Mohawk Airlines
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mohawk Airlines | ||
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IATA MO |
ICAO n/a |
Callsign Mohawk |
Founded | 1945 as Robinson Airlines | |
Fleet size | Type / Number / Service
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Destinations | Albany, Buffalo, Glens Falls, Ithaca, New York, Newark, Hartford, Harrisburg, Montreal, Rochester, Syracuse, Toronto, Utica, Washington | |
Headquarters | Ithaca, New York After 1958, Utica, New York |
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Key people | Robert Peach - founder | |
Website: n/a |
Mohawk Airlines was an airline that operated in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, primarily the states of New York and Pennsylvania from the mid-1940s until its acquisition by Allegheny Airlines in 1972. At its height it employed 400 personnel and pioneered several technical and social aspects of regional airline operations, including being the first airline in the United States to hire an African American flight attendant.
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] 1940s
The airline began operations in 1945 as Robinson Airlines out of Ithaca Municipal Airport near Ithaca, New York flying single engined, three passenger Fairchild F-24 aircraft.
[edit] 1950s
As it grew in the 1950s, the Douglas DC-3 became its primary aircraft; the Convair CV-240, CV-440's and Martin 4-0-4's were integrated into its fleet later. The airline also experimented with helicopter service between New York and Catskill Mountains resorts with limited success. In 1952, Robinson was purchased by Robert Peach and the name changed to Mohawk Airlines to reflect the Mohawk Valley of New York where the airline originated service.
On February 11, 1958, Ruth Carol Taylor was hired by Mohawk Airlines, becoming the first African-American flight attendant in the United States.
[edit] 1960s
In 1961 it was the first airline to use a centralized computer based reservation service. And in 1965 it was the first regional airline to utilize flight simulators.
Mohawk upgraded its fleet with the British Aerospace Corporation BAC 1-11 in 1965, becoming the first regional airline to inaugurate jet aircraft service.
By 1969 all piston engined aircraft had been retired from its fleet and Mohawk flew mainly BAC 1-11 and Fairchild Hiller FH-227 aircraft.
[edit] 1970s and acquisition
By 1971 labor issues and several strikes had caused Mohawk to enter merger discussions with Allegheny Airlines.
It was purchased by Allegheny Airlines in 1972, which eventually became USAir in the late 1970s and then changing it's name to US Airways in the late 1990s.
[edit] Former Destinations
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New York
- Alexandria Bay (Maxson Airfield)*
- Binghamton (Greater Binghamton Airport)
- Buffalo (Buffalo Niagara International Airport)
- Glens Falls (Floyd Bennett Memorial Airport)*
- Elmira/Corning (Elmira-Corning Regional Airport)
- Ithaca/Cortland (Ithaca Tompkins Regional Airport)
- Islip (Long Island MacArthur Airport)
- Massena (Massena International Airport)
- New York (John F. Kennedy International Airport)
- Oneonta/Cooperstown (Oneonta Municipal Airport)*
- Plattsburgh (Clinton County Airport)
- Rochester (Greater Rochester International Airport)
- Saranac Lake (Adirondack Regional Airport)
- Syracuse (Syracuse Hancock International Airport)
- White Plains (Westchester County Airport)
- Utica/Rome (Oneida County Airport)*
- Watertown (Watertown International Airport)
- White Plains (Westchester County Airport)
- Ohio
- Ontario, Canada
- Pennsylvania
- Quebec, Canada
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
- Virginia
Those airports marked with an asterisk (*) are not currently served by any commercial air service.
[edit] Fleet
From top to bottom: [3]
- DC-3 with Robinson Airlines livery
- DC-3 with Mohawk Airlines livery
- Convair 240
- Martin 4-0-4
- Convair 440
- BAC 1-11
- Fairchild Hiller FH-227
- Boeing 727-200 Ordered but never delivered.
- BAC 1-11 in final livery before Allegheny Airlines acquisition.
[edit] Accidents and incidents
Mohawk Airlines had four accidents that involved fatalities.
- On July 2, 1963 at Rochester, New York, a Mohawk Airlines Martin 4-0-4 attempted to take-off into a thunderstorm. Its wing-tip hit the ground and the aircraft cart-wheeled. Seven people were killed. See Mohawk Airlines Flight 121
- A bizarre accident occurred on June 23, 1967 when a BAC 1-11 flying from Elmira, New York to Washington, D.C. had a fire in the rear of the aircraft which eventually destroyed the vertical tail causing all loss of pitch control. The cause was a non-return valve failing in the APU unit causing hydraulic fluid to ignite. The aircraft crashed near Blossburg, Pennsylvania killing all 34 people on board. See Mohawk Airlines Flight 40.
- On November 19, 1969 a Mohawk Airlines Fairchild Hiller FH-227B crashed into Pilot Knob (mountain) on the east shore of Lake George, New York on approach to Warren County Airport, Glens Falls, New York killing all 14 on-board. The pilot had become disoriented in heavy rain and flew into a lee-side mountain downdraft. See Mohawk Airlines Flight 411
- On March 3, 1972 another FH-227 crashed into a house in Albany, New York on approach to Albany County Airport. The crew had difficulty getting the cruise lock to disengage in one of the engines. While the crew attempted to deal with the problem, the aircraft crashed short of the airfield killing 16 of 48 in the aircraft and one person on the ground. The lone surviving crewmember was a stewardess, Sandra Quinn. The cause of the crash has never been discovered. See Mohawk Airlines Flight 405
[edit] Mohawk Airlines in Popular Culture
On Chicago's 1971 album, Chicago III, the group recorded a song called "Flight 602." Later that year, on the live album, Chicago at Carnegie Hall, the group announced that the title referred to a Mohawk flight from New York to Toronto.
The photo on the back cover of the supergroup, the Traveling Wilburys' first album, Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 depicts five guitar cases with old-fashioned travel stickers. At the bottom of the guitar case on the right is a travel sticker that says, "Fly Mohawk."
[edit] References
- ^ US Airways History. US Airways. Retrieved on 2006-07-07.
- ^ AirTimes.com
- ^ mohawk fleet. Aeromoe. Retrieved on 2006-07-07.
[edit] External links
- Mohawk Airlines aircraft at Airliners.net
- A Forgotten Tragedy - Mohawk Flight 411
- Mohawk Memories - A Personal Account of a Mechanic at Mohawk Airlines
- Complete fleet list
- Promoting Diversity - An article that includes Ruth Carol Taylor's experience as the USA's first black flight attendant