Western Global Airlines
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| Founded | March 6, 2013 | ||||||
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| Commenced operations | August 1, 2014 | ||||||
| AOC # | 9WGA495N[1] | ||||||
| Hubs | Fort Myers | ||||||
| Secondary hubs | |||||||
| Fleet size | 21 | ||||||
| Parent company | Western Global Holdings | ||||||
| Headquarters | Estero, Florida, United States | ||||||
| Key people | Jim Neff (President and CEO) | ||||||
| Website | www | ||||||
Western Global Airlines, LLC is an American cargo airline based in Estero, Florida. The company's services include aircraft leasing, commercial charters and military charters. Its main hub is located at Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers, Florida. In July 2018, the company established a 160,000 sq ft (15,000 m2) aircraft maintenance facility in Shreveport, Louisiana, capable of housing three wide-body aircraft simultaneously.
The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on August 7, 2023 and exited in December 2023.
History
[edit]Western Global Airlines was founded on March 6, 2013, by Jim Neff.[2][3] It was certified by the United States Department of Transportation on February 24, 2014 with FAA approval being granted on August 1, 2014 for operations using the McDonnell Douglas MD-11F.[citation needed] Boeing 747-400 freighter operations were approved by the FAA on November 16, 2015 and Department of Transportation approval was granted on May 25, 2016.[citation needed]
In June 2019, Flexport filed a complaint against Western Global Airlines, claiming that the airline failed to meet the reliability rate mandated by their contract. On June 7, 2019, Western Global Airlines ceased operations for Flexport, which then switched to Atlas Air.[4] On August 7, 2023, Western Global filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.[5] On December 5, 2023, Western Global announced that they exited Chapter 11 bankruptcy with less than US$100 Million in debt.[6]
Fleet
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As of May 2020, Western Global Airlines operates a fleet of 21 747-400F and MD-11F:[3]
| Aircraft | In service |
Orders | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing 747-400F | 1 | — | |
| Boeing 747-400BDSF[3] | 1 | — | |
| Boeing 747-400BCF[3] | 2 | — | |
| Boeing 777F | — | 2[7] | |
| McDonnell Douglas MD-11F | 17 | — | |
| Total | 21 | 2 |
Incidents
[edit]- On February 13, 2016, Western Global Airlines Flight 4425, a McDonnell Douglas MD-11F (registered as N545JN) took off from Munich, Germany on a flight to King Shaka International Airport, South Africa carrying banknotes intended for the South African Reserve Bank. While making a fuel stop in Harare, Zimbabwe, the aircraft was impounded and its crew were arrested after ground staff reported seeing blood dripping from the aircraft. A subsequent search found a corpse in the lower compartment.[8][9][10] Zimbabwean Police reported the man was likely a stowaway who died from a lack of oxygen. The crew and the aircraft were later released.[9][11][12]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Federal Aviation Administration - Airline Certificate Information - Detail View". av-info.faa.gov. Retrieved 2019-06-27.
- ^ "Western Global takes off | Cargo Facts". cargofacts.com. 25 November 2014. Retrieved 2020-06-26.
- ^ a b c d "Western Global Airlines Fleet Details and History". www.planespotters.net. Retrieved 2020-06-26.
- ^ "Flexport files complaint against Western Global, switches to Atlas Air for 747F ops | Air Cargo World". aircargoworld.com. 25 July 2019. Retrieved 2020-06-26.
- ^ "Cargo airline Western Global goes bankrupt amid cash crunch". Bloomberg. August 7, 2023. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
- ^ "US's Western Global Airlines exits Chapter 11". ch-aviation. Retrieved 2024-02-14.
- ^ "Western Global Airlines Purchases Two Boeing 777 Freighters". Boeing Media Room.
- ^ "Blood dripping from plane leads to body". IOL News. 15 February 2016. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
- ^ a b Hradecky, Simon (16 February 2016). "News: A Western Global MD11 in Harare on Feb 14th 2016 and the results of the fuel stop". The Aviation Herald. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
- ^ "Western Global Airlines Issues Update on Aircraft Situation". Business Wire. 16 February 2016. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
- ^ Gladstone, Rick (2016-02-15). "U.S.-Owned Plane Carrying Corpse and Cash Is Impounded in Zimbabwe". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-08-23.
- ^ "Cash and a body found in U.S. cargo jet in Zimbabwe". CBS News/Associated Press. February 15, 2016. Retrieved 2021-08-23.
