Enterprise Airlines

Last updated
Enterprise Airlines
IATA ICAO Call sign
BE--
Founded1988;36 years ago (1988)
Ceased operations1990;34 years ago (1990)
Hubs Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport
Headquarters Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

Enterprise Airlines was a scheduled airline based in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. It operated scheduled service to 14 destinations from Cincinnati and from another focus city, Columbus Ohio.

Contents

History

In May 1988, Patrick Sowers and Robert Tranter, two of the founders of Comair, along with Ron Williams launched a new scheduled regional jet airline at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, named Enterprise Airlines. The company began with two Citation II jets and quickly grew to a fleet of seven with annual revenues of $11 million by the end of the second year.

The company is credited with "spearheading the regional jet revolution". Enterprise served 14 cities at its peak with over 50 daily departures. The "corporate commuter" operated seven 10-passenger Citation II business jets and targeted local business travelers with convenient, same day, non-stop flights to regional destinations with inadequate direct service. The company was created as a hub by-pass, time saving alternative to the lengthy delays experienced when making connecting flights at hub airports. The service was widely accepted.

Sticking to its innovative roots, in 1989 Enterprise became the first international code sharing partner to British Airways by feeding premium traffic to the "Concorde" at Kennedy from Hartford and Boston - aptly named, the "Concorde Connection". In addition it connected business travelers from Hartford to Boston to connect to British Airways evening transatlantic, 747 first and business class passengers.

In November 1990, Enterprise was forced to cease operations and liquidate due to rocketing fuel prices resulting from the first Gulf War and from a suspension of the lucrative BA contract during that period.

Destinations

The airline served destinations including Baltimore (BWI), Boston (BOS), Cedar Rapids (CID), Columbus (CMH), Cincinnati (CVG) Green Bay (GRB), Greensboro (GSO), Greenville/Spartanburg (GSP), Hartford/Springfield (BDL), Memphis (MEM), Milwaukee (MKE), New York (JFK), and Wilmington (ILM). In addition, it offered specialized "scheduled" service to local Fortune 100 clients on a weekly shuttle basis to their remote plant locations in Missouri and Pennsylvania.

Fleet

The Enterprise Airlines fleet consisted of the following business jet aircraft:

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Midwest Airlines</span> Defunct airline of the United States (1984–2010)

Midwest Airlines was an airline in the United States headquartered in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, that operated from Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport between 1984 and 2010. For a short time, it also operated as a brand of Republic Airways Holdings.

Comair was a regional airline in the United States, a wholly owned subsidiary of Delta Air Lines, headquartered at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport in Boone County, Kentucky, United States. Operating under the brand name Delta Connection, Comair operated passenger services to destinations in the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Bahamas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport</span> Airport in Boone County, Kentucky, United States

Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport is a public international airport located in Boone County, Kentucky, United States, around the community of Hebron. The airport serves the Cincinnati tri-state area. The airport's code, CVG, is derived from the nearest city at the time of the airport's opening, Covington, Kentucky. The airport covers an area of 7,000 acres. It is included in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2023–2027, in which it is categorized as a medium-hub primary commercial service facility.

Mesaba Aviation, Inc. was a regional airline in the United States that operated from 1944 until it merged with Pinnacle Airlines in 2012 to form Endeavor Air. It was based in Eagan, Minnesota From 2010 to 2012, the airline was a wholly owned subsidiary of Pinnacle Airlines Corp. with code sharing flights operated as Delta Connection for Delta Air Lines and US Airways Express for US Airways. Previously, the airline operated code sharing service as Northwest Airlink and Northwest Jetlink on behalf of Northwest Airlines which subsequently merged with Delta. Mesaba also previously operated connecting flight services in association with Republic Airlines before this air carrier was subsequently merged into Northwest. Mesaba Airlines effectively ceased operations on January 4, 2012, when all aircraft and personnel were transitioned to the Pinnacle Airlines operating certificate. Mesaba's operating certificate was surrendered on July 31, 2012.

Air Wisconsin Airlines is a regional airline based at Appleton International Airport in the town of Greenville, Wisconsin near Appleton, Wisconsin. Air Wisconsin originally operated as one of the original United Express partners in 1985, and subsequently operated as US Airways Express on behalf of US Airways prior to becoming an American Eagle regional air carrier. Between March 2018 and April 2023, Air Wisconsin operated exclusively as a United Express regional air carrier once again with primary hubs located at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport (ORD) and Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD). This came to an end in April 2023 as the carrier switched to conducting solely American Eagle branded flights, under a new contract with American Airlines.

Mesa Airlines, Inc., is an American regional airline based in Phoenix, Arizona. It is an FAA Part 121–certificated air carrier operating under air carrier certificate number MASA036A issued on June 29, 1979. It is a subsidiary of Mesa Air Group and operates flights as United Express via respective code sharing agreements with United Airlines. It serves more than 180 markets in the Western Hemisphere. In a 1997 article from the Journal of Air Transportation, Mesa's safety record was noted as having the fewest incidents among domestic regional airlines at that time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PSA Airlines</span> American regional airline

PSA Airlines is an American regional airline headquartered at Dayton International Airport in Dayton, Ohio United States. The airline is a wholly owned subsidiary of the American Airlines Group and it is paid by fellow group member American Airlines to staff, operate and maintain aircraft used on American Eagle flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by American Airlines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Regional airline</span> Classification of scheduled air carrier

A regional airline is a general classification of airline which typically operates scheduled passenger air service, using regional aircraft, between communities lacking sufficient demand or infrastructure to attract mainline flights. In North America, most regional airlines are classified as "fee-for-departure" carriers, operating their revenue flights as codeshare services contracted by one or more major airline partners. A number of regional airlines, particularly during the 1960s and 1970s, were classified as commuter airlines in the Official Airline Guide (OAG).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allegheny Airlines</span> Defunct airline of the United States (1952–1979)

Allegheny Airlines was a local service carrier that operated out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1952 to 1979, with routes primarily located in the eastern U.S. It was the forerunner of USAir that was subsequently renamed US Airways, which itself merged with American Airlines. Its headquarters were at Washington National Airport in Arlington County, Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shuttle America</span> Defunct regional airline of the United States (1995–2018)

Shuttle America Corporation was a regional airline in the United States based in Indianapolis, Indiana,. It fed United Airlines flights at Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) and Houston George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) under the United Express brand, as well as Delta Air Lines flights at Atlanta (ATL), New York-LaGuardia (LGA), and New York-JFK under the Delta Connection brand. Shuttle America also operated two of three Delta Shuttle East Coast routes, serving Washington, D.C., and Chicago from New York-LaGuardia.

Skyway Airlines was an American ramp and aircraft ground handling services and catering company based in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. Until April 5, 2008, it operated as a regional airline and banner carrier exclusively for Midwest Express Airlines under the business name Midwest Connect, feeding Midwest's hub at General Mitchell International Airport with twelve 32-seat Fairchild-Dornier 328JET regional jet aircraft, and four 19-seat Beechcraft 1900 commuter turboprops. Skyway Airlines, along with its parent corporation, Midwest Air Group, has since ceased operations.

Air Ontario Inc. was a Canadian regional airline with its predecessor initially headquartered in Sarnia and later in London, Ontario. In 2002, Air Ontario became Air Canada Jazz.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airline hub</span> Airport that an airline uses as a transfer point to get passengers to their intended destination

An airline hub or hub airport is an airport used by one or more airlines to concentrate passenger traffic and flight operations. Hubs serve as transfer points to help get passengers to their final destination. It is part of the hub-and-spoke system. An airline may operate flights from several non-hub (spoke) cities to the hub airport, and passengers traveling between spoke cities connect through the hub. This paradigm creates economies of scale that allow an airline to serve city-pairs that could otherwise not be economically served on a non-stop basis. This system contrasts with the point-to-point model, in which there are no hubs and nonstop flights are instead offered between spoke cities. Hub airports also serve origin and destination (O&D) traffic.

MetroJet was a no-frills airline brand operated as a wholly owned division of US Airways from 1998 until 2001.

Boston-Maine Airways was an American airline headquartered in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, United States. It operated scheduled commuter turboprop services as well as Boeing 727-200 jet flights under the Pan Am Clipper Connection name. Its main base was Pease International Airport. Boston-Maine Airways ceased all Pan Am flights on February 29, 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skybus Airlines</span> Defunct airline of the United States (2004–2007)

Skybus Airlines Inc. was a privately held airline based in Columbus, Ohio, United States. It operated as an ultra low-cost carrier modeled after the European airline Ryanair, and aimed to be the least expensive airline in the United States. The business model was heavily reliant on flying routes where other airlines did not have direct flights, as Ryanair did in Europe, thus keeping competition to a minimum, and on flying into secondary airports, rather than heavily trafficked ones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piedmont Airlines (1948–1989)</span> Defunct airline of the United States (1948–1989)

Piedmont Airlines was a United States local service carrier, a scheduled carrier that operated from 1948 until it merged with USAir in 1989. Its headquarters were at One Piedmont Plaza in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, a building that is now part of Wake Forest University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Business Express Airlines</span> Defunct American regional airline (1982–2000)

Business Express Airlines, often referred to as Business Express or BizEX, was an American regional airline founded as Atlantic Air in 1982. In an effort to appeal to its predominantly business commuter clientele, the airline assumed the Business Express name in 1985. In 1986 Pilgrim Airlines, which itself had acquired NewAir about a year prior, was acquired by the airline. This opened the valuable New York and Washington, D.C. markets. Shortly thereafter, Business Express became one of Delta Air Lines' first Delta Connection carriers, along with Atlantic Southeast Airlines (ASA), Comair and SkyWest Airlines. The company slogan was Fly BizEx Jets!.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Best Airlines</span>

Best Airlines was a small airline that flew to a miscellaneous and changing group of cities in the Mid-Atlantic United States in the mid-1980s. Their headquarters was in the Covington, Kentucky area which is near the Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky International Airport. The May 15, 1983 timetable indicates headquarters in Florence, KY and the January 7, 1985 timetable indicates headquarters in Ft. Mitchell, KY. According to the Official Airline Guide (OAG), the two letter airline code for Best was "IW".

Delta Connection is a brand name for Delta Air Lines, under which a number of individually owned regional airlines primarily operate short- and medium-haul routes. Mainline major air carriers often use regional airlines to operate services via code sharing agreements in order to increase frequencies in addition to serving routes that would not sustain larger aircraft as well as for other competitive or operational reasons.

References