National Jet Express (formerly ''Cobham Aviation Services Australia - Regional Services'') is an Australian

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 – flight ...

and aviation services provider with its headquarters in

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

History

National Jet Express was established in 1994 as a subsidiary of

National Jet Systems National Jet Systems, formerly ''Cobham Aviation Services Australia - Airline Services'', is an Australian regional airline based at Adelaide Airport, operating regular scheduled services as part of the QantasLink brand.

to operate charter and scheduled services under National Jet’s own branding, using the

British Aerospace 146 The British Aerospace 146 (also BAe 146) is a short-haul and regional airliner that was manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2001. Avro International Aerospace manufa ...

British Aerospace Jetstream The British Aerospace Jetstream is a small twin turboprop airliner, with a Cabin pressurisation, pressurised fuselage, developed as the ''Jetstream 31'' from the earlier Handley Page Jetstream. A larger version of the Jetstream was also manuf ...

and

Dash 8 The De Havilland Canada DHC-8, commonly known as the Dash 8, is a series of turboprop-powered regional airliners, introduced by de Havilland Canada (DHC) in 1984. DHC was bought by Boeing in 1986, then by Bombardier in 1992, then by Longv ...

aircraft. Dedicated freighter services were also operated on behalf of

Australian airExpress Australian airExpress was a logistics company based in Melbourne, Australia. It operated freight-only services within Australia using aircraft operated by Express Freighters Australia (a subsidiary of Qantas), National Jet Systems and Pel-Air; ...

using the BAe 146, as well as a

Boeing 727 The Boeing 727 is an American Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliner that was developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. After the heavier Boeing 707, 707 quad-jet was introduced in 1958, Boeing addressed the demand for shorter ...

. Additional freighter capacity was obtained using a leased

Boeing 737 The Boeing 737 is an American narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Boeing Renton Factory, Renton factory in Washington (state), Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the t ...

-300QC from March 1994 until March 1996. In 1999, National Jet Systems, including its subsidiaries National Jet Express and

Surveillance Australia Surveillance Australia Pty Ltd (formerly ''Cobham Aviation Services Australia - Special Mission'') is an Australian aviation company. It is primarily engaged in servicing the Australian Border Force Australian Coastwatch, Coastwatch contract, fly ...

, were acquired by Cobham. In 2009, National Jet Express was rebranded as ''Cobham Aviation Services Australia - Regional Services'' to align its branding with the broader Cobham group and to differentiate its role from that of National Jet Systems. The airline also announced that it would operate regular public transport flights to Kambalda as an extension of its existing charter services for mining company

Gold Fields Gold Fields Limited (formerly The Gold Fields of South Africa) is one of the world's largest gold mining firms. Headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, the company is listed on both the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) and the New York St ...

. These flights were later transferred to

Skippers Aviation Skipper or skippers may refer to: Rank * Skipper (boating), a person who has command of a vessel * Skipper (rank), a former warrant rank in the British Royal Naval Reserve * The leader of a Sea Scouts (Boy Scouts of America) troop Sports * ...

. In 2010, Cobham was awarded a six-year contract from

Chevron Chevron (often relating to V-shaped patterns) may refer to: Science and technology * Chevron (aerospace), sawtooth patterns on some jet engines * Chevron (anatomy), a bone * '' Eulithis testata'', a moth * Chevron (geology), a fold in rock la ...

for aviation transport services to

Barrow Island Barrow Island or may Barrow Island''s'' refer to: * Barrow Island, an island located in Western Australia * N. and S. Barrow Islands, a pair of islands located in Queensland, Australia * Barrow Island, a former island in Barrow-in-Furness, Englan ...

in support of the

Gorgon gas project The Gorgon gas project is a multi-decade natural gas project in Western Australia, involving the development of the Greater Gorgon gas fields, subsea gas-gathering infrastructure, and a liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant on Barrow Island. The p ...

. The contract was valued at $

AUD The Australian dollar ( sign: $; code: AUD; also abbreviated A$ or sometimes AU$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; and also referred to as the dollar or Aussie dollar) is the official currency and legal tender of Au ...

170 million and, at the time, was heralded as the largest in Australian aviation history. The service initially operated using

Avro RJ100 The British Aerospace 146 (also BAe 146) is a short-haul and regional airliner that was manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2001. Avro International Aerospace manu ...

aircraft, in addition to the BAe 146-300. In July 2014, Cobham announced a four-year contract from Gold Fields for the provision of fly-in fly-out services to the

Granny Smith The Granny Smith is an List of apple cultivars, apple cultivar that originated in Australia in 1868. It is named after Maria Ann Smith, who Fruit tree propagation, propagated the cultivar from a chance seedling. The tree is thought to be a Hybri ...

and Darlot mine sites. As part of this contract NJE operated an 82-seat

Avro RJ85 The British Aerospace 146 (also BAe 146) is a short-haul and regional airliner that was manufactured in the United Kingdom by British Aerospace, later part of BAE Systems. Production ran from 1983 until 2001. Avro International Aerospace manu ...

equipped with gravel kit allowing the jet aircraft to land on gravel runways. In September 2014, Cobham introduced the first

Embraer E190 The Embraer E-Jet family is a series of four-abreast, narrow-body, short- to medium-range, twin-engined jet airliners designed and produced by Brazilian aerospace manufacturer Embraer. The E-Jet was designed to complement Embraer’s earlier ...

to be used in the Australian closed charter sector. Acquired for use on its services to Barrow Island, the 104 seat E190 introduced a new livery and operated the route alongside the existing Avro RJ100 aircraft. The contract was said to be worth more than $160 million. The aircraft was withdrawn in March 2018, but was replaced with another E190 in May 2019. On the 29 February 2016, after 25 years of service, flights from Adelaide to

Moomba Moomba may refer to: * Moomba Festival, a Labour Day festival in Melbourne, Australia *Moomba, South Australia, a town *Moomba (constituency) Moomba is a constituency of the National Assembly (Zambia), National Assembly of Zambia. It covers the ea ...

and Ballera on behalf of

Santos Limited Santos Ltd. (South Australia and Northern Territory Oil Search) is an Australian oil and gas exploration and production company, with its headquarters in Adelaide, South Australia. It owns liquefied natural gas (LNG), pipeline gas, and oil asse ...

ceased after the service was recontracted with

Alliance Airlines Alliance Airlines Pty Limited is an Australian airline based at Brisbane Airport in Brisbane, Queensland, with operational bases in Adelaide Airport, Adelaide, Cairns Airport, Cairns, Perth Airport, Perth, Townsville Airport, Townsville, Darwi ...

. In August 2017, flights from Adelaide to

Port Augusta Port Augusta (''Goordnada'' in the revived indigenous Barngarla language) is a coastal city in South Australia about by road from the state capital, Adelaide. Most of the city is on the eastern shores of Spencer Gulf, immediately south of the ...

and Prominent Hill commenced on behalf of Oz Minerals. In June 2018, Cobham donated the forward section of one of their retired BAe 146 aircraft to the South Australian Aviation Museum. The section features the flight deck, forward galley and cabin, and is intended to be turned into an interactive exhibit. In August 2019, Cobham commenced flights with the

Dash 8 Q400 The De Havilland Canada DHC-8, commonly known as the Dash 8, is a series of turboprop-powered regional airliners, introduced by de Havilland Canada (DHC) in 1984. DHC was bought by Boeing in 1986, then by Bombardier in 1992, then by Longvi ...

on selected charter services. In January 2020, Cobham and all of its subsidiaries were acquired by

Advent International Advent International Corporation is an American global private equity firm. It is focused on buyouts of companies in Western and Central Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia. The firm focuses on international buyouts, growth and strat ...

. On 4 November 2021, passenger operations using the BAe 146 and Avro RJ in Western Australia ceased. The 146/RJ fleet was relocated to South Australia, where they operated their last passenger service on 3 June 2022 from Port Augusta to Adelaide. On 15 July 2022, Rex Freight and Charter Pty Ltd (a subsidiary of

Rex Airlines Rex Airlines Pty Ltd is an Australian regional airline based in Mascot, New South Wales. It operates scheduled regional services using turboprop aircraft. Between 2021 and 2024, Rex also operated jet services between selected major Australian ...

) announced its intent to purchase National Jet Express for $48 million. The acquisition was completed on September 30 2022, with services and aircraft retaining the Cobham branding in the interim. In January 2023, the airline confirmed that it would revive its National Jet Express branding, with the Cobham name and livery to be progressively retired. The airline announced that from July 2023 it would open a new base of operations at Brisbane Airport with Q400 aircraft, supporting the provision of fly-in fly-out services to

Moranbah Moranbah is a coal mining town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Isaac Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Moranbah had a population of 9,425. In addition to the permanent population, Moranbah also has ...

for

BHP Mitsubishi Alliance The BHP Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA) is an Australian coal mining company operating in Central Queensland. The largest coal producer in Australia, it is a joint venture with BHP and Mitsubishi each owning 50%. It was established in 2001. The BMA ...

Operations

National Jet Express is headquartered at

Perth Airport Perth Airport is an international airport, international, domestic airport, domestic and general aviation airport serving Perth, Western Australia. It is the List of the busiest airports in Australia, fourth busiest airport in Australia meas ...

, with hubs at

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

and

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

. The company operates freight services on behalf of

Qantas Freight Qantas Freight is the subsidiary company of Australia's largest airline Qantas responsible for air cargo operations of the Qantas Group. It is the owner of freight airline Express Freighters Australia, freight forwarder Qantas Courier and truck ...

,CASA website link to National Jet Express AOC.
Retrieved: 6 September 2008 with four

-300QT freighters providing overnight services to and from curfew-restricted Sydney Airport. National Jet Express also operates dedicated scheduled charter services across its regional network, transporting fly-in, fly-out (FIFO) personnel for clients in the resources industry. These services are operated using the Embraer E190 and Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 aircraft. National Jet Express has also developed "turnkey" transportation systems, including airport management and reservations services, for major Australian infrastructure projects such as Santos's

Cooper Basin The Cooper Basin is a Permian-Triassic sedimentary geological basin in Australia. The intracratonic rift basin is located mainly in the southwestern part of Queensland and extends into northeastern South Australia. It is named after the Coop ...

gas fields at

and Ballera in the heart of Australia, Chevron's

operations into a Class "A" nature reserve with strict quarantine requirements, along with operations for Ok Tedi gold and copper mine in Papua New Guinea.

Destinations

National Jet Express's operations can be broken into two separate branches: scheduled operations on behalf of Qantas Freight, and an extensive closed charter operation in support of the mining industry. ;National Jet Express charter services *Queensland **Brisbane (Brisbane Airport) **Moranbah *

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

(

Adelaide Airport Adelaide Airport, also known as Adelaide International Airport, is an International airport, international, Domestic airport, domestic and general aviation airport serving Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. Located approximately 6 km ...

) ** Carrapateena **

** Prominent Hill *

**Abra Base Metals Project **

** Cue **

Jundee Gold Mine The Jundee Gold Mine is an active gold mine in Western Australia, approximately 47 km north east of the town of Wiluna, owned by Northern Star Resources.Karara **Karlawinda ** Laverton ** Leonora ** Meekatharra **

Mount Keith Mount Keith is a mountain on the crest of California's Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada, between Mount Bradley to the north, and Junction Peak to the southwest. Its north and west facing slopes feed the Kings River (California), Kings River ...

** Murrin Murrin **Nova Nickel-Copper Mine **

(

) **

Plutonic Gold Mine The Plutonic Gold Mine is a gold mine located 82 km east-northeast of Peak Hill, Western Australia. It is owned and operated by Catalyst Metals Limited after a merger with the previous owner, Canadian miner Superior Gold, in June 2023. It ...

Sunrise Dam Gold Mine The Sunrise Dam Gold Mine is located 55 km south of Laverton, Western Australia, on the eastern margin of Lake Carey. It is fully owned by AngloGold Ashanti and comprises a large-scale mechanized underground mine with a conventional gravit ...

Tropicana Gold Mine The Tropicana Gold Mine is located 330 km northeast of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia.

;Freight scheduled destinations for

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

(

Sydney Airport Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport — colloquially Kingsford Smith Airport, Sydney Airport or Mascot Airport — is an international airport serving Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, south of the Sydney central business district, in the subu ...

) *

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

(

Brisbane Airport Brisbane Airport is an international airport serving Brisbane, the capital of the Australian state of Queensland. The airport services 31 airlines flying to 50 domestic and 29 international destinations, total amounting to more than 22.7 mill ...

) ** Gold Coast (

Gold Coast Airport Gold Coast Airport (formerly known as Coolangatta Airport; ) is a Domestic airport, domestic and International airport, international Australian airport located at the southern end of the Gold Coast, Queensland, Gold Coast and approximately ...

) *South Australia **Adelaide (Adelaide Airport) *

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

(

Melbourne Airport Melbourne Airport , known locally as Tullamarine Airport, is an international airport serving Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Operating 24/7 service, 24 hours a day with on-site parking, shopping and dining, Melbourne Airport is the List of th ...

)

Fleet

, National Jet Express operates the following aircraft:

Incidents

*29 April 2014: The no. 2 engine of a National Jet Express Avro RJ100, registration VH-NJI, failed shortly after take-off from Perth. Witnesses described a trail of sparks leaving the back of the No. 2 (left-hand, inner) engine. The aircraft made a successful landing with no injuries. *30 July 2019: A National Jet Express Avro RJ85 made contact with a lighting structure at

and was subsequently damaged beyond economical repair. The final report attributed a loss of brake pressure and pilot error as contributing factors.

References

External links

* {{Airlines of Australia Airlines established in 1989 Australian companies established in 1989 Airlines of Western Australia Companies based in Adelaide