Tahiti on 11 October, Raiatea on 2 November, and Borabora on 7 December. On 26 October 1788, , under the command of Captain William Bligh, landed in Tahiti with the mission of carrying Tahitian breadfruit trees (Tahitian: "uru") to the Caribbean. Sir Joseph Banks, the botanist from James Cook's first expedition, had concluded that this plant would be ideal to feed the African slaves working in the Caribbean plantations at very little cost. The crew remained in Tahiti for about five months, the time needed to transplant the seedlings of the trees. Three weeks after leaving Tahiti, on 28 April 1789,
Air Tahiti in 1987 acquired its first ATR 42 regional turboprop aircraft, marking the beginning of a long collaboration with the aircraft manufacturer ATR. Air Tahiti has experienced one accident since 1987. On April 18, 1991, approaching the airport of "Nuku A Taha/ Terre Déserte" in Nuku Hiva, Marquesas, following an engine failure, the Dornier 228 commuter turboprop (F-OHAB) flying the route attempted to land near the coast. Ten passengers out of twenty in the aircraft were killed. Air Tahiti Air Tahiti is a French airline company which operates in French Polynesia, France. Its principal base is Faa'a International Airport. Air Tahiti