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| Founded | 1987; 37 years ago (1987) | ||||||
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| AOC # | Pacific Coastal 2870,[2] Wilderness 18449[3] | ||||||
| Hubs | Vancouver International Airport | ||||||
| Fleet size | 29[4] | ||||||
| Destinations | 17[5] | ||||||
| Headquarters | Sea Island, Richmond, British Columbia | ||||||
| Key people | Smith family | ||||||
| Website | www www | ||||||
Pacific Coastal Airlines is a Canadian regional airline that operates scheduled, charter and cargo services to destinations in British Columbia. Its head office is located in the South Terminal of Vancouver International AirportinRichmond, British Columbia.[6] Its main base is Vancouver International Airport.[5]
The original Pacific Coastal Airlines was established in 1956 as Cassidair Services,[7] operating from its base at the airport in Cassidy, now Nanaimo Airport, south of Nanaimo.[8] In early 1980, the airline was acquired by Jim Pattison Industries and absorbed into Airwest Airlines, also recently acquired by Pattison.[9] At the time of the acquisition, Pacific Coastal was operating on the Nanaimo-Vancouver, Victoria–Nanaimo–Comox–Campbell River–Port Hardy, and Nanaimo-Qualicum Beach–Port Alberni routes.[10] On November 1, 1980, Airwest and several other local airlines recently acquired by Pattison were merged into Air BC.[11]
The current Pacific Coastal Airlines was established in 1987 by the merger of Powell Air and the Port Hardy division of Air BC.[12] It acquired the shares and assets of Wilderness Seaplanes on April 1, 1998.
A new airline division, Wilderness Seaplanes, which started service on May 5, 2016, was established to take over the Pacific Coastal Airlines Seaplane Division and is based at Port Hardy and Bella Bella.[13][14]
On November 24, 2017, WestJet and Pacific Coastal announced a code sharing agreement to operate Saab 340 aircraft under the WestJet Link brand commencing in June 2018. These aircraft are based at the WestJet hub at Calgary International Airport and serve destinations such as Lethbridge and Lloydminster with aircraft also being based at Vancouver International Airport with service to Cranbrook and Comox.
As of January 2023, Pacific Coastal Airlines operates services to the following eighteen destinations in British Columbia:[5]
As of January 2024, Pacific Coastal Airlines had twenty-three aircraft registered with Transport Canada, plus six registered to Wilderness Seaplanes:[4]
| Aircraft | Number | Variants | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beechcraft 1900 | 11 | 1900C, 1900D | 19 passengers, based in Vancouver |
| Cessna 185 Skywagon | 1 | C-185F | 3 passengers, based in Port Hardy, operated by Wilderness Seaplanes |
| de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver | 3 | DHC-2, DHC-2 MK. I | 4 passengers, based in Port Hardy, two operated by Wilderness Seaplanes and one by Pacific Coastal (not on website) |
| Grumman Goose | 4 | G-21A | 9 passengers, based in Port Hardy, includes three craft operated by Wilderness Seaplanes and one by Pacific Coastal (not on website) |
| Saab 340 | 10 | 340A, 340B | 30 or 34 passengers, based in Vancouver and Calgary (June 2018). Operated for WestJet Link[15] |
| Total | 29 | ||
Pacific Coastal Airline: PCO, PASCO
Pacific Coastal Airlines Head Office Vancouver International Airport - South Terminal 4440 Cowley Crescent Unit 204 Richmond BC V7B 1B8
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