In March 1978, on the return trip from what was the final American continent tour of a Fokker F-28 Fellowship, and prior to its last stop, the F-28 Mk.4000 PH-JPV (cn.11130) performed a demonstration on the island of Guadeloupe in the Lesser Antilles, Caribbean Sea.
What would have happened if Air Guadeloupe had purchased the Fokker F-28 Mk.4000?
Let's keep in mind that the airline was operating Fokker F-27 aircraft back in 1978.
Between 1988 and 1991, Time Air acquired several Fokker F28s from US Air, at a time when the company was undergoing a process of fleet reorganisation and standardisation following the absorption of other airlines, including Piedmont Airlines. In such circumstances, the transfer of a second-hand aircraft could result in particularly curious combinations of colours and paint schemes. Such was the case with Fokker F28-1000 C-FJRI, -msn. 11103- whose history provides a fascinating example of a true “mixture” of liveries: possibly originating from US Air, it carried Time Air titles, whilst its fin and nose retained the colours associated with Canadian. Rather than displaying a clearly defined livery, the aircraft ended up wearing a singular combination of corporate identities — a veritable “blend” of colours that visually reflects the complex processes involved in the transfer and integration of aircraft during those years.
# We received the following comment from the Time Air Historical Society Facebook page—one that we certainly welcome: Time Air during this period was snapping up F-28’s very quickly. The majority had a Garuda to Piedmont to US Air lineage. Many F28’s were used to supplement Canadi>n Airlines 737 routes, or replace them altogether. C-FJRI was purchased in March of 1991 during Time Air’s 25th Anniversary year, and one year before being renamed Canadi>n Regional. To get the aircraft into service quickly, the Piedmont/US Air light blue cheatline was hastily painted the dark blue of Canadi>n. It remained this way until the name change, when it received the full Canadi>n livery.
On April 26, 1974, Argentine media outlets reported that the airline Aerochaco was interested in acquiring jets to modernize its fleet. The company was eyeing the Soviet Yakovlev Yak-40 aircraft and initiated negotiations with Soviet embassy officials.
Aerochaco was a small regional airline based in Resistencia, the capital of the Chaco province, and was state-owned by the provincial government.
At the same time, it also received an offer from Fokker for its F-28 Fellowship Mk.1000 model.
The article further noted that the Fellowships could be adapted for cargo transport. Around that time, Fokker was likely also negotiating with the national government for the acquisition of F-28s for Aerolíneas Argentinas (Mk.1000) and the Argentine Air Force (Mk.1000C). Had Aerochaco decided to purchase the Fellowship, they could have arrived alongside the aircraft delivered in January 1975.
What would have happened if Aerochaco had purchased the Fokker F-28 Mk.1000 Fellowship?
