DashAirCargo

DashAirCargo, legally DashAir Cargo International Airlines, commonly referred to as just DAC, is a Myrish with its headquarters at Vilpina, Gladomyr. Part of the Melpansa Group, it is the largest Myrish cargo airline and has the largest fleet of s in Alutra. It operates schedules routes to 88 different airports across every continent, the latest addition being Hráltá International Airport in the mid-region of !TBD, added in June of 2020. Nearly all flights connect to Vilpina International Airport located 30 kilometers from the city of Vilpina in Gladomyr.

History
The airline was first established on the 30th of April 1972 by Jikael Masson, a resident of Vilpina and the former owner of a private pilot's license (PPL) and a Cessna 175 Skylark, which he used on several occasions prior to the airline's founding to illegally transport paying customers from Vilpina to neighboring townships such as Rouillier and Omnes, both having under 10,000 residents. After receiving good money and feedback from his passengers, Masson would call his service "DashAir" and began flights to the nearby city of Lisaare. Not 6 months later, Masson would be caught by officials and was forced to give up his PPL, and his Cessna 175 Skylark was revoked by authorities. With his new-found wealth however, Masson would purchase 2 Huff-Daland Dusters as well as hire two of his colleagues, legal owners of commercial pilot's licenses.

These flights found high profit from transporting mail between Vilpina and Lisaare, and soon Masson would be able to purchase 3 s, which further increased his wealth, as well as new routes to Dincuff, Võsalu, Tarnu, Merser, and its first international route to Noters, Ordrey.

By 1978, DAC had five CL-44s and made the leap into the jet age by acquiring a Douglas DC-8. This enabled the company to speed up its cargo deliveries. In 1979, DAC and another cargo airline, Lioness Cargo, amalgamated their maintenance and engineering departments, and by 1980, DAC and Lioness Cargo had completely merged.

In 1981, the airline began to take shape into the company it is today. The CL-44s began to be retired and the airline ordered its first Boeing 747s. In that same year it also began flying to other places across the world, as well as to Ta'aroha. In 1982, as the company concluded its first decade, its first Boeing 747s were delivered.

Passenger operations for DashAir would cease in October of 1990, with the company finding higher profits in transporting cargo than passenger operations. Over the next two years, the airline grew, as did its public visibility. Soon, DashAirCargo adopted an entirely Boeing 747 fleet and began long haul routes, including Vilpina to Ta'aroha, !TBD, Western Veloreynka, and more. DAC added a secondary hub in Atúa, Ta'aroha, which began services in 2005.

In October 2010, Jikael Masson, the chief executive officer of DAC was indicted on suspicion of price-fixing; After pleading guilty, he was sentenced to 1 year in federal prison. In December 2010, DAC was fined for price-fixing by the Alutran Commission. Following his prison sentence, Masson would pass ownership of the company onto his son, Killian Masson.

In December of 2015, an industry group within the International Air Transport Association (IATA) consisting of some 77 major airlines, freight forwarders, ground handling agents, trucking companies and IT providers — announced on 12 December 2015 at its annual general meeting, that DashAir Cargo International Airlines had gained Cargo 2000 platinum membership status.

Destinations
''Further information: List of DashAirCargo destinations

DAC prides itself that besides some major airports, the airline prioritizes routes to "second tier cities", cities that don't get as much traffic as other, more important airports. This has proved successful in DAC's case.

DAC covers 88 destinations, and 70 of which are served on scheduled all-cargo flights as of 2018.

Current fleet
As of August 2020, the DashAirCargo fleet consists of the following aircraft:

Former fleet
The former DAC fleet consisted of the following aircraft:

Accidents and incidents
Over the years, DashAirCargo has maintained a decent record of air safety, winning the Air Cargo Safety Award in 2012, and was awarded "Safest Cargo Airline" in 2016 by the International Pilots Association (IPA). The following are the few incidents DAC has been involved in:


 * On 21 February 2011, DAC flight 930 had a main landing gear malfunction right before landing at Ornpyat, Gemurtrak from Cirsa, Tákjaana, resulting in the aircraft having to land with only nose gear. The 747-400 involved in the accident touched down on runway 21L at Ornpyat, proceeding to slide 1,600 meters before coming to a halt in a sideways position. A small fire had erupted in the cargo bay, however all 3 people onboard were able to escape before the aircraft went into flames. Approximately 40 minutes after the landing, the fire was contained by fire vehicles and the runway was cleared and reopened the next week. The 747-400 involved in the incident was scrapped by DAC.


 * On 12 June 2012, DAC flight 009 had a birdstrike upon takeoff, and was forced to return and land at Dincuff International Airport. No one was injured, and the aircraft was repaired and put back into service.


 * On 16 August 2013 at 23:34, DAC flight 3489 was cleared for takeoff on runway 31C at Kaleyo International Airport in Riyata, destined to land at Godenhaven International Airport in Edury. Because of the low visibility, DAC3489 was unable to see the Chiba Airlines 737-900 crossing the runway after landing approximately 2 minutes before. DAC3489 saw the Chiba Airlines 737 approximately 100 meters from it, and the pilots onboard DAC3489 were able to pull up and avoid the 737-9 containing 179 passengers, however; the aircraft quickly stalled afterwards and plummeted back towards the runway, slamming down on the pavement. The main landing gear became unattached and flew towards the air traffic control tower, while the 747-8 slid across the runway and onto the taxiway. The aircraft ultimately rammed through a hangar containing 3 75s which split the aircraft in half, over a highway, and stopped after skidding off the elevated runway and into the Bay of Kaleyo south of the airport. The tail of the aircraft, which was still on land, burst into flames due to leaked fuel. This was the first ever fatal accident in DashAirCargo's history, the accident killing all 6 men and women onboard, as well as 2 inside of cars, 1 firefighter, and 1 bystander after being hit by flying shrapnel. It is listed as one of the deadliest and most tragic accidents in the history of aviation. The aircraft was unable to be salvaged and was written-off.


 * On 1 July 2019, A drunk DAC crew was arrested after landing in Scra, Salia. The crew had been flying for 14 hours beforehand. The second officer was sentenced to six months' jail while the captain and crew also faced proceedings after a tip-off stopped them from taking charge of flight from Salia.


 * While landing in windy conditions on 4 January 2020 at Ushteyghoo International Airport, DAC flight 900 dipped to the left and had an engine strike, causing shrapnel to fly and shatter the first officer's main window. The 747-8 conducted a go-around and landed safely on its second attempt. The first officer suffered minor injuries, but recovered within weeks. The aircraft was repaired and returned into service.