The Air Atlantique Group's lineage can be traced back to 1969, with the formation of General Aviation Services Ltd. in Jersey, Channel Islands, which was engaged, initially, in aircraft sales and pilot training and, later, air taxi work. The Air Atlantique name was adopted in June 1977 when the company launched into freight charter work with a fleet of Douglas DC-3s, with most activity being transferred to the UK mainland in the early 1980s.

In December 1985, the Group's head office was transferred to its present base at Coventry Airport and two DC-6 freighters were acquired shortly thereafter. Since that time, the Group's activities have developed beyond freight charter work to encompass scheduled and charter passenger flying, aerial surveillance, remote-sensing and photography together with marine pollution investigation and airborne oil-dispersant spraying, historic aircraft display and pleasure flying, corporate aircraft operation and management, and aircraft maintenance, repair and modification, including undercarriage, aero-engine and propeller repair and overhaul.

Scheduled passenger services, operated under the name of Air Corbiere, linking the Channel Islands and the U.K. were operated from 1990 until 1994, using Metro 3 and BAe748 aircraft, and a new airline - Highland Airways - was established in 1991 at Inverness Airport to bring to Scotland the wide range of aviation services previously only available from the Group's Coventry headquarters.

The first of seven Lockheed Electra freighters was introduced into service in 1994, and the first convertible passenger/freight ATR42-300 joined the fleet in 2003, with a second -300 being acquired in 2004, and a third in 2005. 2005 also saw the addition of a 68 seat ATR-72 aircraft.

Principal aircraft types which the Air Atlantique Group presently operates are the Douglas DC-6, Douglas DC-3, ATR42-300, ATR72, Fairchild Metro 3, BAe Jetstream 31, Cessna Citation 1, Cessna F406, Cessna C404, Cessna C402 and BN Islander. Principal member companies of the Air Atlantique Group are Atlantic Air Transport Ltd., Highland Airways Ltd., Atlantic Reconnaissance Ltd. and Air Atlantique Ltd. Associate companies include Atlantic Airlines Ltd, Atlantic Aeroengineering Ltd, Atlantic Training Support Ltd., Atlantic Flight Training Ltd, Coventry Airport Handling Ltd, CFS Aeroproducts Ltd and SportsFlights

Long-term contracts held by the Air Atlantique Group for the supply and/or operation of aircraft include several with the British Government, namely the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, the Environment Agency, the Ministry of Defence, and the Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency, together with "oil industry" contracts with O.S.R.L. and Briggs Marine. Further contracts are held with Thales, the European defence contractor, along with contracts to fly newspapers and mail to the Scottish Northern and Western Isles.

Atlantic Air Transport have supported several European scheduled-service airlines in the recent past, supplying ATR42 aircraft to Air Lithuania, BMI Regional, Euromanx, Air South West, Freedom Airways and Thomsonfly and the Metro to Eastern Airways, Euromanx, ScotAirways and FlyKeen.

Highland Airways operates PSO part-subsidised scheduled passenger services between Inverness and the Scottish Western Isles using Jetstream aircraft.