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Ansett was founded by Reg Ansett in 1935 as Ansett Airways Pty Ltd. This was an offshoot of his road transport business which had become so successful it was threatening the freight and passenger revenue of Victorian Railways.
Ansett's first route between Hamilton and Melbourne was operated by a Fokker Universal monoplane and it commenced on the 17th February 1936. The rapid success of the airline led Ansett to float the business in 1937. As the route network expanded, Ansett Airways imported Lockheed Electra aircraft. During World War II Reg Ansett opted to suspend all scheduled services, except the Hamilton service, in favour of more lucrative work for the United States Army Air Forces. After the war Ansett battled to re-establish his domestic routes using war-surplus Douglas DC-3s, converted from C-47s and the remaining L-10s.
Ansett grew from strength to strength and had a large fleet of aircraft.
| Aircraft | In Fleet | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Airbus A320-200 | 20 | |
| BAe 146-200/200QT/300 | 18 | 200/200QT Series Used with Ansett Australia, 300 Series with Ansett New Zealand |
| Boeing 727-200F | 1 | Freight Aircraft |
| Boeing 737-300 | 23 | |
| Boeing 747-400 | 2 | Leased |
| Boeing 767-200 | 9 | |
| Boeing 767-300 | 4 | |
| Bombardier CRJ-200 | 12 | Operated by Kendell |
| DeHavilland Twin Otter | 4 | Operated by Aeropelican |
| Fokker 50 | 9 | Operated by Skywest |
| Fokker F27 | 1 | |
| Fokker F28 | 4 | None operational at time of collapse |
| Saab 340 | 16 | Operated by Kendell and Hazelton Airlines |
| Fairchild Metro 23 | 7 | Operated by Kendell and Hazelton Airlines |
| Total | 130 |
In February 2000 Air New Zealand acquired full ownership of Ansett, buying out News Corporation's stake for A$680 million, surpassing Singapore Airlines A$500 million bid.
Unfortunately the airline collapsed on the 13th September 2001; it was resurrected a short time later but that was short lived as it collapsed for a second and final time on the 4th March 2002
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