Robert Six

Robert Six
Six c.. 1950-1960
Born	Robert Forman Six (1907-06-25)June 25, 1907 Stockton, California, U.S.
Died	October 6, 1986(1986-10-06) (aged 79) Beverly Hills, California, U.S.
Occupation(s)	CEO, Continental Airlines, 1936–1981
Spouses	Ethel Merman ​ ​ (m. 1953; div. 1960)​ Audrey Meadows ​ (m. 1961)​

Robert Forman Six (June 25, 1907 – October 6, 1986) was an American businessman who was the CEO of Continental Airlines from 1936 to 1980. Beginning his career in the early days of commercial aviation in the United States, his time as Continental Airlines CEO saw it become one of the world's largest and most profitable legacy airlines.

According to Maverick: The Story of Robert F. Six and Continental Airlines, "Six was one of the last members of the group of innovators, pioneers, and visionaries (including Juan Trippe, William A. Patterson, Jack Frye, C.R. Smith, and Eddie Rickenbacker) who built the U.S. airline industry into what it is today." Six saw his own airline grow from a small, three-stop operation into a major global airline with services spanning the U.S., Canada, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America.

Early years

Six was born in Stockton, California, and graduated from Weber Grammar School before dropping out of high school at age 17.

He started his business career in sales for a public utility company, but was fired for taking flying lessons on company time. Six learned to fly in an Alexander Eaglerock biplane with an OX-5 engine. After about 10 hours aloft, he received pilot's license (number 5772) in 1929, at the age of 22. In that same year, he bought an OX-5-powered Travel Air biplane from Walter Beech, founding the Valley Flying Service which sold scenic rides to passengers and was used to race on weekends.

Though many credit Six with being the founder of Continental Airlines, the airline's history dates back to 1934 when it was founded as Varney Speed Lines by Walter Varney and Louis Mueller. Mueller gained control of the carrier in 1936 and sold 40% of the company to Six. In July 1937, Robert Six changed the name of Varney Speed Lines to Continental Airlines and the carrier moved its headquarters to Denver, Colorado, which would become the airline's central hub for the next 45 years.

World War II and the postwar years

During the 1940s and 1950s, Continental Airlines, led by Six, was able to expand its fleet of aircraft using profits from World War II where it provided air transportation to the military. Continental also performed military aircraft modification work at its Denver maintenance facilities. Six spent some time during the war in the United States Army Air Corps and was involved in improving routes to ferry American aircraft to the European theater, a significant improvement over the original routes which had seen aircraft losses due to weather. He returned to Continental before the war ended and resumed his leadership role.

In 1951 Six met Broadway legend Ethel Merman in a New York city nightclub. Merman, a two-time divorcee, felt enchanted by Six's strong demeanor and common sense. Following a courtship, they married in 1953, and she took a hiatus from her Broadway career and moved to Colorado with him, settling into a 27-room mansion in Cherry Hills Village, Colorado near Denver. There, life with Six became oppressive. According to Merman's son, he, his sister and mother and even his elderly grandparents suffered emotional and physical violence from a regularly explosive Six, who was called Big Meanie by his stepchildren. Merman found Denver society rural and limited after that of New York. Six and Merman divorced in 1960. In Six's view, Merman had failed him in not becoming a public relations prop for Continental.

In 1953, Continental merged with Pioneer Airlines, gaining access to 16 more cities in Texas and New Mexico. This merger allowed Continental Airlines to operate routes between Texas and Colorado/New Mexico, connecting with the line's Denver-Albuquerque-El Paso services.

Dramatic expansion and move to Los Angeles

Further information: Continental Airlines

By the end of the 1950s, Continental Airlines had seen a broad expansion of its routes. In 1957, it flew for the first time from Chicago to Los Angeles (both non-stop and via Denver), and from Denver and Los Angeles to Kansas City. Continental was one of the first operators of the Boeing 707, taking its first delivery of 707s in the spring of 1959. Six, not being satisfied with jet service alone, dramatically improved services with Continental's 707 operations, which were described as "nothing short of luxurious" by the Los Angeles Times, and, "clearly, the finest in the airline industry" by the Chicago Tribune.

In 1961, Six married Hollywood star Audrey Meadows of The Honeymooners television fame after meeting her in Honolulu. She served as an advisory director on Continental's board, offering many of the suggestions that made Continental's in-flight and ground services preeminent. The Six family was socially prominent in Beverly Hills, California, where they lived. Meadows' television and acting career helped the Sixes meet prominent Hollywood stars such as John Wayne, Henry Fonda, James Stewart, and Bob Hope. The couple spent many weekends at their Lazy 6 Ranch near Montrose, Colorado, where Hollywood stars were frequent guests.

In 1963, Continental moved its headquarters from Denver to Los Angeles, coinciding with rapid growth of the carrier's route network. Continental added all-jet service from Los Angeles to Houston, both non-stop and with services via Phoenix, Tucson, Arizona, El Paso, Midland/Odessa, Texas, Austin, and San Antonio, as well as from Denver to Seattle, Portland, New Orleans, and Houston (both non-stop and with services via Wichita and Tulsa/Oklahoma City). In a separate route award, Continental was selected to serve the route from the Pacific Northwest to San Jose and Ontario, California. The introduction of a service from Los Angeles to Honolulu/Hilo was in 1969, and Continental's first Boeing 747s arrived in May 1970. McDonnell Douglas DC-10s were added to the fleet in 1971, giving Continental the ability to carry its increasing traffic on key routes between Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, and Seattle.

During the Vietnam War, Continental provided cargo and troop transportation for the United States Army and U.S. Marine Corps to Asian and Pacific bases. Continental's 707s were the most common non-military aircraft transiting Saigon's Tan Son Nhat airport. As a result of Continental's experience in Pacific operations, they formed the subsidiary Air Micronesia, picking up island-hopping routes between Yap/Majuro/Saipan/Guam and Honolulu, which were served with Boeing 727 aircraft. One of Six's long-cherished goals was for Continental to become a major player in the Pacific basin, something the airline would achieve only after his retirement.

At Six's insistence, Continental (along with Pan Am and Trans World Airlines) was a launch airline for the Boeing 747 aircraft. Its upper-deck first-class lounge won awards worldwide for the most refined cabin interior among all airlines, as did meal services developed by Continental's Cordon Bleu-trained executive chefs. Continental's 747 services from Chicago and Denver to Los Angeles and Honolulu set the standard for service in the western U.S. When asked by one Denver customer service agent in 1974 why he flew Continental wherever he could, Hollywood star Henry Fonda remarked, "This operation is class; strictly class!" However, Continental's 747 service ceased during the 70s when the airline concluded that the DC-10 was better suited to the route structure and passenger loads.

Triumph and loss

Six in 1978 in Los Angeles

After the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978, Continental expanded rapidly, as with many U.S. carriers. Within two years, new non-stop services from its Denver and Houston–Intercontinental hubs included: New York–LaGuardia, New York–JFK, Newark, Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington–National, Washington–Dulles, Cleveland, Detroit, Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Dallas Fort Worth, Minneapolis/Saint Paul, Milwaukee, St Louis, Las Vegas, Reno, San Jose (CA), and San Francisco, as well as many smaller cities in the Midwest and Western United States. New international routes also began to London–Gatwick, Tokyo–Narita, Manila, Sydney, and Melbourne, along with more destinations in Mexico than were served by any other carrier. This rapid growth required the expansion of Continental's existing fleet of 747, DC-10, 727-200, and DC-9 aircraft with large numbers of MD-80, 737-model and Airbus aircraft. Alliances were also formed with larger commuter airlines in Houston and Denver to serve smaller communities in the Rocky Mountains, Plains, and Southwest.

In 1981, Texas Air Corporation, controlled by airline industry entrepreneur Frank Lorenzo, acquired a controlling interest in Continental Airlines following a contentious battle for control with Continental's management, including Six and then-CEO Alvin Feldman, who were adamant in their resistance to Lorenzo. Continental's labor unions joined the anti-takeover battle over fears of "Lorenzo's deregulation tactics" and his prior dealings with airline labor unions. However, Texas Air prevailed, and in June 1982, Texas International Airlines, controlled by Texas Air, was merged into Continental Airlines. Texas International ceased to exist, but the new Continental moved its headquarters to Houston, home of Texas Air.

In spite of labor friction and turmoil resulting from the acquisition, by the time of Six's death in 1986, the airline he pioneered had become one of the largest airlines in the United States, centered on the busy Denver, Houston, and New York/Newark hubs.

Six died in his sleep at his home in Beverly Hills, California, on October 6, 1986.

Legacy and honors

In 1971, Six was nominated and inducted into the Colorado Aviation Hall of Fame.

In June 1974, Six was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Colorado at Boulder. He was the 1977 recipient of the Tony Jannus Award for his distinguished contributions to commercial aviation.

In 1980, he was inducted into the U.S. National Aviation Hall of Fame at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio.

Six was a key player in the revealed mystery of the third episode of Starlee Kine's Gimlet Media-produced podcast "Mystery Show".

In 2011, United Airlines, which merged with Continental Airlines, named a plane (N77006) after Robert Six.

Sources

• Buckley, William F. Jr. (September 17, 1980). "Frank Lorenzo & the free market". National Review.
• Delaney, Kevin J. (1999). Strategic Bankruptcy: How Corporations and Creditors Use Chapter 11 to Their Advantage. University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-07359-2.
• Customer Service Manual (1970 ed.). Continental Airlines.