Gum Air is a Surinamese airline based in

Paramaribo Paramaribo ( , , ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname's p ...

Suriname Suriname, officially the Republic of Suriname, is a country in northern South America, also considered as part of the Caribbean and the West Indies. It is a developing country with a Human Development Index, high level of human development; i ...

. Gum Air cooperates with Trans Guyana Airways to provide daily flights between Eduard Alexander Gummels International Airport in Paramaribo, Suriname and Ogle Airport in

Georgetown, Guyana Georgetown is the capital (political), capital and largest city of Guyana. It is situated in Demerara-Mahaica, region 4, on the Atlantic Ocean coast, at the mouth of the Demerara River. It is nicknamed the "Garden City of the Caribbean." It is ...

History

Gum Air was founded in 1971 by six brothers of the Gummels family. The company they started in March 1964, was agriculture air spray company named Surinam Sky Farmers and Gum Air its offspring focused more on domestic flights and regional charters. Whereas Surinam Sky Farmers has its base in the rice district of Nickerie at the Wageningen Airstrip together with Overeem Air Service maintaining Grumman Ag Cat aircraft, Gum Air has set up its domestic airline at the Zorg en Hoop Airport in the city of Paramaribo.

Current operation

Gum Air has its base at Zorg en Hoop airfield in the capital city Paramaribo and now mainly flies with single engine

Cessna Cessna () is an American brand of general aviation aircraft owned by Textron Aviation since 2014, headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. Originally, it was a brand of the Cessna Aircraft Company, an American general aviation aircraft manufactu ...

airplanes and twin-engined

de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter The de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter is a Canadian STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) utility aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada in the mid-1960s and still in production today. Built by De Havilland Canada from 1965 to 1988, Viking ...

aircraft. Gum Air also owns dedicated Heliport, Gummels Heliport Paramaribo, built in

at the Gummelsweg in the neighborhood of Kwatta near the city of

, Suriname. Privately owned by the Gummels family the heliport is mainly used for helicopter charters and primarily for offshore development activities within the country. Besides charter flights within Suriname Gum Air also operates scheduled interior services from Paramaribo to places like Benzdorp, Cottica, Gabaka, Drietabbetje and Stoelmanseiland. Internationally Gum Air has an agreement with Trans Guyana Airways and together they provide regular scheduled flights between Zorg en Hoop Airport, Paramaribo (Suriname) and Ogle Airport of Georgetown (Guyana). Gum Air has flown various unique types of

STOL A short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft is a fixed-wing aircraft that can takeoff/land on short runways. Many STOL-designed aircraft can operate on airstrips with harsh conditions (such as high altitude or ice). STOL aircraft, including tho ...

Short Take Off & Landing aircraft from Suriname in the past such as Dornier DO 28D-1 Skyservant, GAF Nomad, Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander and also helicopter types such as Agusta-Bell 204B & Bell 206B Jet Ranger II.

Future expansion plans

In September 2021, Gum Air placed an order at Cessna for a new Cessna 408 SkyCourier to become the first operator in the Caribbean and Latin America for this new type of twin engine turboprop aircraft planned for delivery after 2023. Gum Air constructed a new 3600-foot runway at its Gummels Heliport Paramaribo, and plans to utilize the SkyCourier for flights between Paramaribo, Georgetown,

Port of Spain Port of Spain ( ; Trinidadian and Tobagonian English, Trinidadian English: ''Port ah Spain'' ) is the capital and chief port of Trinidad and Tobago. With a municipal population of 49,867 (2017), an urban population of 81,142 and a transient dail ...

, and

Cayenne Cayenne (; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and capital city of French Guiana, an overseas region and Overseas department, department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Caye ...

. The new EAG Airport will mainly support the Oil & Gas, and Cargo sectors with charter flights and is scheduled for its official opening by the end of March 2025.

Fleet

Gum Air today owns a fleet of nine aircraft plus two helicopters, consisting of five types of aircraft varying from five to 19 seats. One Cessna SkyCourier is on order for delivery after 2023.

Accidents and incidents

*On 10 February 2001 Gum Air's GAF Nomad N24A, registered PZ-TBP was written off when it crashed on a flight from Paramaribo – Zanderij Johan Adolf Pengel International Airport (PBM/SMJP) to Njoeng Jacob Kondre Airstrip (ICAO: SMJK). The Nomad plane had lost radio contact. According to personnel at the airstrip in Jacob Kondre it was flying low and crashed into a mountain. All 9 passengers plus the pilot died. *On 21 August 2008 a Gum Air's Cessna 207 Skywagon, PZ-TRR, ran off the airstrip at Poesoegroenoe Airstrip (ICAO: SMPG) during take-off when engine failure occurred. All 6 people on board survived, with only two slightly injured. *On 22 November 2008 Gum Air's Cessna 404 Titan, registered PZ-TVC made a forced landing on the road near Gusterie, Suriname, after engine failures. The aircraft came to rest in the bushes and was reported destroyed. No injuries or fatalities occurred in this accident. *On 15 May 2017 Gum Air's Cessna 206 Stationair 6 registered PZ-TVU had a landing gear failure during loading at airstrip Kwamalasamutu (ICAO: SMSM). Airplane gear was later repaired and flown back to homebase

Zorg en Hoop Airport Zorg en Hoop Airport is a small airport in the city of Paramaribo, Suriname. It is west of the Suriname River, between the city quarters of Zorg en Hoop and Flora. It is mainly used for general aviation, flight training, emergency medical ...

*On 28 July 2021 Gum Air's Cessna 206 Stationair 6 registered PZ-TBG crash landed near the former mining area of Paranam in Suriname. This accident occurred following a loss of engine power, four passengers and female pilot survived with minor injuries.

References

External links

{{Commonscat, Gum Air
Official website
Airlines of Suriname Airlines established in 1971 1971 establishments in Suriname