Rio Airways

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Rio Airways Rio
IATA
ICAO
Callsign
XO - -
Commenced operations1965
Ceased operations1987
Operating bases
TranStar Airlines
Fleet sizeSee Fleet below
DestinationsSee Destinations below
HeadquartersKilleen, Texas, United States

Rio Airways was a regional passenger airline headquartered in Killeen, Texas, United States,[1] and was operational from 1967 to 1987.[2]

Rio Airways was initially based in

San Antonio. Rio was then purchased by Hood Airlines in 1971 with this small air carrier respectively being based in Killeen
with Hood dropping its own name but continuing to use the Rio Airways name.

Rio Airways operated

Braniff from December, 1986 through the spring of 1987. Prior to the Delta Connection and Braniff Express service, Rio Airways (air carrier code "XO") operated independently but shared terminal gates at the DFW airport first with Texas International Airlines (1974), then with Braniff International Airways (1975-1978). Prior to operations at DFW it operated at Dallas Love Field
, having its roots in two smaller commuter air carriers, Dal Airways and Hood Airways.

Labor issues

In 1972, Rio pilots initiated

pilots to reject the union. Two years later, the Rio pilot group having grown dissatisfied with Rio management's failure to carry through with promises made to discourage the former unionization efforts, solicited the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to conduct another union vote. This time the initial solicitation was actually initiated by Mike Mills who personally handed out the solicitation cards to be signed by pilots, and the pilots unanimously voted ALPA subsidiary
"UPA" as their collective bargaining agent.

After a year of failed negotiations the NLRB mediator declared a thirty-day "cooling-off" period and then made his recommendation known to the pilot group that "only a strike will likely force the company to abandon coercive and probably unsafe practices against the pilots." The pilots had an almost 100%

walk-out beginning August 1976, with the exception of management pilot Herb Cunningham, and line pilots Mike Mills, Calvin Humphrey, Will Kilgore, and Hugh Longmoor remaining with the company. The company hired replacement pilots from across the country, many of whom arrived to discover the airline
under a labor dispute.

The strike continued for two years, with no UPA pilot returning to the company, until August 1978, when pilots Calvin Humphrey and Mike Mills organized a "sweetheart" union which de-certified UPA and established the "Rio Pilots Association". Rio acquired competitor Davis Airlines of College Station, Texas in 1979 and began service to that city.

The Connell's who owned Rio, sold it in early 1986 to a group of investors from Houston, Texas headed by Hugh Seaborn a former owner of Metro Airlines[4]

Rio operated various aircraft types through its history and initially flew single piston engine

Beechcraft 1900Cs
.

Incidents

On January 12, 1971, a Rio Airways flight from Dallas crashed on short approach to the Killeen Municipal airport, injuring several people, including the chancellor of MH-B College. The flight descended below the approach minimum altitude in fog and struck the ground about a quarter mile short of the runway, slid across Highway 190 and came to rest on the airport boundary fence.

On February 15, 1983, an Iranian man, Hussein Shey Kholya, hijacked a Rio Airways flight from Killeen to Dallas/Fort Worth. The plane landed in Nuevo Laredo.[5]

Destinations in 1970

According to the June 1, 1970 Rio Airways route map, the airline was serving the following destinations as an independent regional air carrier:[6]

Destinations in 1978

According to the April 1, 1978 Rio Airways route map, the airline was serving the following destinations as an independent regional air carrier:[7]

Destinations in 1983

According to the January 1, 1983 Rio Airways route map, the airline was serving the following destinations as an independent regional air carrier:[8]

The airline also previously served Abilene, Texas (ABI), Dallas Love Field (DAL), Fort Worth Meacham International Airport (FTW) and Lawton, Oklahoma (LAW).

Officers

Ted C. Connell, Chairman Of Board; Mark S. Connell, Vice Chairman of Board; Pete Howe, Executive Vice President

TranStar SkyLink

From late 1986 through spring 1987, Rio Airways provided commuter passenger feed services via a

Official Airline Guide (OAG).[11]

TranStar SkyLink destinations in 1987

According to February 1, 1987 TranStar timetable route maps, Rio Airways was operating TranStar SkyLink service to the following cities with connections to and from TranStar jet flights at Austin, Houston Hobby Airport and New Orleans:[12]

  • Austin (AUS) - connecting airport for TranStar jet service
  • Port Arthur, TX
    (BPT)
  • College Station, TX
    (CLL)
  • Hobby Airport
    (HOU) - connecting airport for TranStar jet service
  • Killeen, TX
    (ILE)
  • Lafayette, LA
    (LFT)
  • Lake Charles, LA
    (LCH)
  • Laredo, TX
    (LRD)
  • New Orleans (MSY) - connecting airport for TranStar jet service
  • San Angelo, TX
    (SJT)
  • Victoria, TX
    (VCT)

The above referenced TranStar route map also indicates that

Brownsville, TX (BRO) was continuing to receive TranStar jet service at this time.[13]

Fleet

Rio operated the following turboprop aircraft types during its existence:

See also

References

  1. ^ "World Airline Directory". Flight International. 1985. p. 112. Retrieved July 23, 2009.
  2. ^ "The World's Airlines, Past, Present & Future - Inactive Airlines". AirlineHistory.net. Retrieved June 8, 2015.
  3. ^ http://www.departedflights.com, Dec. 15, 1989 Official Airline Guide (OAG), Dallas/Fort Worth flight schdedules
  4. ^ Ridder-Flynn, Laura (May 11, 2000). "City looks at illegal gun buying in Laredo". Laredo Morning Times. Retrieved June 8, 2015.
  5. ^ Staff writer(s) (February 16, 1983). "Texas Airliner Hijacked And Forced to Mexico". The New York Times. Retrieved June 7, 2015.
  6. ^ "Rio Airways".
  7. ^ "Rio Airways April 1, 1978". 10 July 2021.
  8. ^ http://Jan. 1, 1983 Rio Airways route map
  9. ^ (1986) "Transtar Rio link up smaller cities" Houston Chronicle
  10. ^ https://departedflights2.com/muse-air-transtar-airlines-1981-1987/, pages 181, 182 & 190
  11. ^ Feb. 1, 1987 Official Airline Guide (OAG), North American edition, Austin, Houston & New Orleans flight schedules
  12. ^ https://departedflights2.com/muse-air-transtar-airlines-1981-1987/, page 182
  13. ^ https://departedflights2.com/muse-air-transtar-airlines-1981-1987/, page 182
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