Jet America Airlines

Last updated
Jet America Airlines
Jet America Airlines Logo, March 1987.svg
IATA ICAO Callsign
SI——
Founded11 September 1980 [1]
Commenced operations16 November 1981 (1981-11-16)
Ceased operations1 October 1987 (1987-10-01)
(merged into Alaska Airlines)
Focus cities Long Beach
Las Vegas
Frequent-flyer program Yes; later merged into
Gold Coast Travel
Fleet size8
Destinations11
Parent company Alaska Air Group
Headquarters Signal Hill, California
Key peopleJ. Thomas Talbot
Alan H. Kenison
Ted Shown
George Chelius
Don Rhoads
Tim Collins

Jet America Airlines was a United States domestic airline that operated from 1981 to 1987 when it merged with Alaska Airlines after briefly operating as a separate carrier within Alaska Air Group. It was headquartered in Signal Hill, California, near Long Beach. [2] [3]

Contents

History

Jet America MD-82 at Long Beach Airport McDonnell Douglas MD-82 (DC-9-82), Jet America AN0091526.jpg
Jet America MD-82 at Long Beach Airport

Headed by executives largely from Air California, the Civil Aeronautics Board issued a final order finding Jet America "fit, willing and able" on June 18, 1981 [4] and the airline began operating on November 16, 1981, with a flight from its home base at Long Beach Airport (LGB) to Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD). [5] By July 1984 the airline had expanded service to Dallas/Fort Worth, St. Louis, and Oakland, and had launched its own frequent flyer program. Its fleet consisted of six McDonnell Douglas MD-82 aircraft, with a further four on order; a Boeing 707 was also leased in June 1984 for charter operations, which rapidly incurred significant losses and resulted in the early termination of the lease in January 1985. [6]

Services to Detroit, Las Vegas, and Orange County, California were inaugurated in 1985. [7] During that year, Jet America joined with Disney to advertise a direct route from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) to Long Beach Airport for people to visit Disneyland in its 30th anniversary year. Many of these ads were played during Texas Rangers baseball games or were placed in the team's programs and calendar.[ citation needed ]

In the summer of 1986, Jet America was operating a small hub at the Las Vegas McCarran International Airport (LAS) with nonstop jet service to Burbank (BUR), Chicago (ORD), Dallas/Ft. Worth (DFW), Long Beach (LGB), Milwaukee (MKE), Ontario (ONT), Orange County (SNA) and St. Louis (STL) as well as direct one stop flights to Detroit (DTW) and Washington, D.C. (DCA). [8]

Jet America Financial Results, 1981 thru 1986
(USD 000)1981 [7] 1982 [7] 1983 [7] 1984 [7] 1985 [7] 1986 [9]
Op revenue1,95729,89860,08390,224101,97791,026
Op profit (loss)(2,546)(8,277)3,8703,0161,990(1,628)
Net profit (loss)(3,243)(8,842)7,973(3,676)(8,541)(15,810)
Op margin-130.1%-27.7%6.4%3.3%2.0%-1.8%
Net margin-165.7%-29.6%13.3%-4.1%-8.4%-17.4%

In the spring of 1987, as part of Alaska Air Group, the airline was operating direct flights between the west coast and the east coast of the U.S. including a round trip multi-stop flight with a routing of Orange County (SNA) - Portland (PDX) - Seattle (SEA) - Minneapolis/St. Paul (MSP) - Washington, D.C. (DCA) as well as a Long Beach (LGB) - Chicago (ORD) - Washington, D.C. (DCA) round trip flight. [10]

Late in 1986, the airline received buyout offers from Delta Air Lines and Alaska Air Group. [11] The main interest of the carriers were Jet America's landing slots at Washington National, Chicago O'Hare, John Wayne Airport and Long Beach airports. [12] Given Jet America's financial losses and its ever-changing route network, there was little franchise value. The airline accepted the Alaska bid and by the end of the year the acquisition had been completed. After initially attempting to operate the two airlines separately but finding its strategy for Jet America unprofitable, Jet America was merged into Alaska Airlines in October 1987. Alaska Air Group cited a $9 million loss for Jet America in the first nine months of 1987 prior to merging Jet America into Alaska Airlines. [13] Alaska sold Jet America's 14 slots at Chicago O'Hare Airport and four slots at Washington National Airport to United Airlines in exchange for cash and certain west coast facilities. [14] Alaska received praise from industry observers for bringing the "ill-fated" Jet America experiment to a quick end. [15]

Destinations in 1987

Jet America served the following destinations as of June 1987.

CountryCityAirportNotesRefs
District of Columbia Washington, D.C. Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport [16]
California Burbank Bob Hope Airport Terminated [8]
Fresno Fresno Yosemite International Airport Terminated [16]
Long Beach Long Beach Airport Hub [16]
Oakland Oakland International Airport Terminated [17]
Ontario Ontario International Airport Terminated [8]
Orange County John Wayne Airport [16]
Illinois Chicago O'Hare International Airport [16]
Michigan Detroit Detroit Metropolitan Airport [16]
Minnesota Minneapolis/Saint Paul Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport [16]
Missouri St. Louis St. Louis Lambert International Airport [16]
Nevada Las Vegas McCarran International Airport [16]
Oregon Portland Portland International Airport [16]
Texas Dallas/Fort Worth Dallas Fort Worth International Airport [16]
Washington Seattle/Tacoma Seattle-Tacoma International Airport [16]
Wisconsin Milwaukee Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport Terminated [18]

Fleet

At the time of its acquisition by Alaska Airlines, the Jet America fleet consisted of the following aircraft:

Jet America Airlines fleet
AircraftIn serviceOrdersPassengersNotes
FYTotal
McDonnell Douglas MD-82 8 [19] 2 [19] 12135147 [20] Orders transferred to another Alaska Air Group subsidiary. [21]
Total82

Fleet history

Jet America Airlines retired fleet
AircraftTotalIntroducedRetiredReplacementNotes
Boeing 707-320C 1June
1984		January
1985		NoneLeased for charter operations to Mexico and the Caribbean. [6]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western Airlines</span> Defunct airline of the United States (1925–1987)

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!"

<span class="mw-page-title-main">O'Hare International Airport</span> Airport serving Chicago, Illinois, United States

Chicago O'Hare International Airport is a major international airport serving Chicago, Illinois, United States, located on the city's Northwest Side, approximately 17 miles (27 km) northwest of the Loop business district. Operated by the Chicago Department of Aviation and covering 7,627 acres (3,087 ha), O'Hare has non-stop flights to 214 destinations in North America, South America, the Caribbean, Europe, Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Oceania, and the North Atlantic region as of November 2022. As of 2023, O'Hare is considered the world's most connected airport. It is also U.S.A.'s 4th busiest airport, and 7th biggest airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William P. Hobby Airport</span> Municipal airport serving Houston, Texas, United States

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Long Beach Airport</span> Domestic airport in Long Beach, California

Long Beach Airport is a public airport 3 miles (4.8 km) northeast of downtown Long Beach, in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is also called Daugherty Field, named after local aviator Earl Daugherty. The airport was an operating base for JetBlue, but this ended on October 6, 2020, as the carrier moved its operating base to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), amidst the then-ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, Southwest Airlines became the airport's largest airline.

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.

Air Wisconsin Airlines is a regional airline based at Appleton International Airport in the town of Greenville, Wisconsin, near Appleton. 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, per a new contract with American Airlines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Destin–Fort Walton Beach Airport</span> Airport in Florida, United States

Destin–Fort Walton Beach Airport is an airport located within Eglin Air Force Base, adjacent to the city of Valparaiso and near the cities of Destin and Fort Walton Beach, in Okaloosa County, Florida, United States. The airport was previously named Northwest Florida Regional Airport until February 17, 2015, and Okaloosa Regional Airport until September 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edmonton International Airport</span> International airport serving Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

Edmonton International Airport, officially branded YEG Edmonton International Airport since 2022, is the primary air passenger and air cargo facility in the Edmonton Metropolitan Region of the Canadian province of Alberta. Designated as an international airport by Transport Canada and operated by Edmonton Airports, it is located 14 nautical miles south southwest of Downtown Edmonton in Leduc County on Highway 2 opposite of the city of Leduc. The airport offers scheduled non-stop flights to major cities in Canada, the United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America and Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Valley International Airport</span> Airport in Harlingen, Texas

Valley International Airport (VIA) is owned by the City of Harlingen, in Cameron County, Texas, United States. It is operated by a nine-member airport board appointed by the mayor. HRL is centrally located in the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) and is referred to as the "Gateway to South Padre Island" with travel amenities and door to door transportation to South Padre Island. With over 2,500 acres (1,000 ha) HRL is the largest airport in the RGV with room for future expansion. HRL has the longest runways in the area with modern aircraft approach systems that minimize chances of delays during bad weather.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Barbara Municipal Airport</span> Municipal airport in Goleta, California, United States

Santa Barbara Municipal Airport is 7 miles west of downtown Santa Barbara, California, United States. The airfield covers 948 acres (384 ha) of land and has three runways.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billings Logan International Airport</span> Public airport in Billings, Montana, United States

Billings Logan International Airport is in the western United States, two miles northwest of downtown Billings, in Yellowstone County, Montana. It is the fourth largest airport in Montana, having been surpassed in recent years by Bozeman, Missoula, and Flathead County (Kalispell) in both number of gates as well as annual enplanements. Owned by the city of Billings, the airport is on top of the Rims, a 500-foot (150 m) cliff overlooking the downtown core, and covers 2,500 acres of land.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waterloo Regional Airport</span> Airport

Waterloo Regional Airport ( Livingston Betsworth Field) is four miles (6 km) northwest of Waterloo, in Black Hawk County, Iowa. It is used for general aviation and sees one airline.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Imperial County Airport</span> Municipal airport in Imperial, California, United States

Imperial County Airport is a county-owned public-use airport in Imperial County, California, United States. Also known as Boley Field, it is mostly used for general aviation, but has scheduled passenger service from one commercial airline. Service is subsidized by the Essential Air Service program. The airport is located 1 nautical mile south of the central business district of Imperial, California, partially in the city of Imperial and partially in an unincorporated area of Imperial County. It serves nearby communities, including El Centro.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastern Oregon Regional Airport</span> Airport

Eastern Oregon Regional Airport is a public airport three miles northwest of Pendleton, in Umatilla County, Oregon, United States. Commercial service is provided by Boutique Air to Portland, subsidized by the Essential Air Service program.

Memorial Field Airport is located in City of Hot Springs, in Garland County, Arkansas, United States, 3 miles (4.8 km) southwest of Downtown Hot Springs. It serves nearby Hot Springs National Park. The airport is used for general aviation; airline flights are subsidized by the federal government's Essential Air Service program at a cost of $1,637,012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ketchikan International Airport</span> Airport

Ketchikan International Airport is a state-owned, public-use airport located one nautical mile (2 km) west of the central business district of Ketchikan, a city in Ketchikan Gateway Borough in Alaska, that has no direct road access to the outside world or to the airport. The airport is located on Gravina Island, just west of Ketchikan on the other side of the Tongass Narrows. Passengers must take a seven-minute ferry ride across the water to get to the airport from the town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Muskegon County Airport</span> Airport in Michigan, USA

Muskegon County Airport is a county-owned, public-use airport in Muskegon County, Michigan, United States. The airport is located four nautical miles south of the central business district of Muskegon, Michigan, in Norton Shores. It is mostly used for general aviation but is also served by Southern Airways Express flying Cessna 208 Caravan aircraft to Chicago-O'Hare, subsidized by the Essential Air Service program.

Aspen Airways was an airline carrier and regional affiliate of United Express and based in Hangar 5 in Stapleton International Airport in Denver, Colorado. Aspen ceased operations on April 1, 1990, when separate portions of the airline were acquired by Mesa Airlines and Air Wisconsin Services, Inc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mammoth Yosemite Airport</span> Regional airport in Mono County, California

Mammoth Yosemite Airport is a town-owned public airport seven miles east of Mammoth Lakes, in Mono County, California, United States. Also known as Mammoth Lakes Airport or Mammoth–June Lake Airport, it is mainly used for general aviation, but has scheduled passenger flights operated by one airline which primarily serves the airport on a seasonal basis during the winter ski season. Additional scheduled passenger service for the Mammoth area is seasonally available at the nearby Eastern Sierra Regional Airport located in Bishop, CA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Britt Airways</span> Defunct regional airline of the United States (1964–1996)

Britt Airways was a regional airline in the United States that operated from 1964 until 1996, when it merged with ExpressJet. It was established as Vercoa Air Service in 1964 and renamed to Britt Airlines when it was purchased by William and Marilyn Britt in 1975 later on Britt Airways. It was based in Terre Haute, Indiana until 1996. It began as a commuter airline. It primarily operated turboprop aircraft but also flew British Aircraft Corporation BAC One-Eleven twinjets as an independent air carrier at one point as well. The airline evolved into a regional air carrier operating code share flights primarily for Continental Airlines.

References

  1. ↑ OpenCorporates incorporation record for Jet America, accessed April 20, 2024
  2. ↑ "World Airline Directory." Flight International. March 30, 1985. 88." Retrieved on July 23, 2009.
  3. ↑ "SEC News Digest Issue 84-34." Securities and Exchange Commission . February 17, 1984. 2/4. Retrieved on July 23, 2009.
  4. ↑ "Jet America Fitness Investigation". Civil Aeronautics Board Reports. 90: 319–337. June–July 1981. hdl:2027/ien.35559002074791.
  5. ↑ "Jet America Airlines 1982 Annual Report" . Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  6. 1 2 "Jet America Airlines 1984 Annual Report" . Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Jet America Airlines 1985 Annual Report" . Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  8. 1 2 3 "July 16, 1986 Jet America system timetable" . Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  9. ↑ Air Transport Association 1987 Annual Report
  10. ↑ "March 15, 1987 System Timetable" . Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  11. ↑ "Jet America Option Used". The New York Times . Associated Press. 1986-08-21. Retrieved 2009-06-07.
  12. ↑ "Delta bids for Jet America to bolster western presence". Aviation Week & Space Technology. 125 (8): 33. 25 August 1986. ISSN   0005-2175.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  13. ↑ "Alaska Air Group 1988 Annual Report" . Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  14. ↑ "Alaska Air group breaks up Jet America". Aviation Week & Space Technology. 127 (8): 34. 24 August 1987. ISSN   0005-2175.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  15. ↑ "Alaska Air Prospers By Focusing on Niche Markets, Profitability". Aviation Week & Space Technology. 131 (13): 110–111. 25 September 1989. ISSN   0005-2175.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "June 7, 1987 Jet America system timetable route map" . Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  17. ↑ "October 15, 1985 System Timetable" . Retrieved 21 January 2024.
  18. ↑ "July 16, 1986 System Timetable" . Retrieved 21 January 2024.
  19. 1 2 "Alaska Air Group 1987 Annual Report" . Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  20. ↑ "Alaska Air Group 1986 Annual Report P8" . Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  21. ↑ "Alaska Air Group 1986 Annual Report P9" . Retrieved 20 January 2024.
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.