Regional airline
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A regional airline is a general classification of
History
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
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
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,
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.
Some of the original regional airlines (then known as "
- Allegheny Airlines
- Bonanza Air Lines
- Central Airlines
- Frontier Airlines
- Lake Central Airlines
- Mohawk Airlines
- North Central Airlines
- Ozark Airlines
- Pacific Air Lines
- Piedmont Airlines
- Southern Airways
- Southwest Airways(renamed Pacific Air Lines in 1958)
- Trans-Texas Airways
- West Coast Airlines
None of these airlines survive today; some airlines use these names today but are not the direct successors to the original airlines.[
Deregulation era
Since the
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
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
In the early 1990s, much more advanced turboprop-powered, fuel efficient, and passenger friendly
To improve on their market penetration, larger airline
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
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.
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
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
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e4/Regional_Pilot_First_Year_Pay_II.jpg/220px-Regional_Pilot_First_Year_Pay_II.jpg)
On Feb 12th, 2010, a year after the crash of
Future
An alternative to some regional airline service may be
The
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
Current regional airline brands
- Aer Lingus Regional
- Aeromexico Connect
- Air Canada Express
- Air Europa Express
- Air India Regional
- Alaska Horizon
- Alaska SkyWest
- AnadoluJet
- American Eagle
- Azul Conecta
- BA CityFlyer
- Cayman Airways Express
- Delta Connection
- Fiji Link
- HOP!
- Iberia Regional
- J-Air
- KLM Cityhopper
- LATAM Express
- Lufthansa Regional
- Moçambique Expresso
- PAL Express
- Porter Airlines
- QantasLink
- TAP Express
- Tunisair Express
- United Express
- Virgin Australia Regional Airlines
- WestJet Encore
- WestJet Link
Current regional airlines
North America
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In
Many large North American airlines, have established operational relationships with one or more regional airline companies. Their aircraft often use the
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:
- Jazz
- Air Creebec
- Air Tindi
- Bearskin Airlines
- Canadian North
- Pacific Coastal Airlines
- Pascan Aviation
- Perimeter Aviation
- Porter Airlines
- Wasaya Airways
- WestJet Encore (operating for WestJet)
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:
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 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]
- Air Carolina
- Air Midwest
- Air New England
- Air Wisconsin
- Alaska Aeronautical
- Altair Airlines
- Antilles Air Boats
- Atlantic City Airlines
- Bar Harbor Airlines
- Cascade Airways
- Cochise Airlines
- Cumberland Airlines
- Execuair Airlines
- Florida Airlines
- Golden West Airlines
- Metro Airlines
- Midstate Airlines
- New England Airlines
- Pilgrim Airlines
- Puerto Rico International Airlines
- Rio Airways
- Rocky Mountain Airways
- Royal Hawaiian Airways
- Scenic Airlines
- Seaplane Shuttle
- Sky West Aviation
- SMB Stagelines
- Swift Aire Lines
- Suburban Airlines
- Transport Catalina Airlines
- Tyee Airlines
- Zia Airlines
Some of the lesser known smaller brands used by the regional airlines and their
- 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 Airwhich 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
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/EI-FPP_Bombardier_CL-600-2D24_CRJ900_LR_CRJ9_c_n_15435_-_SAS_%2844985993842%29.jpg/220px-EI-FPP_Bombardier_CL-600-2D24_CRJ900_LR_CRJ9_c_n_15435_-_SAS_%2844985993842%29.jpg)
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,
Some of Europe's regional airlines are subsidiaries of national air carriers, though there remains a strong
Some examples of European regional airlines include:
- Air Dolomiti
- Air France Hop
- Air Nostrum
- Alitalia CityLiner
- Aurigny
- BA CityFlyer
- Blue Islands
- CityJet
- Eastern Airways
- KLM Cityhopper
- Loganair
- Lufthansa CityLine
- TAP Express
- Twin Jet
Asia
- India
India has many regional carriers operating currently. Some of these operate under the government's UDAN (Regional Connectivity Scheme).
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/VT-HJS.jpg/220px-VT-HJS.jpg)
- Alliance Air, a former subsidiary of India's former state-owned flag carrier, Air India.
Note:- Alliance Air is still a state-owned airline, whereas Air India is private.
- Thailand
- Bangkok Airways has won World's Best Regional Airline from Skytrax three years in a row in 2015, 2016 and 2017
- Thai Smile
Australia
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/df/Airnorth_Embraer_170_DRW_Butler-2.jpg/220px-Airnorth_Embraer_170_DRW_Butler-2.jpg)
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]
- Airlines of Tasmania
- Airnorth
- Alliance Airlines
- FlyPelican
- Fly Tiwi
- King Island Airlines
- QantasLink, the regional arm of Qantas
- Regional Express Airlines (Rex), the largest regional airline outside of the Qantas group in Australia, servicing routes in several states and territories.
- Sharp Airlines
- Skytrans Airlines
- Virgin Australia Regional Airlines
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:
- Air Florida Commuter
- AirTran JetConnect
- Allegheny Commuter
- Aloha Island Air
- America West Express
- American Inter-Island
- AmericanConnection
- ATA Connection
- Braniff Express
- Continental Connection
- Continental Express
- Eastern Atlantis Express
- Eastern Express ops by (AJC) (AMD) (PBA) (PRE)
- Eastern Metro Express
- Frontier Commuter (Combs Airways – ITR Airlines)
- Frontier Express
- Frontier JetExpress
- Grand Connection(Alpha Air)
- MarkAir Express
- Midway Connection
- Midwest Connect
- New York Air Connection
- Northwest Airlink
- Ozark Midwest
- Pan Am Express (an airline formerly known as Ransome Airlines, acquired by Pan Am in 1987)
- Piedmont Commuter
- Reno Air Express
- Republic Express ops by
- Trans World Express
- TranStar Sky Link
- TW Express (TWE)
- TWA Connection
- US Airways Express, being replaced by American Eagle as US Airways merges with American Airlines
- Western Express (OO)
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
- Continental Airlines operated by Royale Airlines[20]
- Continental Jet Express[21]
- Continental's Houston Proud Express
- Frontier Airlines operated by Lynx Aviation
- Frontier Airlines operated by Republic Airlines
- Northwest Jet AirLink[22]
- Midwest (ops by Republic Airlines even after Midwest Airlines is shuttered)
- Pan Am Clipper Connection (Boston-Maine Airways, a true regional airline within the Pan Am Systemsairline and transportation conglomerate, tried to run a fully certificated mainline airline as nothing more than a distinct internal marketing brand of a regional airline.)
- Pan Am Express (1981–1991, consisting of several airlines contracted to operate regional flights on behalf of Pan Am)
See also
- List of commercial short-haul civilian passenger "regional" airliners
- List of commercial short-haul civilian passenger "regional jet" airliners
References
- LCCN 62017216.
- ^ Hartman, Curtis (1 February 1983). "Pba: A Tale Of Two Airlines". Inc. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
- ^ "Essential Air Service". U.S. Department of Transportation. Office of Aviation Policy. DOT. Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Retrieved Thursday, July 24, 2014.
- ^ http://library.fes.de/itf/pdf/z2776/1976/z2776_1976_12.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ "Frontline: Flying Cheap". Public Broadcasting Service. Feb 9, 2010. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
- ^ "RAA.com, Staff". Archived from the original on 2012-03-02.
- ^ "Frontline: Flying Cheap, Cohen interview". PBS.
- ^ "SATS & NCAM members continues to develop at Oshkosh AirVenture 2007". Archived from the original on 2007-10-11. Retrieved 2007-10-01.
- ^ National Academies. (2002). TRB Special Report 263 - Future Flight: A Review of the Small Aircraft Transportation System Concept. https://trb.org/publications/sr/sr263.pdf.
- ^ Le Bris, G.; et al. (2022). ACRP Research Report 236: Preparing Your Airport for Electric Aircraft and Hydrogen Technologies. Transportation Research Board (Report). Washington, DC.
- ^ Steckler, M. (2023). New Security Process Makes American Airlines-Landline Travel Seamless. https://www.phl.org/newsroom/Landline-update.
- ^ "Regional Airline Pilot Pay 2023: How Much Do New Airline Pilots Make the First Year / ATP Flight School". atpflightschool.com. Retrieved 2023-10-20.
- ^ "Members in the Regional Airline Assoc". RAA. Archived from the original on 10 May 2012. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
- ^ "Think airline seats have gotten smaller? They have". USA Today.
- ^ "AMR Eagle Holding Corporation". Retrieved 2007-10-01.
- ^ http://cf.alpa.org/mec/aaa/docs/newmectoday/arc/airwaves/aw9909/rj999.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ http://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1119&context=hospitalityreview [bare URL PDF]
- ^ Belina, F. W.; Bush, L. R. (June 1977). "A study of commuter air service" (PDF).
- ^ "About Us". Regional Aviation Association of Australia (RAAA). Retrieved 2021-12-13.
- ^ "Douglas DC-9-14 - Royale Airlines (Continental Airlines) | Aviation Photo #1959138 | Airliners.net".
- ^ http://airlinersgallery.smugmug.com/Airlines-UnitedStates-1/Airlines-UnitedStates-1/Continental-Express/i-Z3cbkZt [bare URL]
- ^ "Jetlink northwest 146 - Bing images".
External links
- Regional Airline Association (US)
- Regional Airline Partners (US) Archived 2005-08-06 at the Wayback Machine
- European Regions Airline Association (EU)
- Regional Aviation Association of Australia (Aus)
- safetyissues associated with regional airlines.