IAero Airways

iAero Airways, previously Swift Air, is an American airline based in Miami, Florida, United States. It operates charter flights for nationally known fractional aircraft operators, financial institutions, construction, transportation, many collegiate athletic departments, professional sports organizations, and major tour operators.[2] It is also a major contractor for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, operating many of the agency's deportation flights as well as flights transporting detainees between immigration detention facilities within the United States.[3][4] The airline also provides aircraft management services for private owners. Its main hub is Miami International Airport.[5]

Not to be confused with Swiftair, Swift Air Malawi, or Swift Aire Lines.
iAero Airways
IATA ICAO Callsign
WQ SWQ SWIFTFLIGHT
Founded1997 (1997)
AOC #I5EA212N[1]
HubsMiami International Airport
Alexandria International Airport (Louisiana)
Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport
Fleet size33
Parent companyiAero Group
HeadquartersPhoenix, Arizona (corporate)
Greensboro, North Carolina (operational)
Key peopleJason Vaughn
John Torres
WebsiteiAeroairways.com

Following the acquisition of assets from Eastern Air Lines in 2017, Swift Air began operating charter flights to Cuba for Havana Air.

History

The airline was established in 1997 and was the launch customer for the Embraer ERJ 135 Legacy aircraft.[5] In November 2006 the airline received authorization for Part 121 operations and began flying three Boeing 737-400s. These aircraft are each configured with all first class interiors, electrical outlets, and club work areas with tables. The primary use of these aircraft is air transportation for major professional sports team (NBA, NHL, MLB) and for VIP charters.[6]

John McCain's 2008 presidential campaign utilized one of Swift Air's Boeing 737-400's, which was dubbed the "Straight Talk Express," the same name given to his bus used earlier in the campaign.

In October 2009, Swift was reported to be under investigation by the FAA and OSHA for safety and maintenance issues. Employees claimed they were told to lie to NTSB investigators over an incident of a nose-gear collapsing in 2008. OSHA had asked Swift to take care of a ground equipment issue involving a broken truck latch, which they did. The investigation was re-opened a week later with OSHA declining to comment as to why. The FAA declined to comment while the investigation was underway. Swift Vice President denied that employees were directed to lie to investigators.[7]

In June 2011 Swift Air originally planned to operate public charter flights from Chicago to some European destinations such as Belgrade (Serbia), Zagreb (Croatia) and Kraków (Poland); however, these destinations were only flown in June 2011.

On June 17, 2011, Swift Air voluntarily suspended their Part 121 operations pending an inquiry by the FAA.[8][9] Swift Air resumed normal part 121 operations on June 25, 2011 after making manual changes to satisfy the FAA.

In 2017, Swift Air announced plans to acquire the Boeing 737-800 assets of the second iteration of Eastern Air Lines stating, "Eastern Air Lines’ name, assets, and associated trademarks will be retained within the transaction.".[10] One aircraft remains painted in Eastern livery to protect the trademark, although the fleet of Dynamic International Airways (owned by a co-owner of Swift Air) would eventually take the Eastern name and trademark (as Eastern Airlines, without the space), retaining the Dynamic AOC.

In May 2019, Swift became a subsidiary of iAero Group, an aviation service firm minority owned by The Blackstone Group.[11]

As of December 2019, Swift Air began its transition to rebrand as iAero Airways.[12]

Rebranding

Swift Air has announced that it intends to rebrand itself as iAero Airways, following its recent takeover by the iAero Group. A filing with the US Department of Transportation (DOT) on September 9, 2019, stated that at present time, it intends to retain its corporate name - Swift Air, LLC - and therefore does not seek the re-issuance of its operating licenses and certificates.[13]

Fleet
Swift Air Boeing 737-400 in older livery
Swift Air Boeing 737-400 in new livery

As of July 2020, the iAero Airways fleet includes:[14][15]

iAero Airways Fleet
Aircraft In Fleet Orders Notes
Boeing 737-300 7 —
Boeing 737-300/BDSF 1 —
Boeing 737-400 20 —
Boeing 737-400SF 2 — Operating for DHL Aviation
Boeing 737-800 5 —
Boeing 737-800BDSF 2 — Operating for DHL Aviation
Total 37 —
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References
  1. "Federal Aviation Administration - Airline Certificate Information - Detail View". av-info.faa.gov. Retrieved 2019-06-27.
  2. https://www.iaeroairways.com/about-us/
  3. MacDonald-Evoy, Jerod (17 July 2019). "'ICE Air' flew more than 32K immigrants out of Mesa in less than 10 months". AZ Mirror. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
  4. "How ICE Helped Spread the Coronavirus". nytimes.com. 10 July 2020.
  5. Flight International 12–18 April 2005
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-05-29. Retrieved 2007-11-02.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. Sanchez, Veronica (22 October 2009). "Swift investigated by FAA, OSHA". 12 News (NBC Phoenix). Retrieved 23 October 2009.
  8. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-06-21. Retrieved 2011-06-19.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  9. Bukvic, Lj. (2011-08-16). "Svift er kažnjen zbog otkazivanja leta za Beograd i Zagreb". Danas (in Croatian). Retrieved 2019-12-19. / Google Translate. "Swift is fined for canceling flight to Belgrade and Zagreb". Retrieved 2017-04-29.
  10. "Swift Air / Eastern Air Lines - Swift Air". flyswiftair.com.
  11. "Swift Air Joins iAero Group". prnewswire.com. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
  12. "About us iAero Airways". iaeroairways.com. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  13. https://www.ch-aviation.com/portal/news/81746-arizonas-swift-air-to-rebrand-as-iaero-airways
  14. "Charter - iAero Airways". iAeroAirways.com. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
  15. "iAero Airways Fleet Details and History". Planespotters.net. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
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