Aurigny oldest established airlines in Britain after Loganair. The origin of its name lies in the cognate across Norman languages for Alderney. Aurigny Air Services was founded by Sir Derrick Bailey and started operations on 1 March 1968 after British United Airways withdrew from the Alderney to Guernsey route. It initially operated Britten-Norman Islander aircraft, developing a highly efficient network linking the Channel Islands with each other and with France and the United Kingdom. During the first year of operations the airline carried 45,000 passengers between Guernsey, Jersey and Alderney. Aurigny became the first commercial operator of the Britten-Norman Trislander in
French Island (Victoria) the plans were abandoned. During the 1960s and 1970s BHP, Hooker Rex and the State Electricity Commission paid inflated prices for land, inducing land owners to sell up and move off the island. In July 1997, (about 70%) of the island was declared French Island National Park, and in May 2002 the waters directly north of French Island were declared the French Island Marine National Park. Access to the island is by the Western Port Ferries passenger ferry running daily from Stony Point pier to Tankerton Jetty. Metro Trains run a service to Frankston with an additional diesel service to