Archived from the original on 20 July 2017.
  10. 1 2 "World Airline Directory — Air Djibouti-Red Sea Airlines". Flight International. 155 (4670): 52. 1 March – 6 April 1999. ISSN 0015-3710. Archived from the original on 20 July 2017.
  11. ↑ "Air Djibouti takes A310-200 for long haul services". Flight International. 153 (4630): 13. 17–23 June 1998. ISSN 0015-3710. Archived from the original on 20 July 2017.
  12. ↑ Maasho, Aaron (2 September 2015). "Air Djibouti, back from bankruptcy, sets sights on air freight". Reuters. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  13. 1 2 "Air Djibouti to commence cargo operations in late 2015". Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  14. ↑ "Djibouti has relaunched its national airline, with backing from Iron Maiden's lead singer - Business Insider". Business Insider. 4 August 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  15. ↑ "Air Djibouti Returns". Airliner World (October 2016): 10.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Flight Schedules - Air Djibouti". www.air-djibouti.com. Archived from the original on 2019-07-02. Retrieved 2019-12-17.
  17. ↑ Hoyle2016-08-10T13:27:51+01:00, Craig. "PICTURE: Reborn Air Djibouti's first 737 gets airborne". Flight Global. Retrieved 2019-12-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  18. ↑ "Air Djibouti eyes 70-seaters, B737 freighters". ch-aviation. Retrieved 2019-12-17.
  19. ↑ "World Airline Survey", Flight International, 22 March 1973, p.435 (online archive version) retrieved 6 April 2011
  20. ↑ "F-OCKT Accident Description". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 14 February 2011.
  21. ↑ Harro Ranter (17 October 1977). "ASN Aircraft accident de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter registration unknown Tadjoura Airport (TDJ)". Retrieved 3 February 2016.

Bibliography

  • Guttery, Ben R. (1998). Encyclopedia of African Airlines. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company. ISBN 0-7864-0495-7.

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