is an 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...

 based in Amakusa

Amakusa, Kumamoto

was a town located in Amakusa District, Kumamoto, Japan.Amakusa-machi consists of five villages, four spread along the west coast of Shimo-shima and one located in the mountains between the coast and Hondo, the administrative capital of Amakusa city. They are, in order of geographic location...

, Kumamoto Prefecture

Kumamoto Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan located on Kyushu Island. The capital is the city of Kumamoto.- History :Historically the area was called Higo Province; and the province was renamed Kumamoto during the Meiji Restoration. The creation of prefectures was part of the abolition of the feudal system...

, Japan. It operates a regional service from and to Amakusa. Its main base is Amakusa Airfield

Amakusa Airfield

is an airport located northwest of Amakusa, Kumamoto, Japan, on the Amakusa Islands . Locals often referred to the airfield as Amakusa Airport. It is located on the northern side of the Amakusa Islands, north east of Amakusa city...

, with a focus city of Kumamoto Airport

Kumamoto Airport

, also known as , is an airport in Mashiki, Kumamoto, Japan.A planned merger of municipalities will be implemented around March 31, 2010; the City of Kumamoto will be merged with the Shimomashiki District town of Jonan and Mashiki. When the merger is completed the airport will be within the City of...

.

History

The airline was established on 9 October 1998 and started operations on 23 March 2000, with services from Amakusa to Fukuoka and Kumamoto. It is owned by the municipal government (80% stake) and Japan Airlines

Japan Airlines

is an airline headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan. It is the flag carrier of Japan and its main hubs are Tokyo's Narita International Airport and Tokyo International Airport , as well as Nagoya's Chūbu Centrair International Airport and Osaka's Kansai International Airport...

. On October 1, 2004, it began service between Kumamoto and Matsuyama. On April 18, 2006, it cumulatively carried over 50,000 passengers. On September 1, 2008, it stopped the service between Kumamoto and Matsuyama. Three days later, on September 4, it began the service between Kumamoto and Kobe. On March 31, 2010, it stopped the freight service between Kumamoto and Kobe.

Destinations

• Amakusa (Amakusa Airfield)
• Fukuoka (Fukuoka Airport
  Fukuoka Airport
  , formerly known as Itazuke Air Base, is an international and domestic airport located east of Hakata Station in Fukuoka, Japan. It is officially designated a second class airport. It is operating at full capacity, and cannot be further expanded. Flights stop at 10 p.m...
  
  )
• Kumamoto (Kumamoto Airport
  Kumamoto Airport
  , also known as , is an airport in Mashiki, Kumamoto, Japan.A planned merger of municipalities will be implemented around March 31, 2010; the City of Kumamoto will be merged with the Shimomashiki District town of Jonan and Mashiki. When the merger is completed the airport will be within the City of...
  
  )
• Osaka (Osaka International Airport
  Osaka International Airport
  or Osaka-Itami International Airport is the primary domestic airport for the Kansai region of Japan, including the major cities of Osaka, Kyoto, and Kobe. It is classified as a first class airport....
  
  )

Fleet

The Amakusa Airlines fleet includes the following aircraft:

• 1 Bombardier Dash-8-103
• 1 Eurocopter Dauphin
  Eurocopter Dauphin
  The Eurocopter SA 365/AS365 Dauphin 2 is a medium-weight multipurpose twin-engine helicopter manufactured by Eurocopter .-Design and development:...