Air California
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Air California/Air Cal | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
||
| IATA OC |
ICAO ACL |
Callsign AirCal |
| Founded | 1967 | |
| Ceased operations | 1987 (integrated into American Airlines) | |
| Hubs | Orange County Airport | |
| Fleet size | 30 | |
| Destinations | 13 | |
| Parent company | American Airlines | |
| Headquarters | Newport Beach, California | |
| Key people | ||
Air California, later AirCal, was a regional airline using mainline equipment and serving different points in the state of California and some neighboring western U.S. states. It was founded by a partnership of Orange County businessmen as an alternative to other airlines and what was left of the state's passenger railroad system. The airline's initial market of service as of their January 1967 debut was between Orange County Airport (SNA) and San Francisco International Airport (SFO), a previously unserved routing, using four-prop Lockheed Electra airliners. Air California was headquartered in Newport Beach, California.[1][2][3]
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] Early Fleet
Air California was one of the last 20 carriers to utilize the Electra in regular service. One of the airline's early promotional campaigns included an illustration of an Electra dressed in the airline's gold "sunburst" tail emblem, with the slogan, "Our Electras Are Easy To Take."
In the late 1970s, its fleet was composed primarily of Boeing 737 jet aircraft, with some DC-9s and BAe 146s as well.
[edit] Marketing
One marketing program used by Air California in the early to mid 1970s was to offer school field trips to Sacramento at $25 a head, where school children would be taken on a tour of the California State Capitol, Governor's Mansion, and Sutter's Fort.
Another marketing program took place in 1980, when AirCal began upgrading its fleet with the new DC 9-80 (MD80). For a short span of several hours at Burbank Airport, one could purchase one-way passes good for up to one year to either of the two bay area airports it served at that time (San Jose and Oakland). The price was $9.80 one way/$19.60 round trip, with a limit of four round trips. Later that year, when AirCal began service to SFO, the passes were valid for that destination, too.
It was a fierce competitor of Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA), another intrastate carrier. After the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 it opened service to Reno, Nevada and Portland, Oregon, but became a takeover target for the larger national carriers.
During the 1980s, it changed its name and adopted a bright new logo and image, including a new wardrobe for its employees by noted fashion designer, Mary McFadden. During the 80s, it operated a mix of Boeing 737s, McDonnell Douglas MD-80s, and British Aerospace BAe-146s. Coincidentally, the latter two types were also operated by its rival Pacific Southwest Airlines on several of the same routes.
[edit] The end
Air California, along with its equipment, routes, and facilities, was eventually acquired piecemeal by American Airlines in 1987. American continued to fly many repainted and refitted AirCal aircraft from a new hub at San Jose International Airport until American transferred the bulk of its San Jose operations to Reno Air in the mid-1990s. American would later take over Reno Air in 1999.
[edit] References
- ^ World Airline Directory. Flight International. 20 March 1975. p. 465. http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1975/1975%20-%200529.html. Retrieved on 2009-05-24.
- ^ "Newport Beach city, California." U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on May 25, 2009.
- ^ "World Airline Directory." Flight International. March 30, 1985. 34." Retrieved on June 17, 2009.
