Gem State Airlines

Last updated
Gem State Airlines
Gem State Airlines Convair 580 Silagi-1.jpg
Convair 580 in 1980
IATA ICAO Callsign
GS––
Founded1978
Ceased operations1980
Focus cities Boise, Idaho,
Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
Fleet size9
Destinations12
Headquarters Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, U.S.
Key peopleTom Soumas, Jr.
Justin S. Colin
(1924–2012)

Gem State Airlines was a United States airline founded in 1978 in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. [1] [2] [3] [4] It carried passengers for 11 months, from December 1978 to November 1979, [5] [6] and merged in January 1980 with Air Pacific to become Golden Gate Airlines. [7] [8] [9] [10] [11]

Contents

Founded by Thomas D. "Tom" Soumas, Jr. (b. 1953) of Coeur d'Alene, [12] [13] its primary investor was Justin S. Colin (1924–2012), a New York financier. [14] [15] [16] [17]

Idaho's nickname is the Gem State, with origins back to its territorial years. [18]

Cities served

Source: [8] [19]

Fleet

Gem State Airlines Swearingen SA-226TC Metro II Gem State Airlines Swearingen SA-226TC Metro II Silagi-1.jpg
Gem State Airlines Swearingen SA-226TC Metro II

Gem State operated the following turboprop aircraft:


See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lewiston–Nez Perce County Airport</span> Airport

Lewiston–Nez Perce County Airport is in Lewiston, Idaho, United States. Owned by the city and Nez Perce County, it is in an elevated area two miles (3 km) south of downtown, approximately 700 vertical feet (210 m) above the rivers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pullman–Moscow Regional Airport</span> Airport in Whitman County, Washington

Pullman–Moscow Regional Airport is a public airport in the northwest United States, located in Whitman County, Washington, two miles (3 km) east of Pullman, Washington and four miles (6 km) west of Moscow, Idaho. The airport is accessed via spurs from State Route 270, and has a single 7,101-foot (2,164 m) runway, headed northeast–southwest (5/23), which entered service in October 2019. The former runway (6/24) was 6,730 feet (2,051 m) and aligned with Moscow Mountain twelve miles (20 km) to the northeast, the highest summit in the area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lower Granite Dam</span> Dam in Garfield and Whitman counties, Washington

Lower Granite Lock and Dam is a concrete gravity run-of-the-river dam in the northwest United States. On the lower Snake River in southeastern Washington, it bridges Whitman and Garfield counties. Opened 48 years ago in 1975, the dam is located 22 miles (35 km) south of Colfax and 35 miles (56 km) north of Pomeroy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cascade Airways</span>

Cascade Airways was an airline in the northwest United States which flew primarily regional air routes out of Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1969, it operated for 17 years and was shut down in 1986. Its IATA code (CZ) was later assigned to China Southern Airlines which was formed two years after Cascade's shutdown.

John Melvin "Deep" Friesz is a former professional football player, a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for four teams. Selected in the 1990 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers, he later played for the Washington Redskins, Seattle Seahawks, and New England Patriots.

Donald Lloyd Monson is a former college basketball head coach and the father of head coach Dan Monson. He was a high school head coach for 18 seasons and college head coach for 14 seasons: five at Idaho and nine at Oregon. He was selected by his peers as the national coach of the year in 1982. Monson spent 1993 in Australia, coaching the Adelaide 36ers of the National Basketball League.

John Richard Yarno, Jr. is a former professional football player, an offensive lineman with the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He was selected in the fourth round of the 1977 NFL Draft by the Seahawks, the 87th overall pick, and played for six seasons, from 1977 through 1982.

William J. Murphy was a Democratic politician from Idaho. He served as the state's 34th lieutenant governor from 1977 to 1979, during the administration of Governor John V. Evans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moscow High School</span> Public high school in Moscow, Idaho, United States

Moscow High School (MHS) is a four-year public high school in Moscow, Idaho, United States. The flagship school of the Moscow School District serves grades 9–12. Since 2013, Erik Perryman has served as principal. MHS colors are red, black, and white, and the mascot is a bear.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">U.S. Route 95 in Idaho</span> Section of U.S. Highway in Idaho, United States

In the U.S. state of Idaho, U.S. Route 95 (US-95) is a north–south highway near the western border of the state, stretching from Oregon to British Columbia for over 538 miles (866 km); it was earlier known in the state as the North and South Highway.

Wayne LeRoy Kidwell is an American lawyer and jurist who is a retired Idaho Supreme Court justice, state attorney general, majority leader of the state senate. He was also an associate deputy attorney general in the administration of President Ronald Reagan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mountain West Airlines-Idaho</span>

Mountain West Airlines-Idaho was a short-lived commuter airline based in Boise, Idaho. Its motto was "Nobody knows the Mountain West like we do!"

The 1998 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the 1998 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Vandals, led by fourth-year head coach Chris Tormey, were members of the Big West Conference and played their home games at the Kibbie Dome, an indoor facility on campus in Moscow, Idaho.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coeur d'Alene High School</span> Public school in Coeur dAlene, Idaho, United States

Coeur d’Alene High School is a four-year public secondary school in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, one of two traditional high schools in the Coeur d'Alene School District #271. It serves the northeastern half of the district, with students from the cities of Coeur d'Alene, Dalton Gardens, Hayden, and a portion of unincorporated Kootenai County. The school colors are red, white and blue and the mascot is a Viking.

Y C McNease is a former American college football coach. He was the head football coach at the University of Idaho for the 1968 and 1969 seasons.

The 1978 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the 1978 NCAA Division I-AA football season. The Vandals were led by new head coach Jerry Davitch and were members of the Big Sky Conference. They played their home games at the Kibbie Dome, an indoor facility on campus in Moscow, Idaho. Davitch was previously an assistant at the Air Force Academy for five seasons under longtime head coach Ben Martin, preceded by four years as a high school head coach in Tucson, Arizona.

The 1975 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the 1975 NCAA Division I football season. The Vandals were led by second-year head coach Ed Troxel and were members of the Big Sky Conference, then in Division II. They played their home games at the Kibbie Dome, an indoor facility on campus in Moscow, Idaho.

The 1995 Idaho Vandals football team represented the University of Idaho in the 1995 NCAA Division I-AA football season. The Vandals, led by first-year head coach Chris Tormey, were members of the Big Sky Conference and played their home games at the Kibbie Dome, an indoor facility on campus in Moscow, Idaho. Idaho finished the regular season at 6–4 and 4–3 in the Big Sky, their final season in the conference for more than two decades.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1978 Idaho gubernatorial election</span>

The 1978 Idaho gubernatorial election was held on Tuesday, November 7, and incumbent Democrat John Evans defeated Republican nominee Allan Larsen with 58.75% of the vote. It was the third consecutive win for the Democrats, but the only significant victory for the party in Idaho in 1978.

The 1978–79 Idaho Vandals men's basketball team represented the University of Idaho during the 1978–79 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Members of the Big Sky Conference, the Vandals were led by first-year head coach Don Monson and played their home games on campus at the Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho. They were 11–15 overall and 4–10 in conference play.

References

  1. 1 2 Roche, Kevin (July 9, 1978). "Gem State is more than a paper airline now". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 1A.
  2. ↑ Harrell, Sylvia (November 1, 1978). "Gem State swoops into Lewiston". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 1A.
  3. ↑ Roche, Kevin (November 1, 1978). "Gem State stockholders squeezed out". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 16A.
  4. ↑ "Gem State Airlines". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). (advertisement). November 30, 1978. p. 12A.
  5. ↑ "Airline's demise day away". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. November 8, 1979. p. 3.
  6. ↑ Harrell, Sylvia (November 10, 1979). "Goodbye". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 1B.
  7. ↑ airlines
  8. 1 2 Golden Gate Airlines Image Gallery
  9. ↑ Harrell, Sylvia (January 30, 1980). "Gem State Airlines? Oh, you mean Golden Gate". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 1C.
  10. 1 2 "Gem State: Idaho refugee buys California airline". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). January 10, 1980. p. 9C.
  11. ↑ "Gem Airlines' financial savior files for personal bankruptcy". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). August 25, 1982. p. 2B.
  12. ↑ "Airline just needs a plane". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). UPI. December 25, 1974. p. 8Z.
  13. ↑ Roche, Kevin (August 27, 1978). "Takeoff". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 1C.
  14. ↑ "Gem State Airlines 'remarkable'". Ellensburg Daily Record. (Washington). UPI. August 1, 1979. p. 24.
  15. ↑ "Soumas still wants air carrier in Idaho". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). January 9, 1980. p. 10.
  16. ↑ Roche, Kevin (October 25, 1978). "New York financier invested heavily in Gem State Airlines". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 5A.
  17. ↑ "Justin Colin". legacy.com. Retrieved December 15, 2012.
  18. ↑ "Idaho, the Gem State" (PDF). Idaho Geological Survey. November 2002.
  19. ↑ Gem State Airlines
  20. ↑ Shelledy, Jay (March 14, 1979). "Gem State adds plane, Sun Valley flights". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 14A.
  21. ↑ "Gem State buys bigger planes". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). April 17, 1979. p. 10A.
  22. ↑ Pettit, Diane (September 22, 1979). "Gem State says it will return to Moscow-Pullman". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). p. 1B.
  23. ↑ "Gem State: airline in the red". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. September 28, 1979. p. 6B.


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.