Samoa Airways

Samoa Airways, formerly Polynesian Airlines, is the flag carrier of Samoa.

The airline was founded in 1959 as "Polynesian Airlines", providing domestic and international flights throughout the South Pacific. International operations were temporarily halted in 2005 and taken over by the new airline Polynesian Blue (later Virgin Samoa), before resuming international flights under the new name of "Samoa Airways" in late 2017.

Samoa Airways is wholly owned by the government of Samoa and is based in the capital city of Apia, with its headquarters located in the Samoa Methodist Church Building on Beach Road and its primary hub at Faleolo International Airport. The airline presently operates short-haul flights within Samoa and American Samoa, however it no longer serves long-haul flights to Australia and New Zealand after the company ceased jet operations in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

History

The airline was established in 1959 as "Polynesian Airlines",[1] and started operations in August that year. By 1969 it was running daily flights to Pago Pago using a Douglas DC-3, as well as services to Tonga and Fiji using a chartered Hawker Siddeley HS 748.[2]

Accidents and incidents

On 11 May 1966 at around 18:10 local time, the three crew members operating a Polynesian Airlines Douglas DC-3 with the registration 5W-FAB on a training flight lost control of the aircraft over the Apolima Strait after the cabin entry door detached and hit the tail. The aircraft was on a training flight, the three crew members were the only people on board; all three were killed in the subsequent crash.[18]

On 13 January 1970 at 02:54 local time, Polynesian Airlines Flight 208B, which was operated by a Douglas DC-3D (registered 5W-FAC), crashed into the sea shortly after take-off from Faleolo International Airport on an international non-scheduled passenger flight to Pago Pago International Airport, American Samoa, killing the 29 passengers and three crew on board.[19]

On 20 August 1988, a Polynesian Airlines Britten-Norman BN-2A Islander (registered 5W-FAF) was damaged beyond repair when it overshot the runway upon landing at Asau Airport; there were no fatalities.[20]

On 13 September 1994, a Polynesian Airlines Boeing 737-3Q8 operating Flight PH844 from Fuaʻamotu International Airport to Faleolo International Airport discovered the body of a deceased male stowaway was jamming the starboard carriageway. At 6:00, after 3.5 hours of maneuvers attempting to dislodge the body, the flight made an emergency landing at Faleolo using only the nosewheel and port undercarriage. All 72 occupants survived with minimal damage to the aircraft.[21][22] Eyewitness and author Ruperake Petaia wrote The Miracle[23] based on a number of passenger accounts of the event.

On 7 January 1997 at around 11:00 local time, a Polynesian Airlines de Havilland Canada DHC-6-300 Twin Otter crashed into Mount Vaea in Samoa during bad weather conditions, a so-called controlled flight into terrain. The aircraft had been operating Flight 211 from Pago Pago to Apia, when the pilots decided to divert to Faleolo Airport. In the crash, two of three passengers and one of the two pilots lost their lives.[24]

airline	Samoa Airways
fleet size	3
destinations	5
iata	OL
icao	PAO
callsign	POLYNESIAN
parent	Government of Samoa
founded	1959 (as Polynesian Airlines)
headquarters	Apia, Samoa
key people	Peni (CEO)
hubs	Faleolo International Airport
website	www.samoaairways.com

History

Destinations

Codeshare agreements

Fleet

Previously operated

Accidents and incidents

External links

References