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Founded | December 1, 1984 (as Northwest Orient Airlink) | ||||||
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Commenced operations | October 1, 1986 (as Northwest Airlink) | ||||||
Ceased operations |
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Hubs | |||||||
Frequent-flyer program | WorldPerks | ||||||
Alliance |
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Parent company |
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Headquarters | Eagan, Minnesota, United States |
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Commenced operations | April 1997 | ||||||
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Ceased operations | April 3, 2003 | ||||||
Frequent-flyer program | WorldPerks | ||||||
Alliance | Wings Alliance (affiliate) | ||||||
Parent company | Northwest Airlines (1997–2003) | ||||||
Headquarters | Eagan, Minnesota, United States |
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.
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 Jet Airlink was subsequently formed to operate services with Avro RJ85 jets flown by Mesaba Airlines. Another Northwest Jet Airlink operator was Business Express Airlines flying Avro RJ70 jets.
The following air carriers were operating Northwest Airlink service at the time of the merger of Northwest Airlines with Delta Air Lines:
Airline | IATA Service | ICAO Code | Callsign | Aircraft | In Fleet | Image | Parent |
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Compass Airlines | CP | CPZ | Compass | Embraer 175 | 32 | Northwest Airlines | |
Mesaba Airlines | XJ | MES | Mesaba | Bombardier CRJ200 | 16 | ||
Bombardier CRJ900 | 34 | ||||||
Saab 340 | 49 | ||||||
Pinnacle Airlines | 9E | FLG | Flagship | Bombardier CRJ200 | 39 | Pinnacle Airlines Corp. |
The Northwest Airlink brand, through its various regional and commuter airline partners, operated a variety of jet aircraft over the years including the following types:
Aircraft | Image |
---|---|
Avro RJ70 | |
Avro RJ85 |
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:
Aircraft | Image |
---|---|
ATR 42 | |
BAe Jetstream 31 | |
Beechcraft Model 99 | |
Bombardier Dash 8-100 | |
CASA C-212 | |
Dornier 228 | |
Fairchild Metroliner | |
Fokker F27 | |
Short 360 |
Endeavor Air is a regional airline in the United States headquartered at the Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Delta Air Lines, and staffs, operates and maintains aircraft used on Delta Connection flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by Delta Air Lines.
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.
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The Bombardier CRJ100 and CRJ200 are regional jets designed and manufactured by Bombardier Aerospace between 1991 and 2006, the first of the Bombardier CRJ family.
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Northwest Airlink Flight 2268 was a commuter flight between Cleveland-Hopkins International Airport in Cleveland, Ohio, United States, and Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport in Romulus, Michigan, just outside Detroit. The flight was operated by Fischer Brothers Aviation, doing business as Northwest Airlink, and was operated by a CASA C-212 aircraft. On March 4, 1987, the plane crashed while attempting to land. Nine of the 19 passengers and crew on board were killed in the crash.
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