Chicago Express

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Chicago Express Airlines

IATA C8	ICAO WDY	Callsign Windy City
Founded		1993
Hubs		Chicago-Midway Airport Indianapolis International Airport
Frequent flyer program		ATA Travel Awards
Fleet size		17
Destinations		17
Parent company		ATA Holdings
Headquarters		Chicago, Illinois
Key people		Mike Brady (Chicago Express Founder) J. George Mikelsons (ATA Founder)
Website: (past websites) http://www.chicagoexpress.com http://www.ata.com

Chicago Express Airlines, Inc. (IATA: C8, ICAO: WDY, and Callsign: Windy City) was a regional airline formerly based at Chicago's Midway Airport located in Chicago, Illinois. It operated regional feeder services under the name ATA Connection. On June 1, 1999, ATA Airlines acquired Chicago Express for $1.9 million^[1]. Chicago Express became a wholly owned subsidiary of Amtran, now known as ATA Holdings. The airline had a line maintenance base at Midway Airport and hangar maintenance at Grand Rapids, MI. In 2000, The hangar maintenance was moved to South Bend, IN. Chicago Express provided connecting service at ATA's hub, Midway Airport. In 2004, ATA Airlines declared bankruptcy, and as a result, ATA terminated turboprop service (ATA Connection), and Chicago Express ceased all operations on March 28, 2005.

1 History
2 Past Destinations
3 Fleet
4 References

[edit] History

The airline was established in 1993 by Mike Brady of Express Airlines in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline started operations in August, 1993. On June 1, 1999, Chicago Express became a wholly owned subsidiary of Amtran, now known as ATA Holdings. Chicago Express' principal base of operations was Chicago's Midway Airport, where the Company maintained its headquarters. For several months before its liquidation, the company also operated a hub in Indianapolis, part of ATA's failed plan for intrastate flights throughout Indiana. However, following ATA Holdings' decision to codeshare flights with Southwest Airlines, a decision was made to terminate Chicago Express effective March 28, 2005. The airline was purchased and subsequently dissolved.

[edit] Past Destinations

At the time of ATA's grounding of Chicago Express on March 28, 2005, Chicago Express/ATA Connection had operated scheduled service to 17 destinations throughout the Midwest:

[edit] Illinois

[edit] Indiana

[edit] Iowa

[edit] Kentucky

Lexington (Blue Grass Airport)

[edit] Michigan

[edit] Ohio

[edit] Wisconsin

[edit] Fleet

At the time of termination on March 28, 2005, Chicago Express had 17 aircraft in its fleet consisting of:

Type	Total	Passenger Capacity	Routes	Notes
Saab 340B	17	36	Short Haul / Commuter	The first Saab 340B entered service with Chicago Express on February 5, 2000

Having previously operated a fleet of BAe Jetstream 31 aircraft, at the time Chicago Express ceased operations it's fleet consisted of 17 Saab 340B aircraft, all of which were former American Eagle aircraft. The 17 Saab 340Bs replaced the BAe Jetstream 31s, which were used prior to ATA's acquisition of the airline in 1999.

The Jetstream 31s were divided into two groups based on design features: 6 Jetstreams were equipped with Garrett turboprops with Automatic Power Reserve, and the remaining 3 Jetstreams were equipped with Garrett turboprops with water-methanol injection. After Amtran's acquisition of Chicago Express in 1999, the Jetstreams were "retired" and most found homes with other (mostly corporate) operators. One aircraft was written-off during an engine run-up immeidately prior to its resale to another operator when one propeller struck a ground power unit.

Two Saab 340Bs (N309CE and N311CE) were owned by Amtran, and remained in Indianapolis for several months after Chicago Express ceased operations. The remainder were quickly leased by Colgan Air.