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Popularity of Great Barrier Reef scenic flights grew by 1974 and naturally forced the addition of another amphibious aircraft to cope with the increased demand - and so began a growth phase that was only limited by available capital.
Spreading their wings saw the evolvement of the Reef Adventure tour; providing guests the opportunity to fly to Hardy Lagoon and experience the reef first-hand; introducing reef walking and snorkelling from the confines of this protected lagoon.
Due to the increasing popularity and demand, by 1977 Air Whitsunday was given approval by TAA to relocate their operation to the Whitsunday Airport, Shute Harbour; subsequently moving their operation from Happy Bay on Long Island where they had been based for five years.
By the early ‘80s Kevin was operating five Lake Buccaneers and had an unfulfilled dream, yearning for the flying boat of it’s vintage that used to land in Sydney’s Rose Bay – where as a young boy his dream had been ignited.
With the vintage flying boat still in mind, in 1982 he purchased five passenger Partenavia twin engine planes which enabled the company to branch out and service the Mackay and Townsville regions, with the advantage of being able to provide connections to international and domestic flights.
Sometime in 1983 his long and arduous search had ended when he purchased two 15-seater Grumman Mallard flying boats, which he commenced his popular Reef Adventure flights from in the Whitsundays.
Recognition of the unprecedented services that we were providing within the region became apparent when in 1984, Ita Buttrose (chairperson of the judging panel) presented Air Whitsunday with the National Tourism Award, followed a couple of years later by a State Award. In this same year (1986) a new seaplane service was introduced between Cairns and Hinchinbrook and opened up the opportunity to provide this service out of Townsville to Hinchinbrook Resort.
Like everything change is constant and in order to provide aerial service with an aircraft seating anywhere between the 15-seater Mallard and 4-seater Buccaneer (to an ever growing clientele), it was decided to sell one Mallard in 1985. After considerable search and trial they purchased their first 8-seater DeHavilland Beaver, which was renowned as a reliable and rugged workhorse, able to handle tougher sea conditions and inevitably found favour amongst the Air Whitsunday pilots.
In 1987, Townsville proving to be an easily accessible and enviting gateway to the Whitsundays, Air Whitsunday commenced operation under the banner of Reef World Airlines from Townsville as well as the Whitsundays; the name providing a banner to promote the whole region and not just the Whitsundays.
Fifteen years on and now the largest seaplane operator in the Southern Hemisphere, Air Whitsunday operated a total of eleven aircraft and employed a staff of thirty. Air Whitsunday was sold in 1988 to Seair Pacific Pty Ltd and sale of the Whitsunday Airport followed shortly in 1989. Due to the pilot strike and the recession of 1991 the Seair Pacific business failed and the airport was put on the market.
Having built the operation from the ground up and well aware of the potential of the property, Kevin and Sue Bowe purchased it again and set about arranging for other operators to base their operations from here.
Peter Bull approached Kevin and Sue; along with Reg Mason (chief engineer) with a proposal to commence a seaplane operation again to replace the failed Seair operation. Coral Air Whitsunday was born and commenced operations initially to service the five star resort of Hayman Island. Mainland services were reestablished as Air Whitsunday Seaplanes shortly afterwards.
Around 1998/99, after a long and prosperous pioneering endeavour that had spanned two and a half decades, Kevin and Sue Bowe felt it the right time to pursue other endeavours and sold everything to Jon Davies. Along with Peter Bull and engineering team led by Reg Mason they set about rebuilding and remanufacturing the Beaver with a stretched passenger cabin, additional and larger passenger windows, modified wings and fuel and hydraulic systems to cater to the comfort of our passengers.
In March 2005, thanks to David Marriner; (the most recent owner/director of Air Whitsunday Seaplanes) the purchase of three Cessna Caravans were added to our fleet which increased our carrying capacity; therefore enabling more visitors in the Whitsundays to experience the wonders of this region.
Today, we operate three DeHavilland Beaver (6 seater) aircraft that remain a stalwart in the industry; 2007 marked the 60th anniversary of the first ever flight of this icon of the seaplane world. Also included in our fleet are three Cessna Caravans; built for air-conditioned comfort.
In the history of Air Whitsunday Seaplanes; a company that has evolved since its humble beginnings to present day; there remains one common thread and that is our love of the service that we are fortunate enough to provide to visitors from all over the world and the joy we take from a smile or a compliment from one of our many happy customers.