119-632: Alaska Airlines is a major American airline headquartered in SeaTac, Washington , within the Seattle metropolitan area . It is the sixth-largest airline in North America when measured by scheduled passengers carried, as of 2023. Alaska, together with its regional partners Horizon Air and SkyWest Airlines operates a route network primarily focused on connecting cities along the West Coast of
238-497: A US$ 40 million profit the next year. Eight percent of these revenues were generated by record-setting cargo operations. Alaska had more competition in 1993 when low-cost airline Southwest Airlines entered the Pacific Northwest by purchasing Morris Air . Alaska Airlines was able to keep its costs down, but it maintained its high level of customer service. The airline promoted itself as "the last great airline" and with
357-401: A 737-800 called Spirit of Seattle with Boeing's house colors painted on the fuselage and the airline's Inuit logo painted on the tail fin. Also in 2005, Alaska Airlines contracted out many of its jobs, including ground crew positions, to Menzies Aviation . In some cases, this resulted in an almost 40% decline in wages. This agreement was found to be a violation of union agreements in 2008 and
476-473: A Comet 4, and Pan Am followed on 26 October with a Boeing 707 service between New York and Paris. The next big boost for the airlines would come in the 1970s, when the Boeing 747 , McDonnell Douglas DC-10 , and Lockheed L-1011 inaugurated widebody ("jumbo jet") service, which is still the standard in international travel. The Tupolev Tu-144 and its Western counterpart, Concorde , made supersonic travel
595-472: A US$ 700,000 debt owed by the Guinean airline to Alaska Airlines. In 1965, Alaska Airlines turned over some routes between small Alaskan communities, and some smaller aircraft, to Wien Air Alaska . This allowed Alaska to focus on more heavily travelled routes and allowed them to sell off smaller aircraft. Throughout the 1960s, Alaska Airlines worked to promote tourism to Alaska by offering charter flights to
714-430: A crusade to create an air network that would link America to the world, and he achieved this goal through his airline, Pan Am , with a fleet of flying boats that linked Los Angeles to Shanghai and Boston to London . Pan Am and Northwest Airways (which began flights to Canada in the 1920s) were the only U.S. airlines to go international before the 1940s. With the introduction of the Boeing 247 and Douglas DC-3 in
833-449: A downturn in the nation's economy occurred. New start-ups entered during the downturn, during which time they found aircraft and funding, contracted hangar and maintenance services, trained new employees, and recruited laid-off staff from other airlines. Major airlines dominated their routes through aggressive pricing and additional capacity offerings, often swamping new start-ups. In the place of high barriers to entry imposed by regulation,
952-575: A gift from the taxpayers. (Passenger carriers operating scheduled service received approximately $ 4 billion, subject to tax.) In addition, the ATSB approved loan guarantees to six airlines totaling approximately $ 1.6 billion. Data from the U.S. Treasury Department show that the government recouped the $ 1.6 billion and a profit of $ 339 million from the fees, interest and purchase of discounted airline stock associated with loan guarantees. The three largest major carriers and Southwest Airlines control 70% of
1071-680: A hangar at the Anchorage airport . In 1942, the airline's name was changed to Alaska Star Airlines . When the United States entered World War II in December 1941, Alaska Airlines faced a shortage of pilots. During the war, the airline lacked funds and equipment, and pilots were often forced to buy fuel for their planes out of their own pockets. The company, which was frequently subjected to lawsuits, also went through many different presidents during this time. In 1943, Alaska Airlines purchased
1190-640: A little better, with the biggest airline customers being South African Airways (21), New Zealand National Airways Corporation (13), Trans-Canada Air Lines (12) and BOAC (9); another 29 were bought by the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force . Various Pratt & Whitney and Wright Cyclone powerplants were installed. When the United States started to build up its military air strength in 1940–41, many American-operated Lodestars were impressed as
1309-461: A major international carrier. In 1933, Aéropostale went bankrupt , was nationalized and merged into Air France . Although Germany lacked colonies, it also began expanding its services globally. In 1931, the airship Graf Zeppelin began offering regular scheduled passenger service between Germany and South America, usually every two weeks, which continued until 1937. In 1936, the airship Hindenburg entered passenger service and successfully crossed
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#17328013541101428-611: A newly created Air Transportation Stabilization Board (ATSB). The applications to DOT for reimbursements were subjected to rigorous multi-year reviews not only by DOT program personnel but also by the Government Accountability Office and the DOT Inspector General. Ultimately, the federal government provided $ 4.6 billion in one-time, subject-to-income-tax cash payments to 427 U.S. air carriers, with no provision for repayment, essentially
1547-517: A potentially negative response from the Soviets. The airline gained permission to fly more than two dozen flights in 1970, 1971, and 1972. Alaska Airlines was also operating Boeing 707 , Boeing 720 , and Boeing 720B jetliners in scheduled passenger service between destinations in Alaska and Seattle during the early and mid-1970s. The airline was not in good financial shape at that time. Like much of
1666-552: A proving flight across the English Channel , despite a lack of support from the British government. Flown by Lt. H Shaw in an Airco DH.9 between RAF Hendon and Paris – Le Bourget Airport , the flight took 2 hours and 30 minutes at £21 per passenger. On August 25, 1919, the company used DH.16s to pioneer a regular service from Hounslow Heath Aerodrome to Paris's Le Bourget , the first regular international service in
1785-547: A reality. Concorde first flew in 1969 and operated through 2003. In 1972, Airbus began producing Europe's most commercially successful line of airliners to date. The added efficiencies for these aircraft were often not in speed, but in passenger capacity, payload, and range. Airbus also features modern electronic cockpits that were common across their aircraft to enable pilots to fly multiple models with minimal cross-training. The 1978 U.S. airline industry deregulation lowered federally controlled barriers for new airlines just as
1904-500: A result of the terrorist attacks. This resulted in the first government bailout of the 21st century. Between 2000 and 2005 US airlines lost $ 30 billion with wage cuts of over $ 15 billion and 100,000 employees laid off. In recognition of the essential national economic role of a healthy aviation system, Congress authorized partial compensation of up to $ 5 billion in cash subject to review by the U.S. Department of Transportation and up to $ 10 billion in loan guarantees subject to review by
2023-529: A separate airline, but this proved economically unviable and Jet America's operations were merged into Alaska's. Alaska discontinued all flights to the Midwest and the East coast formerly operated by Jet America. Additional MD-80s entered the fleet via the acquisition of Jet America Airlines in 1987. There was a big seasonal imbalance in travel to Alaska, which mainly took place in the summer. To compensate for this,
2142-467: A serious competitive threat to the legacy carriers. However, of these, ATA and Skybus have since ceased operations. Increasingly since 1978, US airlines have been reincorporated and spun off by newly created and internally led management companies, and thus becoming nothing more than operating units and subsidiaries with limited financially decisive control. Among some of these holding companies and parent companies which are relatively well known, are
2261-541: A springboard to expand into larger, more profitable markets. The airline began the 1990s with plans to lease 24 Boeing 737-400s from International Lease Finance Corporation (ILFC). The first aircraft was delivered in April 1992. In 1991, Alaska Airlines added several routes. In the Russian Far East , it added the cities of Magadan and Khabarovsk , as well as service to Toronto , its first Canadian city and
2380-577: A twin-engine Lockheed Lodestar, suffered engine failure while being flown overloaded, in icing conditions at too-high an altitude for the loading. The plane went out of control and crashed, killing all four on board. On 4 September 1962, a Lockheed 18-56-24 Lodestar operated by the Ashland Oil and Refining Company crashed near Lake Milton, Ohio . The flight was in-route to Ashland Regional Airport (KDWU) from Buffalo Airport, NY. Eleven passengers and two crew-members were killed. Investigation determined
2499-530: The Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB), which awarded the airline most of the routes that it wanted in Alaska, but the coveted route between Seattle and Fairbanks was awarded to Pan American Airways . In 1941, Star Air Service was purchased by Raymond Marshall, a businessman from New York City. In 1942, the airline purchased three other airlines in Alaska, including Lavery Air Service, Mirow Air Service, and Pollack Flying Service. They also purchased
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#17328013541102618-842: The Convair 240 , de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter and Super Catalina amphibian aircraft as well as two versions of the Grumman Goose amphibian aircraft , one with piston engines and the other model is a conversion to turboprop engines which the airline called the "Turbo-Goose". The Catalina and Grumman amphibian seaplane aircraft joined the fleet when the airline acquired local southeast Alaska operator Alaska Coastal Airlines in 1968. During this time, Alaska Air faced some tough competition from other airlines, such as Northwest Airlines , Pan Am, and Pacific Northern Airlines , an Alaska-based air carrier operating Boeing 720 jetliners that
2737-571: The Farman F.60 Goliath plane flew scheduled services from Toussus-le-Noble to Kenley , near Croydon , England. Another early French airline was the Compagnie des Messageries Aériennes , established in 1919 by Louis-Charles Breguet , offering a mail and freight service between Le Bourget Airport , Paris and Lesquin Airport , Lille . The first German airline to use heavier than air aircraft
2856-654: The Ford Motor Company bought out the Stout Aircraft Company and began construction of the all-metal Ford Trimotor , which became the first successful American airliner. With a 12-passenger capacity, the Trimotor made passenger service potentially profitable. Air service was seen as a supplement to rail service in the American transportation network. At the same time, Juan Trippe began
2975-759: The Israeli Air Force during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War . A number of skydiving operations in the United States used Lodestars during the 1970s and 1980s. Between 1941 and 1944, the Panair do Brasil airline suffered 4 accidents involving the Lodestar which resulted in a total of 57 fatalities. In January 1943, Lockheed Lodestar Mk.II EW986, c/n 2154, in the service of the Royal Air Force , overshot and crashed 3 km south of Heliopolis , Egypt. At least 12 crew members and passengers died in
3094-641: The Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar , its first multi-engine aircraft. That same year, the company's stock was traded for the first time on the American Stock Exchange . The name Alaska Airlines was adopted on May 2, 1944, having narrowly beaten a competitor who was applying for the name. In the 1940s, Alaska's headquarters were in Anchorage. In 1945, Alaska Airlines hired its first stewardesses. In 1947, James Wooten became president of
3213-700: The Tupolev Tu-104 . Deregulation of the European Union airspace in the early 1990s has had substantial effect on the structure of the industry there. The shift towards 'budget' airlines on shorter routes has been significant. Airlines such as EasyJet and Ryanair have often grown at the expense of the traditional national airlines. There has also been a trend for these national airlines themselves to be privatized such as has occurred for Aer Lingus and British Airways . Other national airlines, including Italy's Alitalia , suffered – particularly with
3332-652: The UAL Corporation , along with the AMR Corporation , among a long list of airline holding companies sometime recognized worldwide. Less recognized are the private-equity firms which often seize managerial, financial, and board of directors control of distressed airline companies by temporarily investing large sums of capital in air carriers, to rescheme an airlines assets into a profitable organization or liquidating an air carrier of their profitable and worthwhile routes and business operations. Thus
3451-776: The United States Army Air Service . Private operators were the first to fly the mail but due to numerous accidents the US Army was tasked with mail delivery. During the Army's involvement they proved to be too unreliable and lost their air mail duties. By the mid-1920s, the Postal Service had developed its own air mail network, based on a transcontinental backbone between New York City and San Francisco . To supplement this service, they offered twelve contracts for spur routes to independent bidders. Some of
3570-564: The 1930s, the U.S. airline industry was generally profitable, even during the Great Depression . This trend continued until the beginning of World War II . World War II, like World War I, brought new life to the airline industry. Many airlines in the Allied countries were flush from lease contracts to the military, and foresaw a future explosive demand for civil air transport, for both passengers and cargo. They were eager to invest in
3689-478: The 1950s without its worldwide charter business and operations restricted to the state of Alaska. In 1950, it purchased two smaller Alaskan airlines, Collins Air Service and Al Jones Airways . Though the airline had grown much under the ownership of Raymond Marshall, the CAB forced him out in 1951 due to continuing financial troubles. Marshall had owned Alaska Airlines with the intent of getting money for himself and he
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3808-517: The 1978 Airline Deregulation Act , knowing that it would reap significant growth and other benefits from deregulation. After deregulation, the company's real-estate division was spun off into its own company, with Cosgrave becoming its chairman. The leadership of the airline was passed to Bruce Kennedy, a close associate of Cosgrave. Cosgrave allied with Alaska Airlines to purchase competitor Wien Air Alaska . This ultimately failed and resulted in fines for Alaska Air and its leaders for improprieties during
3927-689: The 1980s, Alaska Airlines began acquiring McDonnell Douglas MD-80s to replace its aging 727s. Alaska was the launch customer for the MD-83, taking delivery of its first MD-80s in 1985. Also in 1985, the Alaska Air Group was formed as a holding company for Alaska Airlines. In 1986 Alaska Air Group acquired regional airline Horizon Air , which remained a separate brand from Alaska Airlines. Since then, both airlines have been subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group. In 1987, Alaska Airlines purchased Jet America Airlines . Alaska initially operated Jet America as
4046-609: The Atlantic 36 times before crashing at Lakehurst, New Jersey, on 6 May 1937. In 1938, a weekly air service from Berlin to Kabul , Afghanistan , started operating. From February 1934 until World War II began in 1939, Deutsche Lufthansa operated an airmail service from Stuttgart , Germany via Spain , the Canary Islands and West Africa to Natal in Brazil . This was the first time an airline flew across an ocean. By
4165-634: The C-56. This was followed by the construction of many new-build Lodestars which were flown by the U.S. Army Air Forces as the C-60 and by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps as the R5O . Lend-lease aircraft were used by the RNZAF as transports. One was purchased in 1942 to serve as Brazilian President Getúlio Vargas ' personal aircraft. This aircraft was specially designed for that purpose and had 11 seats. After
4284-761: The Russian Aeroflot (1923). Airline ownership has seen a shift from mostly personal ownership until the 1930s to government-ownership of major airlines from the 1940s to 1980s and back to large-scale privatization following the mid-1980s. Since the 1980s, there has been a trend of major airline mergers and the formation of airline alliances. The largest alliances are Star Alliance , SkyTeam and Oneworld . Airline alliances coordinate their passenger service programs (such as lounges and frequent-flyer programs ), offer special interline tickets and often engage in extensive codesharing (sometimes systemwide). DELAG , Deutsche Luftschiffahrts-Aktiengesellschaft I
4403-493: The U.S. passenger market. Although Philippine Airlines (PAL) was officially founded on February 26, 1941, its license to operate as an airliner was derived from merged Philippine Aerial Taxi Company (PATCO) established by mining magnate Emmanuel N. Bachrach on 3 December 1930, making it Asia's oldest scheduled carrier still in operation. Commercial air service commenced three weeks later from Manila to Baguio , making it Asia's first airline route. Bachrach's death in 1937 paved
4522-528: The United States to over 100 destinations in Alaska , Hawaii , the contiguous United States , Bahamas , Belize , Canada , Costa Rica , Guatemala and Mexico . The airline operates out of five hubs. Its primary hub is Seattle–Tacoma International Airport . Alaska Airlines is a member of Oneworld , the third-largest airline alliance in the world. As of 2020, the airline employs over 16,000 people and has been ranked by J. D. Power and Associates as having
4641-529: The United States until its closure in 2008. Following World War I , the United States found itself swamped with aviators. Many decided to take their war-surplus aircraft on barnstorming campaigns, performing aerobatic maneuvers to woo crowds. In 1918, the United States Postal Service won the financial backing of Congress to begin experimenting with air mail service, initially using Curtiss Jenny aircraft that had been procured by
4760-399: The aircraft's excellent performance, as it was more expensive to operate than the larger Douglas DC-3 , already in widespread use. In order to improve the type's economics, Lockheed decided to stretch the aircraft's fuselage by 5 feet 6 inches (1.68 m), allowing an extra two rows of seats to be fitted. The prototype for the revised airliner, designated Model 18 by Lockheed,
4879-422: The airline and began an effort to expand the company. Under his leadership, the airline purchased many surplus military aircraft from the government that had been used during World War II. The airline purchased Douglas DC-3s , Douglas DC-4s , and Curtiss-Wright C-46 Commandos . Alaska Airlines was the first carrier certified to operate DC-3s on skis. Alaska Airlines' large charter business made it profitable, and
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4998-497: The airline became the first U.S. airline to sell tickets on the Internet. By 2000, all the airline's planes carried automated external defibrillators , for use in in-flight emergencies. The airline installed self-service kiosks called "Instant Travel Machines" that printed boarding passes, allowing customers to bypass the traditional ticket counter. An X-ray device, an addition to the unit allowing passengers to check their own baggage
5117-466: The airline continued to struggle financially because of high maintenance costs for its wood-and-fabric planes. In 1937, McGee came back to the airline and opened a liquor store, and the airline began flying liquor to remote Alaskan communities. That year, Star Air Service purchased Alaska Interior Airlines and was incorporated as Star Air Lines. Star was again sold later that year to a group of miners. In 1938, federal regulation began when Congress created
5236-690: The airline industry, Alaska Airlines was hit with rising fuel and operating costs and was on the verge of bankruptcy. Revenues were significantly reduced when work on the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System was delayed. The airline's cargo aircraft had played a key role in building the pipeline but now sat idle. The airline took another blow on September 4, 1971, when a Boeing 727-100 jetliner crashed on landing in Juneau , killing 111 people and resulting in America's worst single-plane crash at
5355-576: The airline industry. In 2003, Alaska Airlines won the Technology Leadership Award from the magazine Air Transport World for its pioneering of new technologies both in the airport and within the airplane itself. In 2005, due to the greater efficiency of the Boeing 737 Next Generation and rising costs for maintenance, fuel, and crew training, Alaska Airlines decided to phase out its remaining 26 MD-80s and trained its pilots to fly
5474-457: The airline introduced service to Mexican resorts, where most travel takes place in the winter. In 1988, the airline began servicing the Mexican resort cities of Mazatlán and Puerto Vallarta . By the end of the 1980s, 70 percent of Alaska Airlines' passengers flew south of Seattle and the airline served 30 cities in 6 states outside Alaska. The airline had successfully used the state of Alaska as
5593-520: The airline moved its base of operations to Paine Field , an airport, in Everett, Washington, north of Seattle. It kept a branch office in Anchorage. Despite its success, Alaska Airlines' worldwide charter business was short-lived. In 1949, the CAB tightened its regulations and placed heavy fines on the airline and shut it down completely for safety violations. The airline was prohibited from operating worldwide charter flights, and president James Wooten left
5712-831: The airline resumed services to the Alaskan cities Nome and Kotzebue , and it introduced service to Palm Springs, California . Burbank and Ontario were added in 1981. In 1979, Alaska studied the possibility of acquiring and merging with Hughes Air West . This never came to fruition. Other cities in the continental US that were added to the airline's route map by 1985 were Oakland and San Jose in California , Spokane in Washington , Boise in Idaho , and Phoenix and Tucson in Arizona . Deregulation also brought challenges to
5831-526: The airline took delivery of its first 737-900. In 2001, the airline was granted slot exemptions by the Department of Transportation to operate a nonstop flight from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport to Seattle, but it was halted after only a week due to the September 11 attacks . The airline resumed service to Reagan Airport on December 4, 2001, to meet the demand. In January 2002, William Ayer
5950-461: The airline's first pressurized plane, enabling flights above clouds and weather disturbances. On these DC-6s, the airline introduced "Golden Nugget" service, which included an on-board saloon and piano. In 1961, competitors began introducing jets on routes Alaska Airlines flew. To counter this competition, Willis negotiated with aircraft manufacturer Convair to purchase a Convair 880 jetliner with no money down, for use on routes between Alaska and
6069-470: The airline. By 1957, with the carrier in a better financial situation, David left and Charles Willis Jr., became the company's new president and CEO. A pilot during World War II, Willis introduced several marketing gimmicks that set the airline apart from other ones of the day. Under his leadership, Alaska Airlines became the first to show inflight movies. The company began service with the Douglas DC-6 ,
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#17328013541106188-442: The airline. The airline was faced with increased competition and inflation that put tremendous pressure on costs, profits, and salaries. By 1979, competitors Northwest Airlines and Western Airlines were both flying wide-body McDonnell Douglas DC-10 jets on the core Anchorage–Seattle nonstop route. Additional competition came from Wien Air Alaska , which had begun flying nonstop jet service between Anchorage and Seattle. Northwest
6307-494: The aisles, and having bingo games on board while en route. In December 1962, Air Guinée signed a contract with Alaska Airlines, which had Alaska Airlines providing management expertise, in addition to two Douglas DC-4s. The deal would have had Alaska Airlines contracting with the airline over seven years. The contract ended after six months, leading to the United States Agency for International Development paying
6426-404: The attempted acquisition. Wien Air was liquidated in 1984, and never merged into Alaska Airlines. At the time of deregulation, Alaska Airlines served ten cities in Alaska and one in the contiguous US—the city of Seattle—and it had only ten planes in its fleet. Immediately after deregulation, the airline began to expand, adding the cities of Portland and San Francisco to its network. Soon later,
6545-467: The average domestic ticket price has dropped by 40%. So has airline employee pay. By incurring massive losses, the airlines of the USA now rely upon a scourge of cyclical Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings to continue doing business. America West Airlines (which has since merged with US Airways) remained a significant survivor from this new entrant era, as dozens, even hundreds, have gone under. In many ways,
6664-499: The biggest winner in the deregulated environment was the air passenger. Although not exclusively attributable to deregulation, indeed the U.S. witnessed an explosive growth in demand for air travel. Many millions who had never or rarely flown before became regular fliers, even joining frequent flyer loyalty programs and receiving free flights and other benefits from their flying. New services and higher frequencies meant that business fliers could fly to another city, do business, and return
6783-406: The carriers that won these routes would, through time and mergers, evolve into Pan Am , Delta Air Lines , Braniff Airways , American Airlines , United Airlines (originally a division of Boeing ), Trans World Airlines , Northwest Airlines , and Eastern Air Lines . Service during the early 1920s was sporadic: most airlines at the time were focused on carrying bags of mail . In 1925, however,
6902-494: The company. Also in 1949, Alaska Air began operating five Bell 47B helicopters to support oil exploration on the North Slope thus becoming the first airline in Alaska to operate rotary-wing aircraft . In 1949, the airline was a major participant in an effort by the newly established state of Israel to airlift Jews out of Yemen to Israel in what became known as Operation Magic Carpet . C-46 or DC-4 aircraft were used for
7021-513: The contiguous United States. The company introduced the new jet aircraft in 1961. In 1966 the company received its first Boeing 727-100 jets. They removed the Convair 880 from the fleet as a financing condition by Boeing concerning the purchase of the 727 jetliners. Several of Alaska's first 727s were series 100C models, which could be operated as all-cargo freighters, an all-passenger configuration or as mixed passenger/freight combi aircraft . In
7140-479: The continental United States. In an attempt to increase the state's appeal, Alaska Airlines conducted a promotional tour of Japan in 1963. In 1967, as the state of Alaska celebrated its centennial, Alaska Airlines introduced a promotional "Gay Nineties" theme with stewardesses dressed in Edwardian outfits. That year, Alaska Airlines expanded to southeast Alaska with the introduction of service to Sitka . This led to
7259-483: The country's flagship carrier to this day, on 17 May 1933. Germany's Deutsche Lufthansa was created in 1926 by merger of two airlines, one of them Junkers Luftverkehr . Lufthansa, due to the Junkers heritage and unlike most other airlines at the time, became a major investor in airlines outside of Europe, providing capital to Varig and Avianca. German airliners built by Junkers , Dornier , and Fokker were among
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#17328013541107378-432: The crash a result of a malfunction of the electric elevator trim tab , which caused the loss of the plane's right wing during flight. On 21 August 1983, a Lockheed L-18 LEARStar operated by Landry Aviation, Inc. crashed near Silvana, Washington . The flight was a planned parachute drop carrying two pilots and 22 parachutists. Nine parachutists and two crew-members were killed while 13 were able to parachute to safety after
7497-559: The crash. A cause of the accident was not determined. Among those killed were Air Vice-Marshal Wilfred Ashton McClaughry , CB, DSO, MC, DFC and Lady Rosalinde Tedder née MacLardy, wife of Marshal of the Royal Air Force Arthur William Tedder, 1st Baron Tedder , GCB. In 1949, a Lockheed Lodestar in airline service in Australia crashed immediately after takeoff. All 21 occupants died in the crash or
7616-467: The domestic industry operates over 10,000 daily departures nationwide. Toward the end of the century, a new style of low cost airline emerged, offering a no-frills product at a lower price. Southwest Airlines , JetBlue , AirTran Airways , Skybus Airlines and other low-cost carriers began to represent a serious challenge to the so-called "legacy airlines", as did their low-cost counterparts in many other countries. Their commercial viability represented
7735-506: The end of the 1930s Aeroflot had become the world's largest airline, employing more than 4,000 pilots and 60,000 other service personnel and operating around 3,000 aircraft (of which 75% were considered obsolete by its own standards). During the Soviet era Aeroflot was synonymous with Russian civil aviation, as it was the only air carrier. It became the first airline in the world to operate sustained regular jet services on 15 September 1956 with
7854-793: The ensuing conflagration . The cause of the accident was determined to be that the center of gravity was behind the rear limit. It is also likely the elevator trim tab was set for landing rather than takeoff. On 20 December 1956, Alden G. Roach, president of the Consolidated Western Steel and the Columbia-Geneva-Steel Divisions of U.S. Steel , pilot and co-pilot crash near Tyrone, Pennsylvania , Model 18-56, N 1245V, U.S. Steel owned company plane. Causes unknown. On 22 March 1958, Mike Todd 's private plane Lucky Liz, named after his wife Elizabeth Taylor , crashed near Grants, New Mexico . The plane,
7973-619: The first city east of the Rocky Mountains . Toronto was later dropped in 1992 and the Russian destinations were discontinued in 1998. As the airline marked its 19th consecutive year of profits in a turbulent industry and racked up many awards for customer service, Bruce Kennedy retired in May 1991 and was succeeded by Raymond J. Vecci. Alaska Airlines faced increased competition from low-cost carriers . One carrier that competed with Alaska
8092-524: The first customer, Mid-Continent Airlines that month. As hoped, the extra seats greatly improved the Model 18's economics, reducing its seat-mile costs to a similar level to that of the DC-3, while retaining superior performance. Despite this, sales to US domestic customers were relatively slow as most US airlines were already committed to the DC-3, with only 31 Lodestars going to US airlines. Overseas sales were
8211-618: The first flagships of the Jet Age in the West, while the Eastern bloc had Tupolev Tu-104 and Tupolev Tu-124 in the fleets of state-owned carriers such as Czechoslovak ČSA , Soviet Aeroflot and East-German Interflug . The Vickers Viscount and Lockheed L-188 Electra inaugurated turboprop transport. On 4 October 1958, British Overseas Airways Corporation started transatlantic flights between London Heathrow and New York Idlewild with
8330-575: The first time in 20 years, it posted a loss of US$ 121 million. To save money, the airline canceled two proposed maintenance facilities and deferred a large aircraft purchase worth US$ 2 billion. Deferred maintenance from this period of cost-cutting would ultimately cause the crash of Flight 261 in 2000 . It was able to increase utilization on its existing planes, though. The airline cut labor costs, but this ended up making relations with unions tense. The cost reductions produced quick results. In 1993, their losses decreased to US$ 45 million and they made
8449-451: The highest customer satisfaction of the traditional airlines for twelve consecutive years. In December 2023, Alaska Airlines announced plans to buy Hawaiian Airlines in a $ 1.9 billion deal. On August 19, 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice completed its regulatory review of the proposed merger and declined to file a lawsuit to block it. The merger received the approval of the U.S. Department of Transportation on September 17, 2024, and
8568-513: The last 50 years of the airline industry have varied from reasonably profitable, to devastatingly depressed. As the first major market to deregulate the industry in 1978, U.S. airlines have experienced more turbulence than almost any other country or region. In fact, no U.S. legacy carrier survived bankruptcy-free. Among the outspoken critics of deregulation, former CEO of American Airlines, Robert Crandall has publicly stated: "Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filing shows airline industry deregulation
8687-405: The major airlines implemented an equally high barrier called loss leader pricing. In this strategy an already established and dominant airline stomps out its competition by lowering airfares on specific routes, below the cost of operating on it, choking out any chance a start-up airline may have. The industry side effect is an overall drop in revenue and service quality. Since deregulation in 1978
8806-547: The merger of Instone Air Line Company , British Marine Air Navigation , Daimler Airway and Handley Page Transport , to allow British airlines to compete with stiff competition from French and German airlines that were enjoying heavy government subsidies. The airline was a pioneer in surveying and opening up air routes across the world to serve far-flung parts of the British Empire and to enhance trade and integration. The first new airliner ordered by Imperial Airways,
8925-462: The merger. PAL restarted service on 15 March 1941, with a single Beech Model 18 NPC-54 aircraft, which started its daily services between Manila (from Nielson Field ) and Baguio , later to expand with larger aircraft such as the DC-3 and Vickers Viscount. Cathay Pacific was one of the first airlines to be launched among the other Asian countries in 1946 along with Asiana Airlines , which later joined in 1988. The license to operate as an airliner
9044-540: The most advanced in the world at the time. In 1926, Alan Cobham surveyed a flight route from the UK to Cape Town , South Africa , following this up with another proving flight to Melbourne , Australia . Other routes to British India and the Far East were also charted and demonstrated at this time. Regular services to Cairo and Basra began in 1927 and were extended to Karachi in 1929. The London- Australia service
9163-521: The motto "For the same price, you just get more". Analysts felt that Alaska Air needed deeper cost cuts. At the same time, the company had many strikes by the flight attendants' union. Alaska continued to take delivery of new MD-83s during the 1990s, both to meet the demands of a growing route system and to replace its aging and fuel inefficient 727 fleets. Their last 727 was retired in March 1994. The airline's MD-80 fleet peaked at 44 aircraft in 1996. Vecci
9282-547: The nearly 3,000-mile flight, made necessary to avoid overflying Arab nations. Planes flew from Eritrea to Aden , then along the Gulf of Aqaba to Tel Aviv . After unloading the refugees, crews then immediately continued to Cyprus, afraid to stay on the ground in Tel Aviv for fear of being bombed. Some 49,000 Yemenite Jews were airlifted by Alaska Airlines and other carriers without a single loss of life. Alaska Airlines started
9401-520: The new ground crews caused enough damage to aircraft in the first year to make the savings negligible. In addition, Menzies contractors gained a reputation of stealing from checked bags after a few incidents in 2007. Airline An airline is a company that provides air transport services for traveling passengers or freight . Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for codeshare agreements , in which they both offer and operate
9520-533: The newer Boeing 737-800s that were being ordered to replace them. According to the airline, the MD-80 burned 1,100 US gallons (4,200 L) of fuel per hour, while the 737-800 burned just 850 US gallons (3,200 L) per hour. The last MD-80 flights flew in August 2008, with one flight from San Jose to Seattle and another from Sacramento to Seattle. To mark its transition to an all-Boeing fleet, Alaska Airlines unveiled
9639-657: The newly emerging flagships of air travel such as the Boeing Stratocruiser , Lockheed Constellation , and Douglas DC-6 . Most of these new aircraft were based on American bombers such as the B-29 , which had spearheaded research into new technologies such as pressurization . Most offered increased efficiency from both added speed and greater payload. In the 1950s, the De Havilland Comet , Boeing 707 , Douglas DC-8 , and Sud Aviation Caravelle became
9758-596: The next 25 years. It became the first carrier to fly the Lockheed L-100 Hercules L382 model, the civil version of the military C-130 cargo turboprop, which was used to transport oil drilling rigs to Alaska's North Slope and later to Ecuador . Alaska also owned Lockheed Constellation propliners including two Lockheed L-1649A Starliners from 1962 to 1968, and three L-1049's which were used for Military Air Transport Service operations. Smaller prop and turboprop aircraft were operated, including
9877-411: The passenger cabins were often spacious with luxurious interiors – over speed and efficiency. The relatively basic navigational capabilities of pilots at the time also meant that delays due to the weather were commonplace. By the early 1920s, small airlines were struggling to compete, and there was a movement towards increased rationalization and consolidation. In 1924, Imperial Airways was formed from
9996-530: The purchase of two smaller airlines, Alaska Coastal Airlines and Cordova Airlines, in 1968. In the beginning of the 1970s, Alaska Airlines began Boeing 707 charter flights to Siberia in the Soviet Union. This was the result of three years of secret negotiations between Alaska Airlines and Soviet authorities, in which the US Department of State reluctantly chose not to block the plan for fear of
10115-644: The rapid increase of oil prices in early 2008. Finnair , the largest airline of Finland , had no fatal or hull-loss accidents since 1963, and is recognized for its safety. Tony Jannus conducted the United States' first scheduled commercial airline flight on January 1, 1914, for the St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line . The 23-minute flight traveled between St. Petersburg, Florida and Tampa, Florida , passing some 50 feet (15 m) above Tampa Bay in Jannus' Benoist XIV wood and muslin biplane flying boat. His passenger
10234-644: The regional market of Asian airline industry India was also one of the first countries to embrace civil aviation. One of the first Asian airline companies was Air India , which was founded as Tata Airlines in 1932, a division of Tata Sons Ltd. (now Tata Group ). The airline was founded by India's leading industrialist, JRD Tata . On 15 October 1932, J. R. D. Tata himself flew a single engined De Havilland Puss Moth carrying air mail (postal mail of Imperial Airways ) from Karachi to Bombay via Ahmedabad . The aircraft continued to Madras via Bellary piloted by Royal Air Force pilot Nevill Vintcent . Tata Airlines
10353-399: The same day, from almost any point in the country. Air travel's advantages put long-distance intercity railroad travel and bus lines under pressure, with most of the latter having withered away, whilst the former is still protected under nationalization through the continuing existence of Amtrak . By the 1980s, almost half of the total flying in the world took place in the U.S., and today
10472-558: The same flight. Generally, airline companies are recognized with an air operating certificate or license issued by a governmental aviation body. Airlines may be scheduled or charter operators. The first airline was the German airship company DELAG , founded on November 16, 1909. The four oldest non-airship airlines that still exist are the Netherlands' KLM (1919), Colombia's Avianca (1919), Australia's Qantas (1920) and
10591-430: The spring of 1967, greatly increased passenger loads required a quick addition of fleet aircraft. Alaska purchased a Convair 990 jetliner, formerly operated by Brazilian air carrier Varig as PP-VJE, which then became Alaska Airlines N987AS. This aircraft remained in service along with an increased fleet of Boeing 727-100s. They were joined by stretched Boeing 727-200s which became Alaska Airlines' signature aircraft for
10710-430: The time, with not enough demand to support them. As a result, the airline underwent multiple mergers. The first of these mergers was in 1934, when McGee sold his namesake airline for US$ 50,000 (equivalent to $ 1,138,806 in 2023) to Star Air Service , an airline also located in Anchorage. This allowed McGee to enter the mining industry. With a fleet of 15 aircraft, Star Air Service was a dominant airline in Alaska, but
10829-497: The time. Because the airline was struggling financially, the airline's board ousted president and CEO Charles Willis. Former board member Ronald Cosgrave succeeded him. The airline was US$ 22 million in debt when Cosgrave took over, so Cosgrave began to make major cuts. The airline's cargo business was dropped completely, as were many flights and employees. Cosgrave also sought to improve the airline's tarnished image of "Elastic Airlines", referring to its poor schedule keeping. The logo
10948-490: The war many Lodestars were overhauled and returned to civilian service, mostly as executive transports such as Dallas Aero Service's DAS Dalaero conversion, Bill Lear 's Learstar (produced by PacAero), and Howard Aero's Howard 250 . A few of the latter were converted to tricycle landing gear. While the surviving New Zealand NZNAC aircraft were sold back overseas in 1951/52, six more were later imported and converted for aerial topdressing . A single Lodestar served with
11067-568: The way for its eventual merger with Philippine Airlines in March 1941 and made it Asia's oldest airline. It is also the oldest airline in Asia still operating under its current name. Bachrach's majority share in PATCO was bought by beer magnate Andres R. Soriano in 1939 upon the advice of General Douglas MacArthur and later merged with newly formed Philippine Airlines with PAL as the surviving entity. Soriano has controlling interest in both airlines before
11186-424: The world. Established by aviator Albert Plesman , it was immediately awarded a "Royal" predicate from Queen Wilhelmina . Its first flight was from Croydon Airport , London to Amsterdam , using a leased Aircraft Transport and Travel DH-16 , and carrying two British journalists and a number of newspapers. In 1921, KLM started scheduled services. In Finland , the charter establishing Aero O/Y (now Finnair )
11305-540: The world. The airline soon gained a reputation for reliability, despite problems with bad weather, and began to attract European competition. In November 1919, it won the first British civil airmail contract. Six Royal Air Force Airco DH.9A aircraft were lent to the company, to operate the airmail service between Hawkinge and Cologne . In 1920, they were returned to the Royal Air Force. Other British competitors were quick to follow – Handley Page Transport
11424-403: Was Aircraft Transport and Travel , formed by George Holt Thomas in 1916; via a series of takeovers and mergers, this company is an ancestor of modern-day British Airways . Using a fleet of former military Airco DH.4 A biplanes that had been modified to carry two passengers in the fuselage , it operated relief flights between Folkestone and Ghent , Belgium. On July 15, 1919, the company flew
11543-525: Was Deutsche Luft-Reederei established in 1917 which started operating in February 1919. In its first year, the D.L.R. operated regularly scheduled flights on routes with a combined length of nearly 1000 miles. By 1921 the D.L.R. network was more than 3000 km (1865 miles) long, and included destinations in the Netherlands, Scandinavia and the Baltic Republics. Another important German airline
11662-455: Was Junkers Luftverkehr , which began operations in 1921. It was a division of the aircraft manufacturer Junkers , which became a separate company in 1924. It operated joint-venture airlines in Austria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Norway, Poland, Sweden and Switzerland. The Dutch airline KLM made its first flight in 1920, and is the oldest continuously operating airline in
11781-515: Was MarkAir . Since it began operating in 1984, competition had been reduced because it had worked out feeder agreements with Alaska Airlines. However, after Alaska Air declined to buy the airline in the fall of 1991, it intensified competition with Alaska. Mark Air offered low-cost service on the Anchorage-Seattle route and other routes in Alaska, where Alaska Airlines earned almost one-third of its revenues. This hurt Alaska Airlines. For
11900-525: Was a former mayor of St. Petersburg, who paid $ 400 for the privilege of sitting on a wooden bench in the open cockpit. The Airboat line operated for about four months, carrying more than 1,200 passengers who paid $ 5 each. Chalk's International Airlines began service between Miami and Bimini in the Bahamas in February 1919. Based in Ft. Lauderdale , Chalk's claimed to be the oldest continuously operating airline in
12019-589: Was a mistake." Congress passed the Air Transportation Safety and System Stabilization Act (P.L. 107–42) in response to a severe liquidity crisis facing the already-troubled airline industry in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks . Through the ATSB Congress sought to provide cash infusions to carriers for both the cost of the four-day federal shutdown of the airlines and the incremental losses incurred through December 31, 2001, as
12138-470: Was acquired by and merged into Western Airlines in 1967. Northwest and Pan Am at different times operated Boeing 747 wide-body jetliners on their services to Alaska with Northwest flying Seattle–Anchorage nonstop with the jumbo jet and Pan Am flying Seattle–Fairbanks nonstop with the 747. To set itself apart from the competition, Alaska Air turned to some cheap but imaginative gimmicks such as having safety instructions read as rhymes, staging fashion shows in
12257-611: Was also one of the world's first major airlines which began its operations without any support from the Government. Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar The Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar is an American passenger transport aircraft of the World War II era, developed as part of the Model 10 Electra family, specifically from the Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra . Sales of the 10–14 passenger Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra , which first flew in 1937, had proved disappointing, despite
12376-473: Was being tested in 1999 at Anchorage. This concept, known as "Airport of the Future" by the airline, was first tested in Anchorage and was later brought to its Seattle hub, and it drew attention from other airlines. The airline was the first airline in the world to integrate GPS and Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System (EGPWS) technology, adding a real-time, three-dimensional display of terrain. The system
12495-502: Was changed to an image of a smiling Inuk man, which remains today. Although the exact identity of the man is unknown, some believe it to be the face of either Chester Seveck, a reindeer herder in Kotzebue, or Oliver Amouak, an Inupiat man. Both were Alaskan natives. As a result of these efforts, the airline made a profit in 1973 and continued to be profitable thereafter. Alaska Airlines was one of only three US carriers that supported
12614-403: Was completed the following day. McGee Airways , a precursor to Alaska Airlines, was established by Linious "Mac" McGee and flew its first service between Anchorage and Bristol Bay . Service was unscheduled, with flights taking off when passengers, a load of cargo, or mail needed passage. The airline struggled financially during the Great Depression . Too many airlines were in Anchorage at
12733-490: Was converted from the fourth Model 14, one of a batch which had been returned to the manufacturer by Northwest Airlines after a series of crashes. The modified aircraft first flew in this form on 21 September 1939, another two prototypes being converted from Model 14s, with the first newly built Model 18 flying on 2 February 1940. A total of 625 Lodestars of all variants were built. The Lodestar received its Type certificate on 30 March 1940, allowing it to enter service with
12852-457: Was dismissed in 1995 and replaced with John Kelly, the former Horizon Air CEO. The airline soon expanded West Coast routes to take advantage of an "open skies" agreement between the US and Canada. Alaska Airlines pioneered some new technologies through the 1990s. It added a heads-up guidance system in 1989 to operate better in foggy conditions, becoming the first airline to use this technology. In 1995,
12971-418: Was established in 1919 and used the company's converted wartime Type O/400 bombers with a capacity for 12 passengers, to run a London - Paris passenger service. The first French airline was Société des lignes Latécoère , later known as Aéropostale, which started its first service in late 1918 to Spain. The Société Générale des Transports Aériens was created in late 1919, by the Farman brothers and
13090-450: Was granted by the federal government body after reviewing the necessity at the national assembly. The Hanjin occupies the largest ownership of Korean Air as well as few low-budget airlines as of now. Korean Air is one of the four founders of SkyTeam , which was established in 2000. Asiana Airlines joined Star Alliance in 2003. Korean Air and Asiana Airlines comprise one of the largest combined airline miles and number of passenger served at
13209-481: Was inaugurated in 1932 with the Handley Page HP 42 airliners. Further services were opened up to Calcutta , Rangoon , Singapore , Brisbane and Hong Kong passengers departed London on 14 March 1936 following the establishment of a branch from Penang to Hong Kong. France began an air mail service to Morocco in 1919 that was bought out in 1927, renamed Aéropostale , and injected with capital to become
13328-424: Was named CEO of Alaska Airlines. Ayer had been serving as president under Kelly since 1997, having come to Alaska from Horizon two years earlier after spending 13 years with the smaller airline. Ayer took over as chairman and CEO of the Alaska in 2002 upon Kelly's retirement. He led the company through a transformation called Alaska 2010 that was intended to insulate the airline from the traditional boom-bust cycle of
13447-420: Was not concerned about the long-term stability of the company. In 1951, the CAB awarded Alaska Airlines with a temporary certificate allowing them to operate on routes from the Alaskan cities of Anchorage and Fairbanks to Seattle and Portland in the contiguous United States. This award became permanent in 1957. In 1952, the CAB appointed Nelson David as president, and he began to improve the financial stability of
13566-541: Was operating nonstop DC-10 service on the Fairbanks–Seattle route at this time as well. There were tensions with unions, particularly mechanics and flight attendants. In 1985, the company had a three-month-long strike with its machinists . By June 1985, it was able to end the strike by promising to reduce labor costs and maintain peace with unions. In November 1985, the airline introduced a daily air-freight service called Gold Streak , with service to and from Alaska. In
13685-637: Was operational in all the carrier's Boeing 737-400s by April 1999. The late 1990s saw the carrier recording much profitability. The airline added new training and maintenance facilities. The airline began buying new 737s, ordering three Boeing 737-700s and became the launch customer for the Boeing 737-900 when it placed an order for ten of the jets in November 1997. With the delivery of Boeing 737 Next Generation aircraft starting in 1999, Alaska began launching more medium-haul flights. In 2000, Alaska started service between Anchorage and Chicago. In May 2001,
13804-614: Was signed in the city of Helsinki on 12 September 1923. Junkers F.13 D-335 became the first aircraft of the company, when Aero took delivery of it on 14 March 1924. The first flight was between Helsinki and Tallinn , capital of Estonia , and it took place on 20 March 1924, one week later. In the Soviet Union , the Chief Administration of the Civil Air Fleet was established in 1921. One of its first acts
13923-620: Was the Handley Page W8f City of Washington , delivered on 3 November 1924. In the first year of operation the company carried 11,395 passengers and 212,380 letters. In April 1925, the film The Lost World became the first film to be screened for passengers on a scheduled airliner flight when it was shown on the London-Paris route. Two French airlines also merged to form Air Union on 1 January 1923. This later merged with four other French airlines to become Air France ,
14042-645: Was the world's first airline . It was founded on November 16, 1909, with government assistance, and operated airships manufactured by The Zeppelin Corporation . Its headquarters were in Frankfurt . The first fixed-wing scheduled airline was started on January 1, 1914. The flight was piloted by Tony Jannus and flew from St. Petersburg, Florida , to Tampa, Florida , operated by the St. Petersburg–Tampa Airboat Line . The earliest fixed wing airline in Europe
14161-404: Was to help found Deutsch-Russische Luftverkehrs A.G. (Deruluft), a German-Russian joint venture to provide air transport from Russia to the West. Domestic air service began around the same time, when Dobrolyot started operations on 15 July 1923 between Moscow and Nizhni Novgorod. Since 1932 all operations had been carried under the name Aeroflot . Early European airlines tended to favor comfort –
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