Ansair was an Australian bus bodybuilder owned by Ansett Transport Industries and later the Clifford Corporation.
 | |
| Industry | Bus manufacturing |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1945 |
| Founder | Reg Ansett |
| Defunct | November 1998 |
| Headquarters | |
Number of locations | Kingston Tamworth |
| Parent | Clifford Corporation |
History
editAnsair was founded by Reg Ansett in 1945 at Tullamarine, to make bodies for his Ansett Pioneer coaches, as well as manufacture aircraft components for Ansett Airways.[1] It also provided bus bodies for other operators.
In 1987, a plant opened in Kingston, Tasmania, to make bodies for Scania buses used by Metro Tasmania and, in January 1993, a plant opened at East-West Airlines' former Tamworth Airport maintenance facility to make bodies for Scanias used by Sydney Buses.[2][3]
In August 1995, Ansett Transport Industries sold Ansair to the Clifford Corporation.[4] In September 1995, the Kingston plant closed, followed in 1997 by Tullamarine.[5][6] Ansair ceased trading in November 1998 when the Clifford Corporation collapsed.[7]
The Tamworth plant was reopened by Jakab Industries to complete an order of Volvo B10BLEs for Sydney Buses, under the Phoenix Bus brand.[8][9][10]
References
edit- ^ "New Owners for Ansair", Australian Bus Panorama, October 1995, issue 11/3, page 20
- ^ "Airline Quits as Buses Move In", Sydney Morning Herald, 18 September 1991
- ^ "Bodybuilders", Fleetline, July 1994, page 128
- ^ "Bodybuilders", Fleetline, September 1995, page 159
- ^ "Bodybuilders", Fleetline, January 1996, page 20
- ^ "New Buses", Fleetline, November 1997, page 203
- ^ "The Austral Pacific Collapse", Australian Bus Panorama, April 1999, issue 14/5, page 17
- ^ "Austral Pacific Group", Fleetline, May 1999, page 76
- ^ "The Austral Pacific Collapse", Australian Bus Panorama, issue 14/5, page 17
- ^ "State Transit Authority - Sydney Buses & Newcastle Buses - Volvo B10BLE/Phoenix "Orana"". Australian Bus Fleet Lists. Bus Australia. Retrieved 27 July 2017.
External links
edit
Media related to Ansair at Wikimedia Commons- Bus Australia gallery
