Throwbacks

With June Morris’s travel agency doing well, the entrepreneur made a move to start a new airline to accompany the thriving business. Morris contacted co-founder of WestJet David Neeleman and together the two helped form a charter airline called Morris Air Service in 1984. Early routes were to Hawaii with Morris Air Services leasing a […]

Founded in 1998, AccessAir lived a tragically short life effectively brought down by financial problems. Based in Des Moines, IA, the airline connected some major cities with smaller cities within and near the state of Iowa with their limited fleet. Flights were launched in 1999, a few months following commencement of their operations. The airline built […]

In 1992, the aviation industry in Bolivia went through a period of deregulation. The days of domination of the state-owned Lloyd Aereo Boliviano were gone, and new carriers would be allowed to enter the market. Thankfully the terrain of Bolivia is well suited for the aviation industry, with large patches of rain forests and mountains […]

Founded in 2006 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina based airline company Direct Air commenced operations  leasing aircraft with charter airlines. Their flights were operated by numerous other airlines, including Sky King, Inc., World Atlantic Airlines, USA Jet, and Xtra Airways, among others. The company’s first routes consisted of nonstop service from Myrtle Beach to Newark, Niagara […]

While Columbia, MO began to see route success with Trans World Airlines (TWA) in the 1990s, its local passengers struggled with high prices, leaving local resident William Stricker to take matters into his own hands. Stricker decided on buying the Ozark Airlines name, as well as two Dornier 328JET aircraft to start service between Columbia and Chicago Midway […]

Midway Airlines was born out of the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978. Approved for a certificate to operate in 1976, the airline started operations in 1979, as a discount carrier. Midway was also considered to be one of the first post-deregulation start-ups. With a base at Chicago’s Midway Airport, the airline started operations with three […]

Founded in 1960, Aero Union Corporation was an aircraft maintenance and operation company that focused on aerial firefighting, including operating the aircraft, training crews, and designing fire fighting systems. Their company depended heavily on a contract with the US Forest Service. Initially from Redding, California, their headquarters was eventually established in Chico, California. In the beginning, […]

With the Indian market on the rise and Bangladesh being dominated by the flag carrier Biman, a privately owned airline in the smaller country of Bangladesh seemed like a bet that could pay off. In 1998, the goal was achieved as GMG Airlines was formed with two De Havilland DHC-8-100 aircraft which would allow the […]

World Airways was founded in 1948 by Benjamin Pepper. At the time, he used former Pan Am Boeing 314 flying boats. However, just two years later, the airline was purchased by Edward Daly for $50,000. At the time, the Boeing 314s were already considered to be obsolete so Daly began adding the Douglas DC-4 to […]

Established in 1985,  government-owned Royal Tongan Airlines officially commenced operations, the result of several years of planning. Just two years earlier, All Nippon Airways had conducted a feasibility study into the formation of a Tongan airline, which, following numerous changes in participating airlines, found success. The company was initially named Friendly Island Airways. Domestic flights […]