To offer travelers a reliable, innovative and fun airline to travel in Central America.   As the first carbon netural airline - NatureAir wants to help prevent further global warming, and keep the beauty of Costa Rica in its natural state.   NatureAir also hopes to prove on a smaller scale that an airline can be sustainable and hopefully excite other airlines to follow.  The company is committed to opening up new destinations and offering both international travelers and local residents the opportunity to travel to 17 exciting destinations in minutes. 

More than seven years ago, no reliable airlines existed in Costa Rica or Central America serving adventure travel destinations.  Services were often slow, chaotic and inconvenient for international and regional tourists.   Whole communities were essentially cut off from the world in certain seasons.  The catch was that these destinations were often the most beautiful and most in need of sustainable tourism projects.  The conditions were ripe for a new airline. 

Travel Air had been founded by two Alaskan bush pilots in 1990.  The original owners had a handful of routes to select tourist destinations in Costa Rica.  Meanwhile, a consulting company called Naturegate out of San Francisco, California (www.naturegate.com) was working in Central America on sustainable tourism projects.  Naturegate is responsible for writing business plans, feasibility studies and marketing plans for hotels, tour operators and NGO’s with projects in Central America.  The Naturegate team knew from personal experience that road travel was long, arduous and even dangerous.  They also struggled with the viability of tourism projects in beautiful destinations, but without adequate transportation infrastructure.

In 2000, when working on a sustainability project in Costa Rica – Alex Khajavi, CEO of Naturegate and now NatureAir found out that Travel Air was for sale. Without any airline experience, but with over 25 years in tourism and investment banking, the Khajavi family essentially sold their homes, packed their bags and moved to Costa Rica permanently to run the newly formed airline- NatureAir.   

Shortly after the establishment of NatureAir, September 11 happened and the nascent company faced its biggest challenge.  No advisors, investors, industry experts, newspapers, and local tour operators expected the business to survive.   NatureAir proved everyone wrong, and since the first year they have gone from flying 18,000 passengers annually to more 150,000 in 2007.  Business has grown from one plane to seven – the only all twin engine airline in Costa Rica with both scheduled and chartered flights.  Growth has been at more than 35% annually compounded, and NatureAir is predicted to be one of the fastest growing companies in Latin America.

Nature Air now offers 74 daily flights to 17 exciting destination in Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Panama.  This is a major accomplishment considering that all flights are limited to day time as the domestic airport of Tobias Bolanos is not Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) approved.  Since December of 2003, NatureAir has initiated daily flights to Granada, Nicaragua, the oldest city in the mainland Americas.  The runway used to be an old Sandanista landing strip and in less than three months NatureAir converted this private air strip into an international airline.  Since the inaugural flight, hotel occupancy has gone up over 10 percent in Granada and has become one of the hottest day tours for guests of the new Four Seasons Resort in northern Costa Rica.  In May 2005, NatureAir began operating daily flights to Volcano Arenal, the most visited destination in Costa Rica. This flight was a watershed moment in tourism for the Arenal area of Costa Rica.

In keeping with the adage, “The journey is half the fun," planes are painted in vivid colors reflecting tropical destinations. NatureAir’s planes are roomy, climate controlled and deliver a smoother ride than smaller aircrafts. The large, flat, untinted windows offer unbelievable views from every seat.  

NatureAir continues to endorse Nature’s Group mission statement: Creating Destinations for Rare Experiences.

NatureAir's commitment to quality of service is clearly demonstrated by the way they have structured their programs; not from the perspective of a business owner, but from that of a traveler.    

• With the only all two-engine fleet in Central America, safety, reliability and comfort of passengers is their top priority, which is further emphasized by their high quality of fight services and efficient operations.  This has resulted in a 92 percent on-time performance, simply unheard of in this region.
• NatureAir has also opened more destinations to adventure travelers than ever before.  Destinations that used to take eight hours to drive to, can now be reached via NatureAir in only 45 minutes!  This allows travelers to have more fun and spend more valuable time at their destination(s).  
• NatureAir has pioneered the e-ticket concept in Central America making them the only electronic ticket airline in this region.
• NatureAir is the world’s number one chosen airline by top tour operators.

At a time when worldwide airlines have been facing bankruptcy, NatureAir has been experiencing 35 percent growth annually. They have done this by providing reliable, innovative and fun service that has changed the way a regional airlines operate. 

As the only carbon neutral airline in the world, it's clear that NatureAir is committed to safeguarding the environment and to preventing or reducing adverse environmental impacts of its operations.

Their fleet is mostly made up of de Havilland Twin Otters, which are acclaimed to be the quietest and most fuel-efficient engine option available.  This provides guests the least intrusive way to journey through environmentally sensitive areas. Studies show Nature Air outputs as much carbon dioxide in a year compared to what one commercial flight outputs in 10 days.

In addition, 100 % of NatureAir’s carbon emissions are compensated through the protection and reforestation of tropical forests in southern Costa Rica’s rich biodiversity zones of the Osa Pensinsula.  Since 2004, NatureAir has compensated for roughly 20,000 tons of carbon dioxide thru the protection of over 200 hectares of tropical forest.  NatureAir is able to protect these lands because of funds the airline commits to local landowners to preserve the land rather than cut it down for timber or cattle.

The company has also been able to reduce emissions by replacing light bulbs, limiting copy paper, recycling, and improving it’s flight plans in order to conserve more fuel, an improvement of roughly 4% in fuel efficiency per hour of flight. 

NatureAir's "green" projects are ongoing. The company is currently researching alternative fuel sources for their company, which include ethanol and pig waste.

NatureAir places equal emphasis on commercial success and social responsibility.   Since the beginning, they have supported NatureKids, a non-profit organization working to promote English for underprivileged children. 

Studies indicate that English speakers in Costa Rica earn on average 47 percent more income.  NatureKids makes a difference in the lives of the less fortunate and those in need by teaching English to low income children as well as their parents. This effort is carried out in San Jose, Drake Bay, Puerto Jimenez and Tambor.   The program is also initiating efforts to clean up water in smaller communities and collect and recycle garbage.  Environmental lessons are also given to the children to help install a sustainable practices foundation in the younger generations.

NatureAir is a member of several environmental organizations through which it also educates both travelers and industry of its program, these include:

•    International Ecotourism Society
•    Rainforest Alliance
•    World Heritage Alliance
•    IATA
•    American Society of Travel Agent
•    International Civil Aviation Organization
•    ICT Tourism Association
•    CANATUR
•    ACOPROT

The company has been recognized by the International Community for Ecotourism, and was given a highly commended recognition as the “best mode of low-carbon transportation and technology” at the 2007 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards at the World Travel Market in London.