Pacific Island Air Pacific Island Air Pacific Island Air is an Air Charter company operating out of Nadi International Airport, Fiji. Pacific Island Seaplanes was established in 1999 by Larry 'Dusty' Simon. The air charter company initially operated two de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beavers and a Britten-Norman Islander aircraft. Pacific Island Seaplanes was acquired by the Christchurch, New Zealand based GCH Aviation in 2013. GCH merged their existing Helicopters (Fiji) operation with Pacific Island Seaplanes to form Pacific Island Air (PIA). The airline offers daily services to Mamanuca Island Resorts and most Yasawa Island Resorts utilizing seaplanes and helicopters as well as charter
Pacific Air Lines was noted for innovative safety practices and cost-saving procedures. The name Pacific Air Lines passed into history in 1968 in a merger with Bonanza Air Lines and West Coast Airlines, forming Air West, which then became Hughes Airwest following the acquisition of Air West by Howard Hughes. In early 1941, Air Service veteran John Howard "Jack" Connelly and noted Hollywood agent/producer Leland Hayward formed a business partnership that five years later evolved into a scheduled commercial airline. Neither man was a stranger to aviation; Connelly was also a former test pilot, airplane salesman, Civil Aeronautics Administration instructor pilot, and inspector