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Ed Acker | |
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 1977 Air Florida file photo of Board Chairman Ed Acker | |
| Born | Charles Edward Acker April 7, 1929 |
| Occupation(s) | CEO of Braniff Airways, Air Florida, and Pan American World Airways. Principal Intrepid Equity |
Charles Edward Acker (born April 7, 1929) is an American businessman who served as CEO of Braniff Airways, Air Florida, and Pan American World Airways. He is currently a principal at Intrepid Equity Group. [1]
Acker was born in Dallas, Texas, on April 7, 1929 [1] His father was a railroad worker and farmer but his mother was vice president of one of the largest architectural firms in Dallas, Texas. She served as National President of Women In Construction. Acker has stated that they never tried to influence his career path or decisions. [2] He skipped second and eighth grades and attended North Texas State University (now the University of North Texas) during his Freshman year where he played basketball. Acker is 6 foot 4 inches tall and weighs 215 lbs. He transferred to and graduated from Southern Methodist University where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Psychology.
After graduation Acker went to work as a management trainee at U.S. Tire and Rubber, Co. where he was employed for two and a half years eventually being elevated to District Sales Manager. Not wanting to be a tire salesman, he then took a position as a broker in Dallas with former SMU classmates who had formed a brokering firm. [3] He was a broker for three years when investment counseling firm Lionel D. Edie, asked Acker to open a Dallas, Texas office. He was with Lionel D. Edie for seven years supervising sales and counseling. He then accepted a position as Chief Financial Officer of the Greatamerica Corporation, who was a Lionel D. Edie client, and led Greatamerica's takeover of Braniff International Airways and National Car Rental in 1964. [1]
Acker traveled to Los Angeles, California in 1964 to discuss a possible merger between a revitalized Braniff under the administration of Greatamerica and Continental Airlines. Acker met with Continental's legendary founder and Chairman Robert Six to discuss the possible merger which would put both companies under the Greatamerica umbrella. It was here that Acker met Continental's dynamic Executive Vice President Harding Lawrence. During the ten years that Lawrence had been at Continental he presided over an unprecedented 500 percent growth of the airline. Lawrence was virtually running the entire airline as Six relinquished control of the airline to his trusted associate, Lawrence. [4] Six was quoted as saying "the reason Continental merged with Pioneer Airlines of Houston, Texas, was to get Harding." [5]
Acker knew little of the airline business not even knowing the basic measurements of airline performance such as RPM or revenue passenger mile. He requested that Braniff send someone over to teach Acker the ins and outs of running an airline as far flung as Braniff. He was tutored by Braniff Vice President Tom Robertson who was shocked to learn that he knew little about the complex airline business. However, he picked up the jargon quickly and graduated from Tom Robertson's quick airline operations course. However, he felt the task of running an airline like Braniff to be daunting. Harding Lawrence had discussed with him at length exactly what Lawrence felt could be done with Braniff.
With this in mind, Acker recommended that Lawrence be selected as Braniff's new President and Acker would serve as Executive Vice President - Planning and Administration, and be charged with the areas of finance and administration. He would spend 60 percent of his time at Braniff and 40 percent at Greatamerica. This would end in 1967 when LTV Ling Temco Vought bought Greatamerica and Braniff in 1967, when he would spend all of his time at Braniff. In February 1967, he was promoted to Executive Vice President and General Manager in October 1968. [4]
As second-in-command at Braniff, Acker negotiated with Pan Am CEO Juan Trippe to purchase routes to the west coast of South America (PANAGRA), and introduced a hub and spoke routing system in order to feed Braniff's Boeing 747 flight between Dallas and Honolulu. [3] He was promoted to the Presidency of Braniff in 1970 while his close associate Harding Lawrence, was elevated to Chairman of the Texas-based air carrier. It was at Braniff that he realized his like for the aviation industry. [2]
Acker left Braniff in 1975 to accept the presidency of Transway International, a transportation conglomerate based in New York City. [2] He remained with Transway for one year and then became President of Gulf United, Co. Gulf United was formed when Dallas based LTV Ling Temco Vought decided to sell some of the assets of Braniff's former parent company Greatamerica, Corporation. Gulf United entered into the broadcasting industry by opening television and radio stations across the country. The insurance assets of Gulf United were sold to American General and Gulf Broadcasting was merged with Taft Broadcasting Corporation. [2]
Shortly thereafter, Acker led a group of investors who purchased a controlling interest in Air Florida, a low-cost carrier which reminded Acker of his competition with Southwest in Texas. After airline deregulation in 1978, Acker led the rapid expansion of Air Florida to become a nationwide and international air carrier, which quickened in the early 1980s amid problems at its main East Coast competitors, Pan Am and Eastern Air Lines.
Air Florida's growth under Ed Acker was exemplary with the carrier only serving six routes in January, 1978, but by the end of 1978 the small carrier was flying 17 routes. By January, 1981, Air Florida was flying to 32 destinations in the Continental United States, Latin America, the Caribbean and Europe. Acker's recipe for success was centering the carrier's fleet around the highly efficient and successful Boeing 737 twin jet aircraft. The airline purchase 21 of the efficient twin jets and adhered to a one fare pricing structure. Acker was able to keep overhead costs low as the airline's 1800 employees were mostly not unionized. [2]
However, Air Florida was forced to file for bankruptcy after the crash of Air Florida Flight 90 in 1982 and folded in 1984. [3]
Later in 1982, Acker was appointed chairman and CEO of Pan Am, where he quickly moved to expand the airline's route network after several years of contraction, and to lower the airline's ticket prices in order to compete with low-cost competitors such as Laker Airways. He received strong employee group support by stating that he would not accept any salary until Pan Am was profitable. [1] Employees proclaimed themselves "Acker Backers" that joined the C. Edward Acker Pan Am recovery bandwagon. The airline temporarily made up for its lower revenue and higher operating costs by obtaining wage concessions from labor groups, but this eventually led to labor tensions culminating in a 1985 strike which crippled the airline. Acker kept the airline alive only by selling its transpacific routes to United Airlines for $750 million. [3] He left Pan Am in 1988. [6]
The Lockerbie Bombing of a Pan American 747-100 occurred in December 1988. Pan American was ultimately found liable for negligent security practices directly contributing to the Lockerbie Bombing. [7] The explosion of Pan Am Flight 103 at Lockerbie in December 1988 is widely regarded as the 'final straw' in the ability of Pan American to remain a going concern. Pan Am was a pioneer of aviation, a premier American brand and was considered the de facto flag carrier of the United States before going out of business on December 4, 1991. [8]
After retiring from Pan Am, Acker formed The Acker Group which was primarily concerned with providing financial advisory and venture capital services. [1]
Acker later advised on the founding of Atlantic Coast Airlines a Delta Connection and United Express carrier. [1] He serves as Chairman of the Management of Martinaire Partners, LLC, a Dallas, Texas, based scheduled freight feeder airline serving UPS. [1]
Acker has two sons and one daughter and is currently married to Sandy Acker. His son Mitch is President of Martinaire Partner, LLC, of Dallas, Texas.
Acker was portrayed by Ned Beatty in the 1990 television movie, "The Tragedy of Flight 103: The Inside Story."
Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and commonly known as Pan Am, was an American airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States for much of the 20th century. It was the first airline to fly worldwide and pioneered numerous innovations of the modern airline industry such as jumbo jets, and computerized reservation systems. Until its dissolution in 1991, Pan Am "epitomized the luxury and glamour of intercontinental travel", and it remains a cultural icon of the 20th century, identified by its blue globe logo, the use of the word "Clipper" in its aircraft names and call signs, and the white uniform caps of its pilots.
Air Florida was an American low-cost carrier that operated from 1971 to 1984. In 1975 it was headquartered in the Dadeland Towers in what is now Kendall, Florida in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida.
George Bush Intercontinental Airport is an international airport in Houston, Texas, United States, serving the Greater Houston metropolitan area. Located about 23 miles (37 km) north of Downtown Houston between Interstate 45 and Interstate 69/U.S. Highway 59 with direct access to the Hardy Toll Road expressway, George Bush Intercontinental Airport has scheduled flights to a large number of domestic and international destinations covering five continents. It is the busiest airport in Texas for international passenger traffic and number of international destinations, as well as being the second busiest airport in Texas overall, and the 12th busiest in the United States for total passenger traffic.
William P. Hobby Airport is an international airport in Houston, Texas, located 7 miles (11 km) from downtown Houston. Hobby is Houston's oldest commercial airport, and was its primary airport until the Houston Intercontinental Airport, now known as the George Bush Intercontinental Airport, opened in 1969. Hobby was initially closed after the opening of Houston Intercontinental; however, it was re-opened after several years, and became a secondary airport for domestic airline service, and a center for corporate and private aviation.
Corpus Christi International Airport is 6 miles west of Corpus Christi, in Nueces County, Texas. It opened in 1960, replacing Cliff Maus airport at 27.767°N 97.44°W, where the Lozano Golf Center is now located.
Braniff Airways, Inc., operated as Braniff International Airways from 1948 until 1965, and then Braniff International from 1965 until air operations ceased, was an airline in the United States that once flew air carrier operations from 1928 until 1982 and continues today as a retailer, hotelier, travel service and branding and licensing company, administering the former airline's employee pass program and other airline administrative duties. Braniff's routes were primarily in the midwestern and southwestern United States, Mexico, Central America, and South America. In the late 1970s it expanded to Asia and Europe. The airline ceased air carrier operations in May 1982 because of high fuel prices, credit card interest rates and extreme competition from the large trunk carriers and the new airline startups created by the Airline Deregulation Act of December 1978. Two later airlines used the Braniff name: the Hyatt Hotels-backed Braniff, Inc. in 1983–89, and Braniff International Airlines, Inc. in 1991–92.
Pan American-Grace Airways, also known as Panagra, and dubbed "The World's Friendliest Airline" was an airline formed as a joint venture between Pan American World Airways and Grace Shipping Company. On September 13, 1928, a small single-engine Fairchild airliner flew from Lima, Peru, to Talara, Peru, which marked not only the beginning of Pan American Grace Airways but also the inauguration of scheduled air transportation along the West Coast of South America. From this short flight in 1928 to nonstop flights from New York to South America with Douglas DC-8 Intercontinental Jets in 1966, Panagra became the standard-bearer for transportation between the US Mainland East Coast and the West Coast of South America for 39 years. The "World's Friendliest Airline" merged with Braniff International Airways in 1967, and the combined carrier became the largest US airline serving South America.
Brownsville/South Padre Island International Airport is 5 miles east of downtown Brownsville, Cameron County, Texas.
Mid-Continent Airlines was an airline which operated in the central United States from the 1930s until 1952 when it was acquired by and merged with Braniff International Airways. Mid-Continent Airlines was originally founded as a flight school at Rickenbacker Airport in Sioux City, Iowa, during 1928, by Arthur Hanford Jr., a dairy operator. The Hanford Produce Company was the largest creamery in the United States with over 100 trucks in operation. The company was primarily a dairy but also sold ice cream and poultry. The Hanford's also founded and built the new Rickenbacker Airport and operated eight gas stations and several service repair garages under the name Hanford's, Inc. The airport was a division of Hanford's, Inc., but the service stations and garages were later sold to finance airline operations. Mid-Continent was based in Kansas City, Missouri at the time of its acquisition by Braniff.
Braniff Inc. was a US-based airline that operated flights from 1984 until 1989 and was partially formed from the assets of the original Braniff International Airways. The domestic air carrier was originally headquartered at Dallas Love Field in Dallas, Texas, and later Orlando, Florida. The airline is sometimes referred to as "Braniff II".
Braniff International Airlines, Inc. was a low-fare airline formed in 1991 from the assets of two earlier airlines that used the Braniff name. It was headquartered in the Dallas, Texas, area and owned by BNAir, Inc., a subsidiary of BIA-COR Holdings Inc., a Philadelphia investment group, formed by Paine Weber Group, and subsequent airline holding company. The airline is popularly identified as Braniff III to differentiate it from its predecessors.
Emerald Air was an airline headquartered in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded by William Ford and Richard Martel It was formerly known as Emerald Valley Airlines. Emerald Airlines' brief history is marked by arrangements to feed connecting flights into both passenger airlines and cargo airlines much larger route systems. The airline also independently operated scheduled passenger flights within the state of Texas during the mid-1980s with Douglas DC-9-10 jet and Fairchild Hiller FH-227 turboprop aircraft and briefly served Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and later Wichita, Kansas and Omaha, Nebraska as well.
Robert Mueller Municipal Airport(IATA: AUS, ICAO: KAUS, FAA LID: AUS) was the first civilian airport built in Austin, Texas, United States. It was replaced as Greater Austin's main airport by the Austin–Bergstrom International Airport, which is located on the site of the former Bergstrom Air Force Base. A few miles northeast of downtown Austin, the airport was named after Robert Mueller, a city commissioner who died in office in January 1927. Robert Mueller Municipal Airport was identified with the airport code AUS, which was reassigned to Austin–Bergstrom International Airport in 1999.
Fort Worth Airlines was a low-fare airline headquartered at Meacham Field in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. It was founded and largely operated by former executives from recently dissolved Texas-based Braniff International Airways. Flights between Fort Worth and three Texas cities commenced in December 1984 and additional Oklahoma and Texas destinations were added in 1985; however, the airline was unable to operate profitably, and it ceased operations and filed for bankruptcy in September of that year.
Harding Luther Lawrence was executive vice president of Continental Airlines and then president and chairman of Braniff International Airways, a Dallas, Texas-based carrier. Lawrence's bold and dramatic accomplishments at both airlines earned him the reputation as not only a maverick of the transportation industry but as one of the last legendary titans of aviation. While at Braniff, Lawrence turned the conservative airline into a progressive and flamboyant carrier known for high fashion flight attendant uniforms, exemplary inflight service, and brightly painted planes. Lawrence' revolutionary approach included approving the "End of the Plain Plane" campaign in 1965, which called for imaginative aircraft paint schemes, interiors, and never before seen passenger service comforts. Previous airlines were commonly patterned after less than appealing military operations.
Charles Edmund Beard was the former President of Braniff International Airways, from 1954 until 1965. He was the third president since its inception in 1928, the first person outside the Braniff family to be CEO of the airline. Beard, along with Braniff Board Chairman Fred Jones, managed the airline conservatively, but recorded record growth and traffic statistics between 1954 and early 1965.
Troy Victor Post was an insurance entrepreneur and executive who formed one of the largest insurance conglomerates in the United States in the early 1960s. In addition to being chairman and president of his various insurance entities, Post was also chairman of the board of Dallas, Texas, based Braniff International Airways and National Car Rental beginning in 1964.
Willy Otto Rossel was a Chef de Cuisine or Executive Chef most noted for his extensive work in the preparation of gourmet airline cuisine. In 1965, he was hired by the progressive Dallas-based Braniff Airways, Inc., to administer the airline's commitment to providing its passengers with the finest food aloft. Also in 1965, Braniff had begun implementing its revolutionary End of the Plain Plane Campaign, which called for an unprecedented change in the way the airline presented itself to the public. This campaign not only included a change in the company's look but an upgrade of its inflight cuisine to gourmet status. Rossel wrote the first manual used for the apprenticeship of American chefs.
This is the history of Braniff International Airways.