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| Founded | March 1971 | ||||||
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| Ceased operations | 2001 | ||||||
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| Employees | 100 (2001) | ||||||
Harbor Airlines (also known as Harbor Air) was a commuter airline from the United States, which existed from 1971 to 2001. Based at Oak Harbor, Washington, it operated regional passenger flights in the Puget Sound area.
The airline was founded as Oak Harbor Airlines by Jerry Petterson and Wes Lupien (the owner of Oak Harbor Airport) in March 1971. [1] In May 1974, it shortened its name to simply Harbor Airlines. [1] In the early 1980s, the airline served the Puget Sound area of Washington state. [1]
In the mid-1970s, the airline's fleet comprised five BN-2A Islander craft. [2] By the early 1980s, an Embraer EMB 110 Bandeirante had been added to the fleet. [1] By 2001, these had been replaced with five Cessna Grand Caravan. [3]
In 1996, the company was bought by Richard Boehlke and subsequently moved its headquarters from Oak Harbor to Gig Harbor. [4] Over the following years, Harbor Airlines encountered a series of financial problems, which culminated in being evicted from Seattle–Tacoma International Airport (the most important destination in its route network) in March 2001 due to unpaid bills worth US$100,000. [5] [6] The airline reacted by relocating its flights to nearby Boeing Field. [5]
In a 1999 ranking of regional and commuter airlines by total passenger enplanements, Harbor Airlines ranked 40th out of 50. [7]
In early May 2001, Harbor Airlines suspended all flight activities and its then 100 employees were dismissed. [5] The company's bankruptcy also affected Oak Harbor Airport, of which Harbor Airlines was still the owner. [5]
Upon closure, Harbor Airlines offered scheduled flights from Seattle to Oak Harbor, Orcas Island, Port Angeles and San Juan Island, [5] and maintained codeshare agreements with Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air. [3]
In the mid 1970s, destinations included Seattle, Oak Harbor, Bellingham, and Hoquiam in Washington State; and Astoria and Portland in Oregon. [2] Hoquiam began as a destination in July 1974 when Harbor took over a route from Hughes Airwest, but was discontinued in January 1975 due to lack of business. [8] In 1979 and 1981, destinations which could be reached directly from Seattle were Bellingham, Oak Harbor and Mount Vernon. [9] [10] An international route to Canada, linking Seattle (via Bellingham) with Vancouver, was inaugurated on June 12, 1981. [1]
Harbor Airlines suffered one fatal accident, which occurred on December 26, 1974, in snowy weather conditions. Flight 308, a Britten-Norman Islander (registered N66HA) en route from Seattle to Oak Harbor crashed in Riverton, Washington four minutes after takeoff, killing four of the six occupants (the pilot and three passengers) on board. A fourth passenger died of their injuries several days after the crash while in hospital. [11] This was an urban crash, landing in the middle of a street and striking power lines on its way down. During the subsequent investigation, an unknown substance was found inside the pitot tubes of the aircraft, which had caused unreliable airspeed readings. [12] [13] [14]
Western Airlines was a major airline in the United States based in California, operating in the Western United States including Alaska and Hawaii, and western Canada, as well as to New York City, Boston, Washington, D.C., and Miami and to Mexico City, London and Nassau. Western had hubs at Los Angeles International Airport, Salt Lake City International Airport, and the former Stapleton International Airport in Denver. Before it merged with Delta Air Lines in 1987 it was headquartered at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). Throughout the company's history, its slogan was "Western Airlines...The Only Way to Fly!"
Seattle–Tacoma International Airport is the primary international airport serving Seattle and its metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington. It is in the city of SeaTac, which was named after the airport's nickname Sea–Tac, approximately 14 miles (23 km) south of Downtown Seattle and 18 miles (29 km) north-northeast of Downtown Tacoma. The airport is the busiest in the Pacific Northwest region of North America and is owned by the Port of Seattle.
Horizon Air is an American regional airline headquartered in SeaTac, Washington, within the Seattle metropolitan area. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Alaska Air Group and it is paid by fellow group member Alaska Airlines to staff, operate and maintain aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by Alaska Airlines. Planes operated by Horizon are co-branded as Alaska HORIZON in order to differentiate Horizon's planes from those operated by Alaska's other regional airline partner, SkyWest Airlines.
SkyWest Airlines is an American regional airline headquartered in St. George, Utah. SkyWest operates and maintains aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by four partner mainline airlines. The company is contracted by Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines. In all, it is the largest regional airline in North America when measured by fleet size, number of passengers carried, and number of destinations served.
Piedmont Airlines, Inc. is an American regional airline headquartered at the Salisbury Regional Airport in Wicomico County, Maryland, near the city of Salisbury. 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. Piedmont also provides ground handling and customer service for airports in the northeastern and western United States.
King County International Airport, commonly Boeing Field, is a public airport owned and operated by King County, 5 mi (8.0 km) south of downtown Seattle, in the U.S. state of Washington. The airport is sometimes referred to as KCIA, but it is not the airport identifier. The airport has scheduled passenger service operated by Kenmore Air, a commuter air carrier, and was being served by JSX with regional jet flights. It is also a hub for UPS Airlines. It is also used by other cargo airlines and general aviation aircraft. The airfield is named for founder of Boeing, William E. Boeing, and was constructed in 1928, serving as the city's primary airport until the opening of Seattle–Tacoma International Airport in 1944. The airport's property is mostly in Seattle just south of Georgetown, with its southern tip extending into Tukwila. The airport covers 634 acres (257 ha), averages more than 180,000 operations annually, and has approximately 380 based aircraft.
Empire Airlines is a cargo and former passenger airline based in Hayden, Idaho, near Coeur d'Alene. It operates over 120 scheduled cargo flights a day in 18 US states and Canada. Empire also operated passenger service within Hawaii, under the name "Ohana by Hawaiian", between 2014 and 2021 in partnership with Hawaiian Airlines. Its main base is Coeur d'Alene Airport with a hub at Spokane International Airport. The company slogan is We Can Do That.
The Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander is a British light utility aircraft and regional airliner designed and originally manufactured by Britten-Norman of the United Kingdom. Still in production, the Islander is one of the best-selling commercial aircraft types produced in Europe. Although designed in the 1960s, over 750 are still in service with commercial operators around the world. The aircraft is a light transport with over 30 military aviation operators around the world.
Bar Harbor Airlines was a commuter airline in the United States that operated from 1950 until it merged with Britt Airways in 1991. It was headquartered at Hancock County–Bar Harbor Airport in Trenton, Maine, and later in Houston, Texas.
Kenmore Air Harbor, Inc., doing business as Kenmore Air, is an American airline with its headquarters on the grounds of Kenmore Air Harbor in Kenmore, Washington, United States, north of Seattle. It operates scheduled and charter seaplane and landplane service to destinations throughout western Washington and southwestern British Columbia, as well as seaplane "flightseeing" flights around Seattle. In addition to its corporate headquarters, seaplane maintenance facility and terminal in Kenmore, the airline has hub operations in Seattle for seaplanes at Lake Union Seaplane Base and for land-based airplanes at Boeing Field. It also operates a maintenance facility for its airplane fleet at Boeing Field.
Bellingham International Airport is three miles (5 km) northwest of Bellingham, in Whatcom County, Washington, United States. BLI covers 2,190 acres (886 ha) of land, and is the third-largest commercial airport in Washington.
McAllister Field is a public airport three miles south of Yakima, in Yakima County, Washington. Owned by the City of Yakima, it is used for general aviation and commercial air service. Yakima is served by one scheduled passenger air carrier and two non-scheduled carriers. Sun Country Airlines operates charter flights to Laughlin, NV and Xtra Airways operates charter flights to Wendover, NV.
San Juan Airlines is a commuter airline operating scheduled and charter flights in the U.S. state of Washington and the Canadian province of British Columbia. Its main base of operations is Bellingham near the San Juan Islands. The airline's fleet consists of Cessna 172, 206 and 207 aircraft. In 1981, San Juan Airlines acquired Pearson Aircraft which was based in Port Angeles, Washington.
West Coast Airlines was a United States local service carrier, a scheduled airline certificated by the federal Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB), linking small cities in the Pacific Northwest with larger cities in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Montana, California and north to Alberta in Canada. It was headquartered in the Westlake area of Seattle, Washington.
Tacoma Narrows Airport is a county-owned, public-use airport located 5 mi (8.0 km) west of the central business district of Tacoma, a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. It is situated south of Gig Harbor, Washington, one mile southwest of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. The airport was owned by the city of Tacoma until 2008, when it was purchased by Pierce County.
Air Flamenco is a commuter airline operated by Air Charter, Inc., based in Puerto Rico.
Skagit Regional Airport is a public airport located 3 mi (4.8 km) west of the central business district of Burlington and northwest of Mount Vernon, both cities in Skagit County, Washington, United States. The airport is owned by the Port of Skagit County. It is situated in the Bayview Industrial Park.
Servant Air, Inc. is an American regional airline with operations throughout The United States and Alaska, USA. It operates domestic scheduled passenger and international charter services. Its main hub is Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (PANC) and its main scheduled airline service base is Kodiak Airport (PADQ) with regional operations bases in Boston, MA, White Plains, NY, Fort Lauderdale, FL and San Juan, PR. Servant Air Also provides critical care Air Ambulance services throughout its operating area.
North Pacific Airlines (NPA) was a commuter air carrier formed in 1987 which operated scheduled passenger service on behalf of United Airlines via a code sharing agreement as a United Express carrier initially from the Seattle–Tacoma International Airport (SEA) to three destinations in Washington state and also to Portland, Oregon.
Lynk Air is an American airline that operates scheduled and charter passenger flights in Washington and Oregon. Based in Oak Harbor, Washington, it offers various commuter flights between Seattle–Tacoma International Airport and surrounding regional airports.
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