Air Djibouti, also known as Red Sea Airlines, was the national airline

Airline

An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...

 of Djibouti

Djibouti

Djibouti , officially the Republic of Djibouti , is a country in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Eritrea in the north, Ethiopia in the west and south, and Somalia in the southeast. The remainder of the border is formed by the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden at the east...

 between 1963 and 2002.

History

Air Djibouti was established in 1962 as Air Somali. Operations commenced in April 1963 under the Air Djibouti name, and in the 1960s the airline operated Douglas DC-3

Douglas DC-3

The Douglas DC-3 is an American fixed-wing propeller-driven aircraft whose speed and range revolutionized air transport in the 1930s and 1940s. Its lasting impact on the airline industry and World War II makes it one of the most significant transport aircraft ever made...

s, a Beechcraft Model 18

Beechcraft Model 18

The Beechcraft Model 18, or "Twin Beech", as it is better known, is a 6-11 seat, twin-engine, low-wing, conventional-gear aircraft that was manufactured by the Beech Aircraft Corporation of Wichita, Kansas...

 and a Beechcraft Musketeer

Beechcraft Musketeer

The Beechcraft Musketeer is a family of single-engine, low-wing, light aircraft that was produced by Beechcraft. The line includes the Model 19 Musketeer Sport, the Model 23 Musketeer, Custom and Sundowner, the Model 23-24 Musketeer Super III the retractable gear Model 24-R Sierra and the military...

. In the early 1970s, the fleet also included a Douglas DC-6

Douglas DC-6

The Douglas DC-6 is a piston-powered airliner and transport aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company from 1946 to 1958. Originally intended as a military transport near the end of World War II, it was reworked after the war to compete with the Lockheed Constellation in the long-range...

; the two Beechcrafts had been replaced by a Bell JetRanger

Bell 206

The Bell 206 is a family of two-bladed, single- or twin-engine helicopters, manufactured by Bell Helicopter at its Mirabel, Quebec plant. Originally developed as the Bell YOH-4 for the United States Army's Light Observation Helicopter program, the 206 failed to be selected...

 helicopter and a Piper Cherokee Six.

From 1998 onwards, the Air Djibouti fleet consisted of only one single Airbus A310

Airbus A310

The Airbus A310 is a medium- to long-range twin-engine widebody jet airliner. Launched in July 1978, it was the second aircraft created by Airbus Industrie,a consortium of European aerospace companies, Airbus is now fully owned by EADS and since 2001 has been known as Airbus SAS. the consortium of...

 aircraft.

Accidents and incidents

• On 23 July 1969, an Air Djibouti Douglas C-47 (registered
  Aircraft registration
  An aircraft registration is a unique alphanumeric string that identifies a civil aircraft, in similar fashion to a licence plate on an automobile...
  
   F-OCKT) ditched
  Water landing
  A water landing is, in the broadest sense, any landing on a body of water. All waterfowl, those seabirds capable of flight, and some human-built vehicles are capable of landing in water as a matter of course....
  
   9 nautical miles (16.7 km) off Djibouti after having collided with several cranes
  Crane (bird)
  Cranes are a family, Gruidae, of large, long-legged and long-necked birds in the order Gruiformes. There are fifteen species of crane in four genera. Unlike the similar-looking but unrelated herons, cranes fly with necks outstretched, not pulled back...
  
   at an altitude of 300 feet (91.4 m). The aircraft was operating a domestic flight from Tadjoura Airport
  Tadjoura Airport
  Tadjoura Airport is an airport serving the city of Tadjoura in the Tadjoura Region of Djibouti....
  
   to Djibouti Airport. All four people on board survived.
• On 17 October 1977, two gunmen entered an Air Djibouti de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter
  De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter
  The DHC-6 Twin Otter is a Canadian 19-passenger STOL utility aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada and currently produced by Viking Air. The aircraft's fixed tricycle undercarriage, STOL abilities and high rate of climb have made it a successful cargo, regional passenger airliner and MEDEVAC...
  
   at Tadjoura Airport
  Tadjoura Airport
  Tadjoura Airport is an airport serving the city of Tadjoura in the Tadjoura Region of Djibouti....
  
  shortly before the aircraft's planned take-off, shooting the pilot and one passenger.