The company is owned by Paul Ensor and offers charter services around the Bay of Plenty using Cessna light aircraft.

The airline commenced in August 1995 when its owner, Paul Ensor, acquired a Cessna P206 Super Skylane.

This increase in flying and aircraft maintenance needs saw the Civil Aviation Authority suspending Island Air's operating licence in November 2006 over unauthorised maintenance being carried out on the company's aircraft.

A new maintenance controller and chief executive were appointed to address the issues, however, the operator's problems compounded the following month when the Britten-Norman Islander suffered two forced landings on 22 and 28 December 2006.

[3][4] In 2007, Ensor was fined $10,000 after fitting a cracked landing gear component back on an aircraft after maintenance engineers had banned its use.