Northwest Airlink

Last updated
Northwest Airlink
Northwestairlink.png
IATA ICAO Callsign
  • NJ
  • CP
  • XJ
  • 9E
  • NEE
  • CPZ
  • MES
  • FLG
  • NORTHEAST
  • COMPASS
  • MESABA
  • FLAGSHIP
FoundedDecember 1984 (1984-12)
(as Northwest Orient Airlink)
Commenced operationsSeptember 30, 1986 (1986-09-30)
(as Northwest Airlink)
Ceased operationsJanuary 31, 2010 (2010-01-31)
(merged into Delta Connection)
Hubs
Frequent-flyer program WorldPerks
Alliance
Parent company

Northwest Airlink was the brand name of Northwest Airlines' regional airline service, which flew turboprop and regional jet aircraft from Northwest's domestic hubs in Minneapolis, Detroit, and Memphis. Service was primarily to small-to-medium-sized cities and towns where larger aircraft might not be economical to operate and also to larger markets to either provide additional capacity or more frequent flights than could be justified using mainline aircraft. The Northwest Airlink trade name was replaced by the Delta Connection trade name for Delta Air Lines following the Delta/Northwest merger.

Contents

History

Northwest Airlink was formed in December 1984 when Northwest Airlines took steps to enhance its domestic services by entering a marketing agreement with Mesaba Airlines. Mesaba was the dominant airline serving Minneapolis/St Paul at the time. Under the agreement, Mesaba would operate as Northwest Orient Airlink. Mesaba initially operated commuter and regional turboprop aircraft. The Mesaba fleet at this time comprised fourteen Beechcraft 99 and one Fokker F27 aircraft. In 1985 Big Sky Airlines entered the Northwest Airlink agreement with 8-18 passenger seat aircraft including Jetstream 31 and Fairchild Metroliner commuter propjets. [1] Another Northwest Airlink operator was Fischer Brothers Aviation flying CASA C-212, Dornier 228 and Short 360 commuter turboprops. [2]

An Official Airline Guide (OAG) flight schedule dated February 1994 lists the following commuter and regional air carriers operating Northwest Airlink service: [3]

In 2001, Pacific Island Aviation was operating Northwest Airlink service with Short 360 commuter turboprop aircraft between Guam, Saipan and Tinian. [4]

Northwest Jetlink was subsequently formed to operate services with Avro RJ85 jets flown by Mesaba Airlines. Another Northwest Jetlink operator was Business Express Airlines flying Avro RJ70 jets.

Operators and fleet

Fleet

Northwest Airlink Jetstream 31 operated by Express Airlines I (1991) British Aerospace BAe-3101 Jetstream 31, Northwest Airlink (Express Airlines I) AN1081637.jpg
Northwest Airlink Jetstream 31 operated by Express Airlines I (1991)

The following air carriers were operating Northwest Airlink service at the time of the merger of Northwest Airlines with Delta Air Lines:

Northwest Airlink fleet
AirlineIATA ServiceICAO CodeCallsignAircraftIn FleetImageParent
Compass Airlines CPCPZCompass Embraer 175 32 Embraer 175 (Northwest Airlink) (2286010461).jpg Northwest Airlines
Mesaba Airlines XJMESMesaba Bombardier CRJ200 16 N8623A Canadair CRJ.200ER Northwest Jet Airlink (7424438946).jpg
Bombardier CRJ900 34 CRJ900 (Northwest Airlink) (2455197066).jpg
Saab 340 49 The Saab 340 (435774911).jpg
Pinnacle Airlines 9EFLGFlagship Bombardier CRJ200 39 N8623A Canadair CRJ.200ER Northwest Jet Airlink (7424438946).jpg Pinnacle Airlines Corp.

Historical regional jet fleet

The Northwest Airlink brand, through its various regional and commuter airline partners, operated a variety of twinjet aircraft over the years including the following types:

AircraftImage
Avro RJ70
Avro RJ85 BAE Systems Avro 146-RJ85A (287997768).jpg

Historical turboprop fleet

The Northwest Airlink brand, through its various regional and commuter airline partners, operated a variety of twin turboprop aircraft over the years including the following types:

AircraftImage
ATR 42
BAe Jetstream 31 British Aerospace BAe-3101 Jetstream 31, Northwest Airlink (Express Airlines I) AN1081637.jpg
Beechcraft Model 99
Bombardier Dash 8-100 De Havilland Canada DHC-8-102 Dash 8, Northwest Airlink (Northeast Express Regional Airlines) AN0255180.jpg
CASA C-212 CASA 212 N160FB Northwest Airlink.jpg
Dornier 228
Fairchild Metroliner
Fokker F27 Northwest AirLink F-27 N266MA at MSP (22204641945).jpg
Short 360 Northwest Short 360.jpg

Incidents and accidents

N160FB was on a scheduled flight from Mansfield to Detroit with an intermediate stop in Cleveland when it crashed while landing at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport. The plane yawed violently to the left about 70 feet above the runway, skidded to the right, hit 3 ground support vehicles in front of Concourse F, and caught fire. Out of 19 occupants onboard (16 passengers and 3 crew), 9 were killed. The cause of the crash was determined to be pilot error. [5] 

See also

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References

  1. https://www.airliners.net, photos of Northwest Airlink / Big Sky Airlines aircraft
  2. http://www.airliners.net, photos of Northwest Airlink / Fischer Brothers aircraft
  3. Feb. 1994 OAG Pocket Flight Guide, North American Edition
  4. http://www.departedflights.com, Feb. 1, 2001 Pacific Islands Aviation/Northwest Airlink timetable
  5. "NTSB report" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-04-10. Retrieved 2007-07-13.
  6. "NTSB report" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-09-20. Retrieved 2007-07-13.
  7. NTSB Aircraft Accident Report, Crash of Pinnacle Airlines Flight 3701, October 14, 2004.
  8. "Accident Description: Pinnacle Airlines Flight 4712". Aviation-safety.net. April 12, 2007. Retrieved June 2, 2016.