Great Lakes Air is an American

fixed-base operator A fixed-base operator (FBO) is an organization granted the right by an airport to operate at the airport and provide aeronautical services such as fueling, hangaring, tie-down and parking, aircraft rental, aircraft maintenance, flight instruction, ...

and

charter airline Air charter is the business of renting an entire aircraft (i.e., chartering) as opposed to individual aircraft seats (i.e., purchasing a ticket through a traditional airline). Regulation Charter – also called air taxi or ad hoc – flights ...

based in

Mackinac County Airport Mackinac County Airport is a county-owned public-use airport in Mackinac County, Michigan, United States. It is located northwest of the central business district of St. Ignace. It is the closest airport to Mackinac Island Airport with a refue ...

St. Ignace, Michigan St. Ignace is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Mackinac County. The city had a population of 2,452 at the 2010 census. St. Ignace Township is located just to the north of the city, but the two are administered autono ...

. Great Lakes Air began in St. Ignace, and began air charter service from

serving various destinations throughout

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

. Over its 30-year career, Great Lakes has established a name as one of the largest

air charter Air charter is the business of renting an entire aircraft (i.e., chartering) as opposed to individual aircraft seats (i.e., purchasing a ticket through a traditional airline). Regulation Charter – also called air taxi or ad hoc – flights ...

companies in Michigan with its main charter destination, Mackinac Island. In addition to passenger charter, cargo is also flown throughout Michigan. In August 2019, Great Lakes Air purchased a Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander Piston Islander aircraft, in order to ensure the efficiency of its operations during the winter months.

Fleet

Destinations

St. Ignace St. Ignace is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Mackinac County. The city had a population of 2,452 at the 2010 census. St. Ignace Township is located just to the north of the city, but the two are administered auto ...

* Mackinac Island * Bois Blanc Island * Beaver Island *

Charlevoix Charlevoix ( , ) is a cultural and natural region in Quebec, on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River as well as in the Laurentian Mountains area of the Canadian Shield. This dramatic landscape includes rolling terrain, fjords, headlands ...

Traverse City Traverse City ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Grand Traverse County, although a small portion extends into Leelanau County. It is the largest city in the 21-county Northern Michigan region. The population was ...

* Pellston

Accidents and incidents

* On February 17, 2014, a Great Lakes Air Piper Cherokee 6 N7122J made an emergency landing on the ice of Lake Huron. There were no injuries. The NTSB reported the cause of the forced landing as a fuel injector malfunction, causing fuel starvation. The plane was pulled off the ice via snow machine, and returned into service. * On December 3, 2011, a Great Lakes Air Piper Cherokee 6 registration number N33315 en route from

crashed upon approach to

Mackinac Island Airport Mackinac Island Airport is a public use airport in Mackinac County, Michigan, United States. It is located northwest of downtown Mackinac Island, Michigan in the center of Mackinac Island. The airport is owned by Mackinac Island State Park Com ...

. The pilot and sole passenger died upon impact. The

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with customs and security duties to ...

commenced a search and rescue operation to recover the down aircraft, locating it in a wooded area approximately 1.6 miles north of 83D. The victims were Thomas Phillips of Kirkland, Washington, an Amazon Executive, and pilot Joseph Phillips, Jr. of

. The pilot's error to properly judge weather conditions was blamed for the cause of the crash.

References

External links

* Airlines based in Michigan Charter airlines of the United States Fixed-base operators {{US-airline-stub