Air New Orleans
 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Founded | 1981 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ceased operations | 1988 | ||||||
| Hubs |
New Orleans International Airport Birmingham International Airport | ||||||
| Destinations | Southeastern United States | ||||||
| Company slogan | The Gulf Coast Connection, Air Alabama | ||||||
| Headquarters |
Birmingham, Alabama (1986-1988) Panama City, Florida (1981-1986) | ||||||
Air New Orleans was an airline based in Birmingham, Alabama that was conceived as a commuter airline to provide service to cities throughout the Southeastern United States from Texas to Florida.[1] The airline operated scheduled passenger service between 1981 and 1988 and was founded in 1981 in Panama City, Florida.[2]
History
Despite its name, the airline's original headquarters was in Panama City, Florida with some executive offices being located in New Orleans.[1] However, in 1986, the airline moved its headquarters to Birmingham, Alabama, and was located there until its closure in 1988.[1]
In June 1986, Air New Orleans was operating service as a Continental Express air carrier via a code sharing agreement with Continental Airlines in order to provide passenger feed in and out of New Orleans flown with British Aerospace BAe Jetstream 31 and Beechcraft C99 commuter turboprops.[3] [4]
By January 1988, the airline would file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and would subsequently cease operation on June 17, 1988.[2]
Fleet
- Eight (8) Beechcraft C99 turboprops[5]
- Five (5) Piper commuter piston engine aircraft[5]
- Four (4) British Aerospace BAe Jetstream 31 turboprops[5]
Incidents and accidents
- On May 26, 1987, a Continental Express flight, operated by Air New Orleans with a British Aerospace BAe Jetstream 31 (Registration N331CY) flying as flight 2962, crash landed just after takeoff from New Orleans International Airport. The plane crashed into eight lanes of traffic and subsequently injured two persons on the ground. Of the 11 occupants on board, there were zero fatalities.[6] The cause of the crash was attributed to pilot error.[7]
Destinations served
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- Alabama
- Florida
- Fort Lauderdale (Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport)[8]
- Ft. Myers (Southwest Florida International Airport)[8]
- Fort Walton Beach (Okaloosa Regional Airport)[8] (now Northwest Florida Regional Airport co-located on Eglin Air Force Base)
- Jacksonville (Jacksonville International Airport)[8]
- Miami (Miami International Airport)[8]
- Orlando (Orlando International Airport)[8]
- Panama City (Panama City-Bay County International Airport)[8]
- Pensacola (Pensacola Regional Airport)[8]
- Sarasota (Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport)[8]
- Tallahassee (Tallahassee Regional Airport)[8]
- Tampa (Tampa International Airport)[8]
- West Palm Beach (Palm Beach International Airport)[8]
- Texas
External links
- Air New Orleans Timetables at Airtimes.com
- NTSB accident report of Flight 2962
References
- 1 2 3 "La.-based commuter airline moving to Birmingham". The Baton Rouge Advocate. 1986-01-05. pp. 4B.
- 1 2 "Air New Orleans closes down; 95 jobs eventually will go". The Baton Rouge Advocate. 1988-06-18. pp. 7B.
- ↑ "Continental to expand low-fare travel". The Baton Rouge Advocate. 1986-06-20. pp. 11D.
- ↑ http://www.departedflights.com. Feb. 1, 1987 Continental Airlines timetable
- 1 2 3 "Air New Orleans may buy 4 planes". The Baton Rouge Advocate. 1986-01-26. pp. 7B.
- ↑ Kent, Jennifer C. (1987-05-27). "Plane bounces into traffic at Kenner; 13 hurt". The Baton Rouge Advocate. pp. 1A.
- ↑ "Crash blamed on pilot error". The Baton Rouge Advocate. 1988-04-13. pp. 16C.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 "Air New Orleans". AirTimes: A Collector's Guide to Airline Timetables. Archived from the original on 22 October 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-26.