Regional airline

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Flight West was a regional airline operating in Australia in the 1990s Flight West EMB-120.jpg
Flight West was a regional airline operating in Australia in the 1990s

A regional airline is a general classification of airline which typically operates scheduled passenger air service, using regional aircraft, between communities lacking sufficient demand or infrastructure to attract mainline flights. In North America, most regional airlines are classified as "fee-for-departure" carriers, operating their revenue flights as codeshare services contracted by one or more major airline partners. A number of regional airlines, particularly during the 1960s and 1970s, were classified as commuter airlines in the Official Airline Guide (OAG).

Contents

History

British Aerospace Jetstream 41 of the UK regional airline Eastern Airways Easternairways j41 g-majx arp.jpg
British Aerospace Jetstream 41 of the UK regional airline Eastern Airways

Background

Decades before the advent of jet airliners and high-speed, long-range air service, commercial aviation was structured similarly to rail transport networks. In this era, technological limitations on air navigation and propeller-driven aircraft performance imposed strict constraints on the potential length of each flight; some routes covered less than 100 miles (160 km).[ citation needed ]

As such, airlines structured their services along point-to-point routes with many stops between the originating and terminating air terminals. This system of air transportation effectively forced most airlines to be "regional" in nature, but the lack of distinction among carriers soon began to change with the 1929 launch of Transcontinental Air Transport (T-A-T) in the United States. T-A-T's transcontinental "Lindbergh Line" became America's first contiguous coast-to-coast air service, and it ushered in a new era of major airlines expanding to operate networks with large footprints. The development of long-range aircraft operated by flag carriers like British Overseas Airways Corporation and Trans-Canada Airlines further normalized the capability of "far and wide" air travel among the traveling public.

Shifting definition

"Regional airline" is a flexible term whose meaning has changed substantially over time. What it means today is different than how it has been used in the past. For instance, in the United States, around 1960, the term “regional carrier” denoted the smaller eight of the 12 largest carriers, then known as trunk carriers (or trunk airlines or simply trunks). At the time the four biggest airlines in the United States were known as the Big Four, comprising American, United, TWA and Eastern Air Lines. The other eight trunk carriers were Braniff, Capital, Continental, Delta, National, Northeast, Northwest and Western. Since, at the time, none of these eight had a network approaching the scale of the Big Four, they were known as the regional carriers. [1] This was despite the existence, at the time, of 13 smaller United States scheduled carriers known as local service carriers whose service was arguably far more regional than the “regional” trunks.

So when reading historical sources, it’s important to understand that the term "regional airline" has migrated greatly over time. Sometimes the term has been stretched beyond the point of utility. For instance, in a 1983 article about PBA, Provincetown-Boston Airlines, both Air New England and Air Florida are described as regional airlines. At the time, Air New England was a recently-failed turboprop operator in the northeast USA, while Air Florida was a jet carrier flying from Florida to the northeast, to Latin America and Europe. The two airlines had little in common. [2]

Early growth

As flag carriers grew to fill the demand of long-range passenger traffic, new and small airlines found niches flying between short and under-served routes to-and-from major airports and more rural destinations. Through the 1960s and 1970s, war surplus designs (notably, the Douglas DC-3) were replaced by higher-performance turboprop or jet-powered designs like the Fokker F27 Friendship and BAC One-Eleven. This extended the range of the regionals dramatically, causing a wave of consolidations between the now overlapping airlines.

In the United States, regional airlines were an important building block of today's passenger air system. The U.S. Government encouraged the forming of regional airlines to provide services from smaller communities to larger towns, where air passengers could connect to a larger network.

The original regional airlines (then known as " Local service carriers ") sanctioned by the Civil Aeronautics Board from 1943 to 1950 include:

A history and study of regional airlines was published by the Smithsonian Institution Press in 1994 under the title Commuter Airlines of the United States, by R.E.G. Davies and I. E. Quastler.

Deregulation era

Since the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978, the US federal government has continued support of the regional airline sector to ensure many of the smaller and more isolated rural communities remain connected to air services. This is encouraged with the Essential Air Service program [3] that subsidizes airline service to smaller U.S. communities and suburban centers, aiming to maintain year-round service.

Although regional airlines in the United States are often viewed as small, not particularly lucrative "no name" subsidiaries of the mainline airlines, in terms of revenue, many would be designated major airline carrier status based on the only actual definition of "major airline," in the United States, the definition from the U.S. Department of Transportation. This definition is based solely on annual revenue and not on any other criterion such as average aircraft seating capacity, pilot pay, or number of aircraft in the fleet. It is common in the U.S. to incorrectly associate aircraft size with the Department of Transportation's designation of major, national, and regional airline. The only corollary is the Regional Airline Association, an industry trade group, defines "regional airlines" generally as "...operat(ing) short and medium haul scheduled airline service connecting smaller communities with larger cities and connecting hubs. The airlines' fleet primarily consists of 19 to 68 seat turboprops and 30 to 100 seat regional jets." To be clear there is no distinction in the Department of Transportation definition of major, national and regional airlines by aircraft size. The definition is based on revenue. The clash of definitions has led to confusion in the media and the public.

1990s–2000s

Beginning around 1985, a number of trends have become apparent. Regional aircraft are getting larger, faster, and are flying longer ranges. Additionally, the vast majority of regionals within the United States with more than ten aircraft within their fleet, have lost their individual identities and now serve only as feeders, to Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, or United Airlines major hubs. Regional aircraft in the US have been getting slightly more comfortable with the addition of better ergonomically designed aircraft cabins, and the addition of varying travel classes aboard these aircraft.[ citation needed ] From small, less than 50-seat "single-class cabin" turboprop, to turbofan regional jet equipment, present day regional airlines provide aircraft such as the higher capacity CRJ700, CRJ900, CRJ1000 series of aircraft and the somewhat larger fuselage Embraer E-Jets. Some of these newer aircraft are capable of flying longer distances with comfort levels that rival and surpass the regional airline equipment of the past.[ citation needed ]

In the early 1990s, much more advanced turboprop-powered, fuel efficient, and passenger friendly DC-3 type replacement projects such as the 19 passenger Embraer/FMA CBA 123 Vector and the 34 seat Dornier 328 were undertaken, but met little financial success, partly due to economic downturn in the airline industry resulting from the outbreak of hostilities when Iraq invaded Kuwait. Many of the regional airlines operating turboprop equipment such as Delta's regional sister Comair airlines in the United States set the course for bypassing entirely the regional turboprops as they became the first to transition to an all-jet regional jet fleet. To a lesser extent in Europe and the United Kingdom this transition, to notably the Embraer or Canadair designs, was well advanced by the late 1990s. This evolution towards jet equipment, brought the independent regional airlines into direct competition with the major airlines, forcing additional consolidation.

To improve on their market penetration, larger airline holding companies rely on operators of smaller aircraft to provide service or added frequency service to some airports. Such airlines, often operating in code-share arrangements with mainline airlines, often completely repaint their aircraft fleet in the mainline airline's sub-brand livery. For example, United Express regional airline partner CommutAir branded its entire fleet as United Express. On the other hand, regional airline Gulfstream International Airlines did not brand their aircraft. When Colgan Air was still operating, they branded a handful of aircraft as Colgan Air, but most were branded as Continental Connection, US Airways Express or United Express, with whom it had contractual agreements.

Typical seat map of a smaller regional airliner as is often flown by the regional airlines. The smallest aircraft flown under such brands and regional airlines may or may not have lavatories. Corporate5966.JPG
Typical seat map of a smaller regional airliner as is often flown by the regional airlines. The smallest aircraft flown under such brands and regional airlines may or may not have lavatories.

Business model

21st century regional airlines are commonly organized in one of two ways.

Independent model

Operating as an independent airline under their own brand, mostly providing service to small and isolated towns, for whom the airline is the only reasonable link to a larger town. Examples of this are PenAir, which links the remote Aleutian Islands to Anchorage, Alaska, and Mokulele Airlines, which operates in the Hawaiian islands.

Fee-for-departure (contract) model

As an affiliated airline, contracting with a major airline, operating under their brand name (for example, Endeavor Air operates flights under the Delta Connection brand name for Delta Air Lines), and filling two roles: delivering passengers to the major airline's hubs from surrounding towns, and increasing frequency of service on mainline routes during times when demand does not warrant use of large aircraft, known as commuter flights.

One of the first independently owned and managed airlines in the world that rebranded its aircraft to match a larger airline's brand was Air Alpes of France. During 1974, Air Alpes painted its newly delivered short range regional jets in the livery of Air France.

NLM Fokker F.27 Friendship wearing the basic mainline livery of KLM Airlines however wearing the initial titles of NLM at Groningen in 1967. NLM was set up as a KLM subsidiary from its founding and later evolved into KLM Cityhopper. In 1976 Cabin Staff contractually won opportunity to be considered for KLM employment after a set period of commitment to NLM. Fokker F27-300 PH-KFA NLM GRON 13.03.67 edited-3.jpg
NLM Fokker F.27 Friendship wearing the basic mainline livery of KLM Airlines however wearing the initial titles of NLM at Groningen in 1967. NLM was set up as a KLM subsidiary from its founding and later evolved into KLM Cityhopper. In 1976 Cabin Staff contractually won opportunity to be considered for KLM employment after a set period of commitment to NLM.
An Aerospatiale Corvette of Air Alsace at Brussels Airport in 1977. Much like Air Alpes, these aircraft fed regional and higher yielding traffic to Air France and were also one of the first companies to adopt the now common practice of taking on the branding livery of a much large company, namely Air France; who they operated in association with. SN601 Corvette F-BVPE Alsace BRU 12.09.77 edited-3.jpg
An Aerospatiale Corvette of Air Alsace at Brussels Airport in 1977. Much like Air Alpes, these aircraft fed regional and higher yielding traffic to Air France and were also one of the first companies to adopt the now common practice of taking on the branding livery of a much large company, namely Air France; who they operated in association with.

NLM's KLM style branding does however pre-date the Air France efforts though by a number of years. [4]

The success of the "rebranding" or "pseudo branding" of a much smaller airline into the name recognition of a much larger one soon became clear as passenger numbers soared at Air Alpes, and it was soon decided to paint other aircraft such as the Fokker F-27 into full Air France colours as well.

Many airline passengers[ who? ] find sub-branding very confusing, while many other airline passengers are content to think they are on a mainline or flagship airline's aircraft, while in actuality they are far from it. Sub-branding is pretty consistent throughout the airline industry of the United States, with all the regional airlines, mainline airlines, and the regional airline holding companies, as well as the mainline airlines holding companies participating. [5]

Industry

Labor relations

First year regional pilot pay as of Aug. 2011. Source: AirlinePilotCentral.com, an industry career site. Regional Pilot First Year Pay II.jpg
First year regional pilot pay as of Aug. 2011. Source: AirlinePilotCentral.com, an industry career site.

On Feb 12th, 2010, a year after the crash of Colgan flight 3407, Frontline premiered its WGA Award-winning exposé on the industry entitled "Flying Cheap". In the program, reporter Miles O'Brien questioned how the impact of low salaries are having on pilot psyches and how safe this could be for the flying public. When asked to respond to the question, Roger Cohen, president of the Regional Airline Association, [6] told Frontline that, "...there are many other people who earn less money than that and work more days in these communities that can afford it and do it and do it responsibly." [7]

Future

The Small Aircraft Transportation System [8] outlined a new vision for regional mobility, based on services built out of small general aviation aircraft and VLJs (very light jets) with advanced automation. This vision failed to materialize due to its primary focus on rural mobility and a lack of clear and viable business case. [9]

With the introduction of air taxi services and very light jets, city pair links to smaller communities lacking regional connections could become more common. This opportunities could become commercially viable with advanced air mobility and the introduction of electric aircraft. [10]

In some parts of the world, regional airlines face competition from high-speed rail and also coach (bus) services with airlines sometimes replacing feeder services through air rail alliances and contracts with bus companies (e.g., Landline between Philadelphia International Airport and Atlantic City International Airport). [11]

Current regional airline brands

Current regional airlines

North America

In North America, regional airlines are operated primarily to bring passengers to the major hubs, where they will connect for longer-distance flights on the national airlines also known as flagship carriers. The smallest regional carriers have become known as feeder airlines. The separate corporate structure allows the company to operate under different pay schedules, typically paying much less than their mainline owners.[ citation needed ]

Many large North American airlines, have established operational relationships with one or more regional airline companies. Their aircraft often use the aircraft livery for the company they are operating flights for. These airlines can be subsidiaries of the major airline or fly under a code sharing agreement or operating through capacity purchase agreements, with the mainline parent company financing the aircraft for the regional airline, and then placing the aircraft with the regional for very little cost. An example would be Envoy Air, which is fully owned by American Airlines Group and does business as American Eagle. [12]

Many of these large regional airlines have joined the lobbying group Regional Airline Association. [13] This association lobbies purely for the financial interest of the corporate bodies it constitutes, not the employees of those airlines.

Canada

In Canada there are a number of regional airlines. Some of them focus on Canadian Arctic and First Nations communities, while others operate regional flights on behalf of a larger carrier, similar to their American counterparts. Some of these airlines and brands include:

United States

The trend of branding regional airlines to match the mainline airlines, has led to just three major sub-brands in the United States: American Eagle, Delta Connection and United Express. They are the post-deregulation survivors of the multiple bankruptcies and mergers of the major, legacy, mainline airlines.

These regional brands are a form of a virtual airline, with the regional airline paid to staff, operate and maintain aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by a partner mainline airline. This practice allows the mainline carrier to use outsourced labor at smaller stations, to reduce costs. In 2011, 61% of all advertised flights for American, Delta, United and US Airways were operated by their regional brands. This figure was only 40% in 2000. [14]

Regional airlines

The formerly small regional airlines have grown substantially, through mergers or by the use of a holding company, as pioneered by AMR Corporation in 1982. AMR created the AMR Eagle Holding Corporation [15] which unified its wholly owned American Eagle Airlines and Executive Airlines under one division, but still maintained the regional airlines' operating certificates and personnel separate from each other and American Airlines.

The most significant regional airlines in the United States, are:

Mainline carrier-owned

Independent contractors

Smaller commuter airlines

The evolution and chronological history of the commuter side of the regional airline industry can be defined by a number of dates prior to the end of the era of airline regulation by the Civil Aeronautics Board of the United States. Among these significant dates are:

1967 – CAB makes exemption for airlines, starting with the local service carrier Allegheny Airlines; to suspend operating a route with large aircraft due to a lack of passenger traffic to do so profitably, provided the airline operating the CAB awarded route substitutes its operation with other equipment and maintains responsibility the route is served. As such this "exemption" allowed the development of the Allegheny Commuter System and the subcontracting of Henson Airlines to fulfill Allegheny's CAB route award obligations. [16]
1969 and before – aircraft falling below the weight of 12,500 pounds (5.7 t) were considered small aircraft and thus, not subject to the certification requirements of the CAB.
1969 and after – the CAB officially defined airlines with aircraft of no more than 12,500 pounds (5.7 t) of maximum gross weight as commuter airlines
1972 – relaxations of the CAB regulations permitted commuter aircraft to carry 30 passengers and a payload of 7,500 pounds (3.4 t).
1977 – Official list of U.S. Commuter Airlines in the year prior to airline deregulation
1978 – during the sunset of the CAB regulation the size of commuters were permitted to grow to 60 passengers and 18,000 pounds (8.2 t) of freight.
1978 and onwards the airline industry was officially deregulated by the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978
1981 – the United States governmental lobbying body of this industry, known as the Commuter Airline Association, changes its name to the Regional Airline Association. [17]

List of Commuter Airlines in 1977 Prior to Airline Deregulation: [18]

Some of the lesser known smaller brands used by the regional airlines and their parent companies were:

Cessna 402C of Hyannis Air Service - Cape Air Cape Air.JPG
Cessna 402C of Hyannis Air Service – Cape Air
  • PWExpress, a regional airline brand of the regional airline named Pacific Wings, IATA code (LW) which is owned by Pacific Air Holdings company
  • New Mexico Airlines, a regional airline brand of Pacific Wings, which is owned by Pacific Air Holdings company
  • Nantucket Airlines, a brand operated by regional airline Cape Air which is wholly owned by the regional airline holding company Hyannis Air Service.
  • Ravn Connect, a commuter /air taxi brand operated by the regional airlines owned by the HoTH parent company in association with Corvus Airlines which operates under the Ravn Alaska marketing brand and is also owned by HoTH.

Europe

CityJet is a European regional airline operating wet leased aircraft for of larger airlines. Like this CRJ900 operated for Scandinavian Airlines. EI-FPP Bombardier CL-600-2D24 CRJ900 LR CRJ9 c n 15435 - SAS (44985993842).jpg
CityJet is a European regional airline operating wet leased aircraft for of larger airlines. Like this CRJ900 operated for Scandinavian Airlines.

European regional airlines serve the intra-continental sector in Europe. They connect cities to major airports and to other cities, avoiding the need for passengers to make transfers.

For example, BA CityFlyer a regional subsidiary of British Airways uses the basic Chatham Dockyard Union Flag livery of its parent company and flies between domestic and European cities.

Some of Europe's regional airlines are subsidiaries of national air carriers, though there remains a strong entrepreneurial sector of independents. They are based on business models ranging from the traditional full service airline to low cost carriers. Innovations include one where the passenger is required to join a membership club before being allowed to fly.

An Embraer E195 of Alitalia CityLiner. Embraer 190-100STD, Alitalia CityLiner JP7384049.jpg
An Embraer E195 of Alitalia CityLiner.

Some examples of European regional airlines include:

Asia

India

India has many regional carriers operating currently. Some of these operate under the government's UDAN (Regional Connectivity Scheme).

IndiaOne Air aircraft at Textron Aviation facility in Independence. VT-HJS.jpg
IndiaOne Air aircraft at Textron Aviation facility in Independence.

Note:- Alliance Air is still a state-owned airline, whereas Air India is private.


Thailand

Australia

Embraer 170-100LR of Airnorth at Darwin Airport in 2010 Airnorth Embraer 170 DRW Butler-2.jpg
Embraer 170-100LR of Airnorth at Darwin Airport in 2010

Australia has an association for regional airline, the Regional Aviation of Australia. More than 2 million passengers and 23 million kg of cargo are involved each year. [19]

Former regional airlines

Post airline deregulation, airlines sought added market share and to do this they sought partnerships with regional and small airlines to feed traffic into the airline hub.

Initially these tie ups tended to use small 15 -19 seat aircraft, which did not have a reputation of passenger comfort, or safe reliable operations, by small often under capitalized tiny airline operators.

To create a common tie and what appeared to be seamless to the air traveler, major carriers marketed in advertising and soon had much smaller airlines paint their small and what was often described as puddle-jumper aircraft, in the image and branding colors of the much larger mainline partner. This was to give the appearance of reliability. Over time these regional aircraft grew in size as airline hubs expanded and competition dwindled among the major carriers.

Below is a list of many of the regional brands that evolved when regional airlines were advertised to look like the major airlines.

Marketing brands with regional-type aircraft

The following is a list of former regional marketing brands operated by lesser known airlines, serving airline hub regional routes on behalf of mainline, legacy, major, or large discount carriers in the United States:

Marketing brands with mainline branding / mainline-type aircraft but operated by regional airlines

The following is a list of former marketing brands operated by smaller airlines, but using larger traditionally non-regional-type equipment such as the Boeing 727, Douglas DC9, Fokker F28, Embraer 190 E-jets, or BAE 146, serving airline hub regional routes on behalf of mainline, legacy, major, or large discount carriers, in the United States:

See also

Related Research Articles

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.

Continental Connection was the brand name under which several commuter airline carriers and their holding companies operated services marketed exclusively by Continental Airlines. As such, all Continental Connection banner carrier services were operated primarily with turboprop aircraft in contrast to Continental Express, whose flights were operated by Continental's regional jet partners, ExpressJet and Chautauqua Airlines. Continental Connection operations were merged into Continental Express in 2012.

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.

United Express is the brand name for the regional branch of United Airlines, under which five individually owned regional airlines operate short- and medium-haul feeder flights.

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

Continental Express was the brand name used by a number of independently owned regional airlines providing commuter airliner and regional jet feeder service under agreement with Continental Airlines. In 2012 at the time of Continental's merger with United Airlines, two carriers were operating using the Continental Express brand name:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Key West International Airport</span> International airport in Key West, Florida

Key West International Airport is an international airport located in the City of Key West in Monroe County, Florida, United States, 2 miles east of the main commercial center of Key West.

US Airways Express was the brand name for the regional affiliate of US Airways, under which a number of individually owned commuter air carriers and regional airlines operate short and medium haul routes. This code sharing service was previously operated as USAir Express. Mainline carriers often outsource to regional airlines to operate services in order to increase frequency, serve routes that would not sustain larger aircraft, or for other competitive reasons. US Airways Express operations were conducted from smaller markets in the United States, Canada, and the Bahamas primarily centered on US Airways' major hubs and focus cities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lafayette Regional Airport</span> Airport in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana

Lafayette Regional Airport(French: Aéroport régional de Lafayette) is a public use airport two miles (4 km) southeast of Lafayette, in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is owned and operated by the City Parish of Lafayette.

Jack Brooks Regional Airport, formerly Southeast Texas Regional Airport, is near Port Arthur, Texas, nine miles (14 km) southeast of Beaumont and northeast of Port Arthur. It was Jefferson County Airport, but its name was changed to honor former U.S. Representative Jack Brooks. The airport is southwest of the city of Nederland in unincorporated Jefferson County, and is used for general aviation. Southwest Airlines ended scheduled jet service in 1980 and several other airlines have started and ended service as well including American Eagle, Continental, Delta/Delta Connection and United Express. The latest chapter is the resumption of service by American Eagle for American Airlines to Dallas/Ft. Worth (DFW).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Casper–Natrona County International Airport</span> Airport in Wyoming, US

Casper–Natrona County International Airport is 7 miles (11 km) northwest of Casper, in Natrona County, Wyoming. Before December 19, 2007, the airport was called Natrona County International Airport.

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

Santa Fe Regional Airport is a public use airport in Santa Fe, Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States, 10 miles (16 km) southwest of the city center. The airport serves the greater Santa Fe and Los Alamos areas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grand Junction Regional Airport</span> Airport in Grand Junction, Colorado

Grand Junction Regional Airport is three miles (4.8 km) northeast of Grand Junction, in Mesa County, Colorado, United States. Owned by the Grand Junction Regional Airport Authority, it is the largest airport in western Colorado and third largest in the state, behind Denver International Airport and Colorado Springs Airport.

ExpressJet Airlines was a regional airline in the United States that operated from 1987 until 2022. It was headquartered in College Park, Georgia. The company began as Britt Airways and flew exclusively as Continental Express, the contracted codeshare partner for Continental Airlines. The name was changed to ExpressJet at the beginning of 1995 as the company began acquiring regional jets, replacing its fleet of turboprop aircraft. Along with flying as Continental Express, ExpressJet expanded flying under the Delta Connection brand from 2007 through 2008 and again from 2012 through 2018. Service as American Eagle was flown between 2012 and 2019 and service under the United Express brand began in 2009. ExpressJet also flew an independent operation under their own brand in 2007 through 2008. When Continental Airlines merged into United Airlines in 2012, the Continental Express operations were added to the United Express service. In September 2020, it exited the fee-for-departure airline market and temporarily ceased flights after the conclusion of its contract with its sole remaining mainline partner, United Airlines. In September 2021, ExpressJet resumed operations as both an air charter provider and a regional airline under its own brand aha!—short for "Air-Hotel-Adventure." The brand's route structure focused on the West Coast of the United States with a hub at Reno-Tahoe International Airport, and scheduled flights began on October 24, 2021. The airline, including its brand aha!, filed for bankruptcy on August 23, 2022, having ceased all operations the previous day. In July 2023, the airline announced plans to relaunch as an air charter service using a single leased Boeing 777.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nantucket Memorial Airport</span> Airport serving Nantucket, Massachusetts, United States

Nantucket Memorial Airport is a public airport on the south side of the island of Nantucket, Massachusetts, United States. It is owned by the Town of Nantucket and is located three miles (5 km) southeast of the town center. It is the second-busiest airport in the state, after Logan International Airport, due to intense corporate travel to and from the island in the high season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Florida Keys Marathon Airport</span> Airport in Marathon, Florida

The Florida Keys Marathon International Airport is a public airport located along the Overseas Highway (US1) in Marathon, in Monroe County, Florida, United States. The airport covers 197 acres (80 ha) and has one runway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mainline (aeronautics)</span> Airline industry term

A mainline flight is a flight operated by an airline's main operating unit, rather than by regional alliances, regional code-shares, regional subsidiaries, or wholly owned subsidiaries offering low-cost operations. Mainline carriers typically operate between hub airports within their network and on international or long-haul services, using narrow-body and wide-body aircraft. This is in contrast to regional airlines, providing feeder services to hub airports operating smaller turboprop or regional jet aircraft, or low-cost carrier subsidiaries serving leisure markets.

Crown Airways was a regional airline operating for USAir Express with its headquarters on the grounds of DuBois Regional Airport in Washington Township, Jefferson County, Pennsylvania, near Falls Creek. Allegheny Commuter was the brand name for the regional affiliate of Allegheny Airlines, under which a number of individually owned commuter air carriers operate short and medium haul routes. The airline is often credited as the first code-share agreement between a major airline and smaller commuters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chautauqua Airlines</span> Defunct regional airline of the United States (1973–2014)

Chautauqua Airlines, Inc. was a regional airline in the United States and a subsidiary of Republic Airways Holdings based in Indianapolis, Indiana. Prior to the shut down of operations, it operated scheduled passenger services to 52 airports in the United States and Canada via code sharing agreements for Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, and United Airlines. Chautauqua previously flew feeder services for other airlines via code sharing agreements including Allegheny Airlines, USAir, Trans World Airlines, Continental Airlines, Frontier Airlines, and America West Airlines. Its last day in operation was December 31, 2014, at which time all flying was absorbed by the Shuttle America certificate.

Delta Connection is a brand name for Delta Air Lines, under which a number of individually owned regional airlines primarily operate short- and medium-haul routes. Mainline major air carriers often use regional airlines to operate services via code sharing agreements in order to increase frequencies in addition to serving routes that would not sustain larger aircraft as well as for other competitive or operational reasons.

References

  1. ↑ Caves, Richard E. (1962). Air Transport and its Regulators. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 15. LCCN   62017216.
  2. ↑ Hartman, Curtis (1 February 1983). "Pba: A Tale Of Two Airlines". Inc. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  3. ↑ "Essential Air Service". U.S. Department of Transportation. Office of Aviation Policy. DOT. Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Retrieved Thursday, July 24, 2014.
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  6. ↑ "RAA.com, Staff". Archived from the original on 2012-03-02.
  7. ↑ "Frontline: Flying Cheap, Cohen interview". PBS.
  8. ↑ "SATS & NCAM members continues to develop at Oshkosh AirVenture 2007". Archived from the original on 2007-10-11. Retrieved 2007-10-01.
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  14. ↑ "Think airline seats have gotten smaller? They have". USA Today .
  15. ↑ "AMR Eagle Holding Corporation" . Retrieved 2007-10-01.
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  17. ↑ http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1119&context=hospitalityreview [ bare URL PDF ]
  18. ↑ Belina, F. W.; Bush, L. R. (June 1977). "A study of commuter air service" (PDF).
  19. ↑ "About Us". Regional Aviation Association of Australia (RAAA). Retrieved 2021-12-13.
  20. ↑ "Douglas DC-9-14 - Royale Airlines (Continental Airlines) | Aviation Photo #1959138 | Airliners.net".
  21. ↑ http://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Airlines-UnitedStates-1/Airlines-UnitedStates-1/Continental-Express/i-Z3cbkZt [ bare URL ]
  22. ↑ "Jetlink northwest 146 - Bing images".
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