Continental Airlines

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Continental Airlines
IATA CO	ICAO COA	Callsign Continental
Founded		1934 (as Varney Speed Lines)
Hubs		George Bush Intercontinental Airport Newark Liberty International Airport Cleveland Hopkins International Airport Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport
Frequent flyer program		OnePass
Member lounge		Presidents Club
Alliance		SkyTeam
Fleet size		366 (+84 orders)
Destinations		292
Parent company		Continental Airlines, Inc.
Headquarters		Houston, Texas
Key people		Larry Kellner (CEO) Jeff Misner (CFO)
Website: http://www.continental.com

Continental Airlines (IATA: CO, ICAO: COA, and Callsign: Continental) (NYSE: CAL) is a certificated air carrier of the United States. Based in Houston, Texas, it is the fourth-largest airline in the U.S.^[1] and the eighth-largest in the world by revenue passenger miles. Continental's marketing slogan, since 1998, has been Work Hard, Fly Right.

Continental operates to destinations throughout the U.S., Canada, Latin America, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region. Principal operations are from its three hubs at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (in Cleveland, Ohio), George Bush Intercontinental Airport (in Houston, Texas), and Newark Liberty International Airport (in Newark, New Jersey near New York City). With a relatively small number of focus cities, the airline is arguably the most concentrated of all 6 major U.S. carriers around the hub and spoke system of airline travel. An operating unit, Continental Micronesia, operates between Honolulu and central Pacific islands in Polynesia and Micronesia, and to Australia, East Asia, and Southeast Asia from its hub at Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport in Guam. (Continental Micronesia was a wholly owned subsidiary operation as an affiliate carrier until it was folded into the Continental mainline operation after the September 11, 2001 attacks.)

Continental Airlines is a minority owner of ExpressJet Airlines, which operates under the trade name Continental Express but is a separately managed and publicly-traded company. They are also a minority owner of Copa Airlines. Cape Air, Colgan Air, CommutAir, and Gulfstream International Airlines feed Continental's flights under the Continental Connection identity, as does Chautauqua Airlines under the Continental Express identity; however, Continental does not have any ownership interests in these companies.

Since September 2004, Continental has been a member of the SkyTeam Alliance, in which it participates with Delta Air Lines, Northwest Airlines, and KLM. In addition to extensive code share arrangements with SkyTeam partner airlines, the airline also code-shares with Amtrak rail services to some cities in the northeastern United States, and with SNCF French Rail to destinations in France.

Contents 1 History 1.1 Early history 1.2 Growth 1.3 First black pilot 1.4 Acquisition by Texas Air Corp. 1.5 First bankruptcy 1.6 Rapid growth through consolidation 1.7 Second bankruptcy 1.8 Current operations 2 Destinations 3 Fleet 4 Cabin 5 OnePass 6 Presidents Club 6.1 Locations 7 Codeshare agreements 8 Incidents and accidents 9 References 10 See also 11 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Early history

Continental Airlines began service in 1934 as Varney Speed Lines, named after one of its initial owners, Walter T. Varney operating out of El Paso, TX and extending through Las Vegas, Albuquerque, Santa Fe, NM to Pueblo, CO. Varney Speed Lines changed its name to Continental on 1 July 1937 after a new owner Robert Six had taken a forty percent ownership with Varney's co-founder Louis Mueller. Six relocated the airline's headquarters to Stapleton Airport in Denver in October, 1937. Robert F. Six was one of the legendary patriarchs of U.S. aviation had a reputation as a scrappy, pugnacious and risk-taking executive who presided over the airline he largely forged in his image for more than 40 years.^[2]

During World War II Continental's Denver maintenance facilities became a conversion center where the airline converted B-17s, B-29s, and P-51s for the United States Army Air Force. Profits from military transportation and aircraft conversion enabled Continental to contemplate expansion and acquisition of new aircraft types which became available following the war.^[2]

The airline's early route network was limited to the southwestern United States for many years. In 1953, Continental merged with Pioneer Airlines, gaining access to 16 additional cities in Texas and New Mexico which integrated well with the carrier's initial El Paso-Albuquerque-Denver route.^[2]

[edit] Growth

By the end of the 1950's, Continental Airlines had seen a broad expansion of its routes. In 1957 it flew for the first time from Chicago to Los Angeles (both nonstop, and via Denver); and from Denver to Kansas City. Continental Airlines introduced turboprop service with the Vickers Viscount 800 Series, on the new medium length routes. Continental was also an early operator of the Boeing 707, taking delivery of its first 707s in 1959. Six, not being satisfied with jet service alone, introduced dramatic service innovations with Continental's 707 operations which were described as, "...nothing short of luxurious" by the Los Angeles Times, and, "...clearly, the finest in the airline industry" by the Chicago Tribune.^[3]

Continental's initial purchase of the Boeing 707 jets was for four jets. The airline introduced a program of progressive maintenance in order to obtain the utilization rates for the jets needed to operate its schedule. That program was crucial to successfully operating with only four jets.

Beginning in the early 1960s Continental expanded rapidly, adding service from Los Angeles to Houston (both nonstop, and with services via Phoenix, Tucson, El Paso, Midland/Odessa, Austin, and San Antonio); and from Denver and to Seattle, Portland, New Orleans, and Houston (both nonstop, and with services via Wichita and Tulsa/Oklahoma City). In 1963 the company's headquarters moved from Denver to Los Angeles.^[2]

Throughout the Vietnam War Continental provided extensive cargo and troop transportation for United States Army and Marine forces to Asian and the Pacific bases. As a result of Continental's experience in Pacific operations, the carrier formed subsidiary Air Micronesia, picking up island hopping routes between Saipan/Guam and Honolulu, which Continental operated with 727 aircraft (this unit is currently known as Continental Micronesia). In 1968 a new aircraft livery was launched, the orange and gold cheatlines adorned with a black global circle on the jet's tails. The marketing slogan adopted in the late 1960s and used through the early 70s was, "The Proud Bird with the Golden Tail."^[3][2]

1969 saw the introduction of service from Los Angeles to Honolulu/Hilo; and in 1970, Continental's first Boeing 747s arrived. McDonell-Douglas DC-10s were added to the fleet in 1971. Continental was selected to serve the route from the Pacific Northwest to San Jose and Ontario, CA.^[2]

Continental's growth during this period was about more than new aircraft types or additional route miles. Quality was the watchword in every detail of the carrier's operation; and in one anecdotal indication of Six's passion for premium customer service, every page of the airline's Customer Service Manual was inscribed with these words: "Nothing in this manual supersedes common sense." Bob Six relentlessly prowled the Continental system, as well as competitors' flights, to assure tight quality standards and to search for ideas that could be adopted to Continental's network.^[3][2]

At Six's insistence, Continental (with Pan Am) was a launch airline for the Boeing 747 aircraft. Its upper-deck first class lounge won awards worldwide for the most refined cabin interior among all airlines, as did meal services developed by Continental's Cordon Bleu-trained executive chefs. Continentals B-747 services from Chicago and Denver to Los Angeles and Honolulu set the standard for service in the western U.S. When asked by one Denver customer service agent in 1974 why he flew Continental wherever he could, Hollywood legend Henry Fonda remarked, "This operation is class; strictly class!"^[3][2]

[edit] First black pilot

In 1963, Continental hired the first black pilot to work for any major carrier in the United States, Marlon Green, after a United States Supreme Court decision allowed a Colorado anti-discrimination law to be applied to his case.^[4]

[edit] Acquisition by Texas Air Corp.

In 1981 Texas Air Corporation, an airline holding company controlled by U.S. aviation entrepreneur and raider Frank Lorenzo, acquired Continental after a contentious battle with Continental's management who were adamantly determined to resist Lorenzo. Continental's labor unions also fiercely resisted, fearing what they termed as, "Lorenzo's deregulation tactics." In the end, Texas Air Corp. prevailed. Frank Lorenzo became Continental's new Chairman and CEO. Texas International Airlines (TI), another Lorenzo holding, was merged into Continental Airlines in June 1982. TI ceased to exist and the "new Continental" relocated its headquarters to Texas Air's base in Houston, Texas. The merger resulted in a large expansion of Continental's hub at Houston Intercontinental Airport and its extensive routes to Mexico.^[3][5]

Airline unions fought Continental at every step. In the Federal courts, they unsuccessfully sued to stop the company's reorganization. They were successful in working to persuade Congress to pass a new bankruptcy law preventing bankrupt companies from terminating contracts as Continental had successfully done. The law was too late to affect Continental and the drastic cost cutting and changes that had rescued it from liquidation.^[3][5][6]

[edit] First bankruptcy

Frank Lorenzo took Continental into Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 1983 after extensive negotiations with labor unions proved unsuccessful. Continental imposed a series of new labor agreement on its union workers, sharply reducing the airline's labor costs. This move made Continental vastly more competitive with the new airline startups then emerging and thriving in the southwestern U.S.^[5][6]

Much of the airline was liquidated and the company was rebranded as a low-cost carrier. Continental was also forced to abandon its hub in Los Angeles although it maintained its Denver and South Pacific routes. A more streamlined, leaner Continental emerged only a few days after the bankruptcy filing, a fact which gave Continental the distinction of being the first airline to fly through bankruptcy.^[5][6]

[edit] Rapid growth through consolidation

In October 1983, Texas Air Corp. made an offer for a Denver-based regional carrier, Frontier Airlines, opening a bidding war with People Express, which was headed by Lorenzo's former TI associate Don Burr. PeopleExpress paid a substantial premium for Frontier's high-cost operation. The acquisition, funded by debt, didn't seem to industry observers be rational from either the route integration or the operating philosophy points of view, but was in the opinion of most industry analysts rather an attempt by Burr to best his former boss, Frank Lorenzo.^[3][6]

In June 1985, Continental rebounded as signaled by a major strategic move: initiating European service with flights from Newark and Houston to London.

.

On August 24, 1986 Frontier filed for bankruptcy and ceased operations. With PeopleExpress hemorraging cash, Texas Air acquired PeopleExpress on September 15, 1986, at the same time gaining Frontier, which reinforced Continental's already formidable Denver hub. The PeopleExpress hub at Newark allowed Continental to expand its east coast services dramatically for the first time in its history; and the carrier soon the third-largest airline in the U.S. Continental emerged from bankruptcy in 1986 with dramatically improved asset and cash flow positions and a much more competitive route structure with routes radiating to every large U.S. city from major hubs at Denver, Newark and Houston.^[6][3]

On February 1, 1987, People Express, New York Air, and several commuter carriers were merged into Continental Airlines to create the sixth largest airline in the world. 1987 also saw the creation of the OnePass frequent flier program, and in 1988 Continental formed its first strategic partnership with SAS.^[3]

[edit] Second bankruptcy

In 1990, Frank Lorenzo retired after 18 years at the helm of Texas International and later Texas Air and Continental Airlines, selling the majority of his Jet Capital Corporation to Scandinavian Airlines System. According to William F. Buckely, in his September 17, 1990 article on National Review, the sale to Scandanavian Airlines System was conditioned on Mr. Frank Lorenzo leaving the company. Shortly after Lorenzo left Continental the airline filed for its second bankruptcy inside of a decade. There were a number of circumstances behind the second bankruptcy, most importantly: Lorenzo had dedicated himself almost full time to Eastern Air Lines acquisition and labor relations issues; after the 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait with its resulting Gulf War and dramatic effect on the price of jet fuel; People Express had also been highly leveraged at the time of its merger with Continental, having purchased Frontier Airlines just two years before.

In the late 1980s, following a dramatic reduction of service by United Airlines and an unsuccessful attempt by USAir to build-up point-to-point service, Continental slowly moved into Cleveland Hopkins International Airport and established what would become its third-largest system hub. Continental quickly gained nearly all of the gates in the airport's C concourse (once dominated by United), and later expanded that concourse in addition to constructing an entirely new Concourse D.

In 1993 Air Canada, along with Air Partners and Texas Pacific Group, aided Continental in coming out of chapter 11 once again by investing $450 million in the airline. Under the leadership of new President (and former Boeing executive) Gordon Bethune, who became President in October of 1994, Continental subsequently ordered new Boeing aircraft - converting to an all-Boeing fleet - and scaled down their expensive Denver hub until it was reduced to a spoke operation (with service only to Houston, Newark, and Cleveland) in 1995. Bethune launched the Go-Forward Plan designed to fix numerous problems with the airline. Reduction of Denver's status came as a blow to long-time Continental employees and Denverites, since the city had been the airline's headquarters for most of its history, and the geographic heart of the original system for almost 50 years. Bethune chronicled his experiences in his 1999 book From Worst to First.^[7]

[edit] Current operations

Continental embarked on an ambitious program to expand its international operations. In 1998 it launched flights to Ireland and Scotland, and in October 1998 the airline received its first Boeing 777 aircraft, allowing non-stop flights from Newark and Houston to Tokyo, Japan and from Newark to Tel Aviv, Israel. Continental in the same year launched partnerships with Northwest Airlines, Copa, Avant Airlines, Transbrasil, and Cape Air, and Continental and America West Airlines became the first two US airlines to launch interline electronic ticketing.

On March 1, 2001 Continental launched a non-stop flight from Newark to Hong Kong, flying over the North Pole, which was the first non-stop long-haul flight service for any airline with flying duration of 16 hours. However the September 11, 2001 attacks and the SARS outbreak in Asia caused service to be suspended until August 1, 2003. The launch in 2001 started the battle between Continental, United Airlines and Cathay Pacific over non-stop flights between Hong Kong and New York.

On February 22, 2005, the United States Department of Transportation announced that both Continental and American had won a fiercely-fought contest with Delta Air Lines to operate flights to China, with Continental offering a daily flight from Newark to Beijing beginning June 15, 2005. With the announcement, Continental, American, and United, will become the only three United States based airlines to offer non-stop flights between the United States and Mainland China. (Northwest Airlines operated non-stop flights to Beijing from Detroit from 1996 to 2002). Continental also flies non-stop from Newark to New Delhi but lost it's bid to start service between Newark and Shanghai over United Airlines. In 2005, Continental expanded service from Newark to six new European destinations including Belfast in Northern Ireland, Stockholm in Sweden, Oslo in Norway, Bristol in the United Kingdom, Edinburgh in Scotland, and Hamburg and Berlin in Germany. The route between Newark and Bristol is the first transatlantic scheduled service for Bristol which is made economically feasible due to use of smaller commercial jet aircraft, in this case, the Boeing 757. Continental will begin new non-stop service to Athens in June of 2007. With the recent announcement of daily nonstop service to Mumbai, Continental will have the most nonstop flights from the United States to India by any carrier. By May, 2006, Continental passed bankrupt Northwest Airlines to become the fourth-largest U.S. carrier, the first change in the top-five rankings since 2001.

Continental Airlines was named "Airline of the Year" by OAG. According to Yahoo, Continental was also named "World's Most Admired Airline." Continental Airlines received a J.D. Power and Associates Award for Highest- Ranked Network Airline.

Continental has recently earned other noteworthy recognitions and awards:

• No. 1 Most Admired Global Airline; FORTUNE magazine (2004, 2005, and 2006)
• No. 1 Most Admired U.S. Airline; FORTUNE magazine (2006)
• Best Executive/Business Class; OAG Airline of the Year Awards (2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006)
• Best Airline Based in North America; OAG Airline of the Year Awards (2004, 2005, and 2006)
• Best Trans-Atlantic and Trans-Pacific Business Class among U.S. airlines; Conde Nast Traveler (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006)
• Best Airline for Travel in North America, Best Flight Attendants in the US, and Best Inflight Service in the US by reader survey in the UK's Business Traveller magazine (December 2006)

In mid-2007, Continental will feature docking capability for Apple Computer's iPod portable music and video player. This will allow the device's battery to be charged, but will also allow integration with Continental's In-flight Entertainment (IFE) system. This will also enable the IFE system to play music, television shows, or movies stored on the iPod, as well as function as a control system.^[8]

The Wall Street Journal revealed on December 12, 2006 that Continental was in merger discussions with United Airlines. Of issue would be Continental's golden share held by Northwest Airlines, dating from a stakeholding relationship during the late 1990s, and the divestiture of Continental's Guamanian hub. A deal was not "certain or imminent," with the talks being in a preliminary state.^[9][10]

Further information: List of trivia associated with Continental Airlines

[edit] Destinations

Further information: Continental Airlines destinations

Continental Airlines operates primarily a hub and spoke route network with hubs in Cleveland, Houston, and Newark, and a focus city in Guam. It operates most of its flights from its hubs, with the exception of some notable routes (most notably Seattle-Anchorage and Los Angeles-Honolulu). Continental Express also operates flights not involving hubs, such as Florida-Bahamas service and some service in the U.S. Northeast.

Continental has served Australia in the past with DC-10 service from Hawaii but eventually withdrew from the Australian market with the exception of less than daily 737 service between Cairns and Guam. Continental also operated a large hub in Denver but closed the hub in 1995 after Stapleton International Airport was closed and replaced with the current Denver International Airport. Continental also withdrew from intra-(US)West Coast markets in the early 1990s when it ended its short lived Continental Lite airline, which was supposed to be a low fare 737 airline.

Continental was initially a domestic airline though it has served Mexican destinations for many years. It entered in transatlantic market in April, 1985 with the introduction of the Houston-London Gatwick flight. Current Bermuda II treaty obligations with the United Kingdom does not allow new entrant airlines from flying into London Heathrow, but the U.S. has awarded Continental route authority to Heathrow. The British have allowed Continental to codeshare with Virgin Atlantic into Heathrow but have not allowed Continental to exercise the route authority to actually fly aircraft into Heathrow that the U.S. have unilaterally granted.

However, there are reports (March 2, 2007) that a tentative agreement has been reached to drop Bermuda II restrictions preventing US flag carriers, other than United and American, from flying to Heathrow. ^[11]

Continental flies to the most scheduled destinations of any US airline in Japan, Mexico, and the United Kingdom, and is the only US airline to fly to the Federated States of Micronesia, Indonesia, Marshall Islands, Norway, Northern Ireland, and Palau. It has the most scheduled international destinations of any U.S.-based airline if some Continental Express destinations to Mexico are included.

[edit] Fleet

Continental's all-Boeing fleet with an age of 8.9 years consists of the following aircraft as of February 2007:

Continental Airlines Fleet

Aircraft	Total	Passengers (First/Economy)	Routes	Notes
Boeing 737-300	48	124 (12/112)		Short-medium haul domestic routes
Boeing 737-500	63	114 (8/106)		Short-medium haul domestic routes
Boeing 737-700	36 (36 orders)	124 (12/112)		Short-medium haul domestic routes Most configured with winglets
Boeing 737-800	105	150 (18/132) 152 (20/132) 155 (14/141) 157 (16/141)	Continental Micronesia US, Mexico, Canada	Short-medium haul domestic routes All configured with winglets
Boeing 737-900	12	167 (18/149)
Boeing 737-900ER	(24 orders)	173 (20/153)		Entry into service: 2008
Boeing 757-200	41	175 (16/159)		Medium-long haul domestic/international routes Configured with BusinessFirst seats, winglets
Boeing 757-300	17	216 (24/192)		Medium-long haul Occasional short haul domestic routes
Boeing 767-200ER	10	174 (25/149)		Medium-long haul international Domestic routes
Boeing 767-400ER	16	235 (35/200) 256 (20/236)	Continental Micronesia Mainland Hawaii, Europe, South America, Asia	Medium-long haul international Domestic routes
Boeing 777-200ER	19 (1 order)	285 (50/235)		Long haul international flights
Boeing 787-8	(8 orders)			Entry into service: 2009
Boeing 787-9	(17 orders)			Entry into service: 2013

^{First Class is offered on Domestic Flights. BusinessFirst is offered on Transatlantic/Transpacific Flights.}

Recently, Continental Airlines announced that it will acquire 24 more Boeing Next-Generation 737 (737NG) aircraft, bringing the total number of Boeing 737NGs in its fleet to 213 when these aircraft, and pre-existing firm order 737NG aircraft, are delivered. On August 3, 2006, Continental converted an order for 12 Boeing 737NG's for an order for 737-900ER's, the first carrier in the Americas to operate the aircraft, with first delivery in 2008.^[12]

Continental Airlines was one of three carriers (with American Airlines and Delta Air Lines) to sign an exclusivity agreement with Boeing in the late 1990s. When Boeing acquired McDonnell Douglas, the European Union forced Boeing to void the contracts. However, both parties have been adhering to the terms under a gentlemen's agreement.

Continental was one of the first major airlines to fly the Boeing 757 on transatlantic routes. There have been some instances of range limitations on west-bound transatlantic flights due to strong headwinds resulting in a fuel stop which does not appear on the timetable, but these stops are not common. The use of the 757 with its smaller seating capacity has allowed for "thin" routes (routes with less passenger traffic) to be economically viable.

Continental Airlines is expected to take delivery of the last 2 777-200ERs by the end of April 2007.

[edit] Cabin

Continental Airlines along with all U.S. SkyTeam carriers have a two-class layout, First/BusinessFirst and Economy Class. On international flights using the Boeing 757, 767 and 777, the premium cabin service is known as BusinessFirst, while on other international flights and all domestic flights, the premium cabin service is simply known as First Class. This holds true even for domestic flights using the Boeing 757, 767, and 777. For example, a Continental Boeing 767 flying from Houston to Newark and continuing on to Rome will have First Class service on the Houston to Newark sector, but will have BusinessFirst service on the Newark to Rome sector, even though the aircraft and the seats are identical.

[edit] OnePass

OnePass is Continental Airlines frequent flyer program, which was established in 1987, offering regular travelers the ability to obtain free tickets, First Class upgrades on flights, discounted membership for its airport lounge (President's Club), or other types of rewards. Customers accumulate miles from flight segments they fly or through Continental Airlines partners. OnePass elite tiers are Silver, Gold, and Platinum Elite which have benefits such as complimentary upgrades, mileage bonus, priority check-in, priority boarding, and much more. Continental previously had a frequent flyer program prior to OnePass, which was started not long after American Airline started its frequent flyer program in 1981 and when most large US airlines followed, but this was merged with Eastern Airlines' frequent flyer program in 1987 to form OnePass. ^{[13] [14]} The name "OnePass" refers to the ability to accumulate miles on two major airlines, namely Continental and Eastern, in one frequent flyer program.

In addition to its Continental Express, Continental Connection, and SkyTeam Alliance partnerships, Continental has frequent flyer partnerships with the following airlines:

AeroRepública Air Europa Alaska Airlines American Eagle (only within California) Cape Air Copa Airlines

Emirates EVA Air Hawaiian Airlines Horizon Air Island Air Qantas Virgin Atlantic

Continental Airlines also offers frequent flyer partnerships with the following car rental companies:

Advantage Alamo Avis Budget Dollar

Hertz National Sixt Thrifty

[edit] Presidents Club

The Presidents Club is the membership airport lounge program of Continental Airlines and COPA Airlines. Unlike lounges run by some of its larger competitors, the Presidents Club features an open bar and was the first lounge operated by an American network airline to feature nationwide free WiFi. Although the size of the network, 27 clubs, is small compared to larger airlines, members have full reciprocal privileges at over 40 additional locations including lounges operated by SkyTeam partners Delta Air Lines and Aeromexico along with the WorldClubs operated by Northwest Airlines. The most unique lounge is a beautiful former dance club located at Washington D.C.'s National Airport. The Presidents Club, along with the Northwest WorldClubs and Qantas Club, offer lifetime memberships, something that currently costs non-elite members $4,690.

[edit] Locations

The Presidents Club locations are listed below:

Agana, Guam Atlanta Austin Boston Chicago O'Hare Shared with Northwest Airlines Cleveland Dallas/Fort Worth Denver Fort Lauderdale Honolulu Houston (4)

London Gatwick Los Angeles Mexico City, Mexico New York La Guardia Newark (3) Panama City, Panama San Antonio San Francisco San Juan Seattle/Tacoma Washington Reagan

Continental Airlines President Club members are allowed to use partner clubs, which offer more clubs in more locations. For partner club information see club location information at continental.com

[edit] Codeshare agreements

Continental Airlines has codeshare agreements with the following airlines as of August 2006:
(This list does not include SkyTeam airlines)

• AeroRepublica
• Air Europa
• Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air
• Cape Air, and the Continental Connection agreement, 'Continental Connection operated by Cape Air in Micronesia and Southern Florida.
• Copa Airlines
• Emirates
• EVA Airways
• Hawaiian Airlines
• Island Air
• Virgin Atlantic Airways

Continental Connection codeshares

Continental Connection has a codeshare with American Eagle (the American Airlines and AMR Corporation version of Continental Express), yet not with American Airlines. Also, American Eagle does not operate as Continental Connection, they just codeshare specifically with Continental Connection, not Continental Airlines. The operators of Continental Connection are:

• CommutAir-In New York State
• Colgan Air-out of its hub at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport
• RegionsAir Out of there Cleveland hub. Recently grounded due to airline training procedures.
• Cape Air (Continental also has a codeshare with the mainstream Cape Air) in Southern Florida and from Guam to Saipan, Saipan to Rota and Rota to Guam.
• Gulfstream International Airlines in the Bahamas, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Tampa, and West Palm Beach.

[edit] Incidents and accidents

The following incidents occurred on Continental Airlines. For Continental Express incidents, see Continental Express incidents and accidents.

• A bomb went off in the rear lavatory of Continental Airlines Flight 11, a Boeing 707, en route from Chicago to Kansas City Downtown Airport on May 22, 1962. The tail broke off and the plane crashed on a farm near Unionville, Missouri. All 45 on board died. This was the same Boeing 707 that was previously subject to an attempted hijack to Cuba, although the hijackers were captured in El Paso, Tx.
• On July 1, 1965 Continental Airlines Flight 12 ran off the runway at Kansas City Downtown Airport landing in heavy rain. All 66 on board survived.
• On March 1, 1978, a Continental McDonnell Douglas DC-10 overran the runway during an aborted takeoff as a resulted of a tire explosion at Los Angeles resulting in a fire engulfing the aircraft and the aircraft declared a total loss. Two passengers were killed.^[15][16][17]
• Continental Airlines Flight 1713, a Douglas DC-9-14 aircraft, crashed on take-off in a snowstorm from the Denver, Colorado Stapleton International Airport on Sunday, November 15, 1987. 28 of the aircraft's occupants died, 54 survived.
• On February 19, 1996, a Continental Airlines McDonnell Douglas DC-9 made a wheels up landing in Houston Intercontinental Airport. There were no fatalities.^[18]
• On August 2, 1997, aboard a Continental Airlines Boeing 757-200, a passenger in a wheelchair was left at the top of the airstairs while an agent was bringing the wheelchair for loading. The passenger was reportedly instructed to remain in place. However, the passenger continued to walk and passed through an open door on the right side of the plane used for catering and fell to the tarmac resulting in death. Although this incident was not a result of an aircraft crash, the incident initiated an FAA investigation and report because it involved a passenger death.
• On April 25, 2000, a Continental Airlines DC-10 suffered an uncontained engine failure when 2 of its 3 engines burst through the fan casing. The breach also ruptured the primary hydraulic lines, and blew the tires. The aircraft landed 34 minutes after takeoff on one engine.
• In a mishap on June 14, 2000, a Continental Airlines MD-80's engines were undergoing a test run, at gate C115 at Newark International Airport, which inadvertently caused it to crash into the gate area with six people aboard, all staff members. Nobody was hurt, but the gate area was damaged. [1]
• On 25 July 2000, Continental Airlines flight 55, a DC-10 contributed to the crash of Air France Concorde Flight 4590 in Paris. The Continental jet dropped a strip of metal from its thrust reverser on the runway, causing the Concorde's tires to explode as it began its takeoff roll. The exploding tires penetrated Concorde's wing fuel tanks, starting fires in engines 1 and 2, leading to the crash which killed all aboard. According to the official report on the accident, the strip of metal installed on the Continental jet had not been authorised by the US Federal Aviation Administration or the aircraft manufacturer. This led French authorities to begin a criminal investigation into Continental Airlines.[2]
• On 6 January 2004, Continental Airlines flight 6 from Tokyo, Japan to Houston, Texas was forced to divert to Midway Atoll in Pacific with 279 passengers and 14 crew. An engine on the Boeing 777-200ER twinjet was shut down after suffering an "oil leak from a starter", and the flight was required to land at the nearest available airfield in accordance with ETOPS regulations.^[19]
• On 2 March 2005, a Continental Airlines Boeing 777-200ER aircraft, with 14 crew and 198 passengers on board, scraped the tail region on take off from Newark Liberty International Airport. The aircraft landed back uneventfully. The rear pressure bulkhead was found to have been damaged (ref: Flight International, July 2005).
• On January 16, 2006, a Continental Airlines contract mechanic was sucked into the engine of a Boeing 737-500 and killed. The incident took place at El Paso International Airport.^[20]
• On October 28, 2006, Continental Flight 1883, a Boeing 757-200 aircraft carrying 160 passengers, landed on a narrow unoccupied taxiway parallel of runway 29 at Newark Liberty International Airport. No one was injured and both pilots have been stripped of their flying duties pending an investigation.^{[citation needed]}
• On January 20, 2007, Continental Flight 1838, a Boeing 757, departed George Bush Intercontinental Airport at 11:30 a.m. with 210 passengers. The aircraft bound for Puerto Vallarta, Mexico was forced to divert to McAllen, TX after the pilot became ill and died while in flight. The co-pilot executed a safe landing in McAllen.[3]
• On March 26, 2007, Continental Flight 98, a Boeing 777 from Hong Kong, landed at Newark Liberty International Airport at 2 p.m., but was held for two hours during which the Centers for Disease Control investigated the cause of flu-like symptoms among a group of passengers that had been on the same river cruise in China. At about 4 p.m., all the passengers were allowed to disembark.^[21]

[edit] References

[edit] See also

• Continental Airlines Arena

[edit] External links

• Continental Airlines official website
• Continental Airlines Cargo
• CNN reports of the CO1515
• Continental Airlines Fleet Age
• Photos of Continental Airlines aircraft
• Continental Airlines seating charts and information