Los Angeles Airways
 | |
| Ceased operations | 1971 |
|---|---|
| Hubs | Westchester, Los Angeles, California |
| Destinations | Disneyland, Newporter Resort, Newport Beach, California, Los Angeles area airports |
| Headquarters | Los Angeles, California |
| Key people | Clarence Belinn (president) |
Los Angeles Airways (LAA) was a helicopter airline based in Westchester, Los Angeles, California.[1] Los Angeles Airways offered services to area airports as well as Disneyland[2] from Los Angeles International Airport and the heliport at the Newporter Resort, Newport Beach, California, now the Hyatt Regency. LAA had several firsts, including the first regularly scheduled helicopter mail service on October 1, 1947.[3]
In April 1957 they scheduled 17 weekday departures from LAX to 11 heliports from North Hollywood to San Bernardino to Santa Ana to Long Beach; they didn't fly to downtown Los Angeles. The OAG doesn't say what helicopter, but the drawing shows an S-55.
LAA was the first civil operator of the Sikorsky S-61, introducing it on March 1, 1962 for a price of $650,000 each.[4]
Los Angeles Airways ceased operations in 1971 after failure to consummate a contract in which it would have been purchased by Golden West Airlines.[5]
Passengers boarded, in thousands, scheduled flights only: 30 in 1957, 39 in 1960, 396 in 1967, 62 in 1970.
Aircraft operated
- Sikorsky S-51
- Sikorsky S-55
- Sikorsky S-61
Accidents
- On May 22, 1968 Los Angeles Airways Flight 841 crashed in Paramount, California resulting in the loss of 23 lives. The accident aircraft, N303Y, serial number 61060, was a Sikorsky S-61L.[6]
- On August 14, 1968 Los Angeles Airways Flight 417 crashed in Compton, California resulting in the loss of 21 lives. The accident aircraft, N300Y, serial number 61031, was the prototype of the Sikorsky S-61L.[6]
See also
References
- ↑ "World Airline Directory." Flight International. April 10, 1969. 581.
- ↑ Freeman, Paul. "Disneyland Heliport, Anaheim, CA". Abandoned & Little-Known Airfields.
- ↑ Airmail and the Growth of the Airlines
- ↑ "The Self-Supporting Helicopter" Time Magazine December 26, 1960
- ↑ Ed Coates Collection
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 [http://www.ntsb.gov/NTSB/brief.asp?ev_id=13185&key=0 NTSB Identification: DCA68A00061969
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Los Angeles Airways. |
- Los Angeles Airways on Airliners.net
- Disneyland Heliport
- Los Angeles Airways timetables
- 1958 timetable