Eastern was one of the "Big Four" domestic airlines created by theSpoils Conferences of 1930, and was headed in its early years by World War I flying aceEddie Rickenbacker. It had a near monopoly in air travel betweenNew York andFlorida from the 1930s until the 1950s and dominated this market for decades afterward.
Duringairline deregulation in the late 1970s and early 1980s, labor disputes and high debt loads strained the company under the leadership of former astronautFrank Borman.[2]Frank Lorenzo acquired Eastern in 1985 and moved many of its assets to his other airlines, includingContinental Airlines andTexas Air Corporation. After continued labor disputes and a crippling strike in 1989, Eastern ran out of money and was liquidated in 1991.[3]
Pitcairn Aviation's PA-7S CAM-19 Route Airmail aircraftAn Eastern Air Lines passenger coupon in 1935
Eastern Air Lines was a composite of assorted air travel corporations, includingFlorida Airways andPitcairn Aviation. In the late 1920s, Pitcairn Aviation won a contract to fly mail betweenNew York City andAtlanta, Georgia onMailwing single-engine aircraft. In 1929,Clement Keys, the owner ofNorth American Aviation, purchased Pitcairn. In 1930, Keys changed the company's name toEastern Air Transport. After being purchased byGeneral Motors and experiencing a change in leadership after the Airmail Act of 1934, the airline became known as Eastern Air Lines.[6]
By 1937, Eastern's route system stretched from New York to Washington, Atlanta, and New Orleans, and from Chicago to Miami.[7] In the same year, it operated 20 daily flights and returns, every hour on the hour, between New York and Washington; the flight time was one hour, twenty minutes, one-way.[8]
In 1938,World War I flying aceEddie Rickenbacker bought Eastern from General Motors. The complex deal was concluded when Rickenbacker together with Sidney Shannon[9] presentedAlfred P. Sloan with a certified check forUS$3,500,000 (equivalent to $78,180,000 in 2024).[10]
Rickenbacker pushed Eastern into a period of growth and innovation; for a time Eastern was the most profitable airline in the post-war era, never needing state subsidy. In the late 1950s Eastern's position was eroded by subsidies to rival airlines and the arrival of the jet age. On October 1, 1959, Rickenbacker's position as CEO was taken over byMalcolm A. MacIntyre, a brilliant lawyer but a man inexperienced in airline operations.'[11] Rickenbacker's ouster was largely due to his reluctance to acquire expensive jets as he underestimated their appeal to the public. A new management team headed byFloyd D. Hall took over on December 16, 1963, and Rickenbacker left his position as director and chairman of the board on December 31, 1963, aged 73.[11]
In 1956, Eastern boughtColonial Airlines, giving the airline its first routes to Canada.[12]
In November 1959, Eastern Air Lines opened its Chester L. Churchill-designed Terminal 1 at New York City'sIdlewild International Airport, later renamedJohn F. Kennedy International Airport. In 1960, Eastern's firstjets, DouglasDC-8-21s, started to take over the longer flights, like the non-stops fromChicago andNew York City toMiami. The DC-8s were joined in 1962 by theBoeing 720 and in 1964 by theBoeing 727-100, which Eastern (along withAmerican Airlines andUnited Airlines) had helped Boeing to develop. On February 1, 1964, Eastern was the first airline to fly the 727. Shortly after that, a new image was adopted, the famoushockey stick design, officially Caribbean Blue over Ionosphere Blue. Eastern was also the first US carrier to fly theAirbus A300[13] and the launch customer for theBoeing 757.[14]
On April 30, 1961, Eastern inauguratedEastern Air Lines Shuttle. Initially 95-seatLockheed Constellation 1049s and 1049Cs leftNew York-LaGuardia every two hours, 8 am to 10 pm, toWashington National and toBoston.[15] Flights soon became hourly, 7 am to 10 pm out of each city. No reservations or tickets were required; passengers could pay their fare in cash on board the flight. If a plane filled up at departure time, another plane was rolled out to carry any extra passengers.
Eastern bought theLockheed L-1011 TriStar andAirbus A300 widebody jets; the former would become known in theCaribbean asEl Grandote (the huge one). Although Eastern had purchased four 747s, the delivery slots were sold toTrans World Airlines (TWA) when Eastern decided to purchase the L-1011.
Due to massive delays in the L-1011 program, mainly due to problems with theRolls-Royce RB211 engines, Eastern leased twoBoeing 747-100s fromPan Am between 1970 and 1972 and operated the aircraft between Chicago and San Juan as well as from New York to Miami and San Juan.
The RB211 programme might easily have foundered in 1971 if it had not been for the steadfast support of Eastern Airlines, one of the major launch customers for the Lockheed TriStars. The President of Eastern wasSam Higginbottom, who never wavered and thereby acquired some criticism.
Just beforeWalt Disney World opened in 1971, Eastern became its "official airline". It remained the official airline of Walt Disney World and sponsored a ride at theMagic Kingdom park (If You Had Wings inTomorrowland whereBuzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin is currently located) until its contracting route network forced Disney to switch to Delta shortly before Eastern's 1989 bankruptcy filing.
The famous "Wings of Man" campaign in the late 1960s was created by advertising agencyYoung & Rubicam, and restored Eastern's tarnished image until the late 1970s, when formerastronautFrank Borman became president and it was replaced by a new campaign, "We Have To Earn Our Wings Every Day". The new campaign, which featured Borman as a spokesperson, was used until the mid-to-late 1980s.
Eastern's massiveAtlanta hub was in direct competition withDelta Air Lines, where the two carriers competed heavily to neither's benefit. Delta's less-unionized work force and slowly expanding international route network helped lead it through the turbulent period followingderegulation in 1978.
In 1980, a Caribbean hub was started atLuis Muñoz Marín International Airport (known at the time as "Isla Verde International Airport") nearSan Juan, Puerto Rico. In 1982, Eastern acquiredBraniff's South American route network. By 1985, Eastern was the largest ATA airline in terms of passengers[21] and operated in 26 countries on three continents.
During this era, Eastern's fleet was split between their "silver-colored hockey stick" livery (the lack of paint reduced weight by 100 pounds) and their "white-colored hockey stick" livery (on itsAirbus-manufactured planes, which required paint to cover the aircraft's composite skin panels).
In 1983, Eastern became the launch customer ofBoeing's757, which was ordered in 1978. Borman felt that its low cost of operation would make it an invaluable asset to the airline in the years to come. Lower oil prices failed to materialize and the debt created by this purchase coupled with the Airbus A300 purchases in 1977 contributed to the February 1986 sale toFrank Lorenzo'sTexas Air. At that time, Eastern was paying over $700,000 in interest each day before they sold a ticket, fueled, or boarded a single aircraft.
Starting about 1985, Eastern offered "Moonlight Specials", with passenger seats on overnight flights scheduled for cargo from thirty freight companies. The flights, which operated between midnight and 7 am, served 18 cities in the United States connecting mainly to Houston (IAH). Eric Schmitt ofThe New York Times said that the services were "a hybrid of late-night, red-eye flights and the barebonesPeople Express approach to service". The holds of the aircraft were reserved for cargo such as express mail, machine tool parts, and textiles. Because of this, the airline allowed each passenger to take up to two carry-on bags. The airline charged $10 for each checked bag, which was shipped standby. The airline charged between 50 cents and $3 for beverages and snacks. An Eastern flight attendant quoted inThe New York Times said that the passengers on the special flights were "a cross section of families, college kids, illegal aliens and weirdos from L.A."[22]
Eastern began losing money as it faced competition fromno-frills airlines, such asPeople Express, which offered lower fares. In an attempt to differentiate itself from its bargain competitors, Eastern began a marketing campaign stressing its quality of service and its rank of highly experienced pilots.
In February 1987, theFederal Aviation Administration imposed a $9.5 million fine against Eastern Air Lines for safety violations,[23] which was the largest fine assessed against an airline untilAmerican Airlines was fined $24.2 million in 2010.[24] Eastern's FAA violations all occurred prior to the acquisition by Texas Air.
In 1988, Phil Bakes, the president of Eastern Air Lines, announced plans to lay off 4,000 employees and eliminate and reduce service to airports in theWestern United States; he said that the airline was going "back to our roots" in the East. At the time, Eastern was the largest corporate employer in the Miami area and remained so after the cuts. John Nordheimer wrote inThe New York Times that Eastern's prominence in the Miami area decreased as the city became a finance and trade center with a diversified local economy, instead of one based largely ontourism.[25]
During Lorenzo's tenure, Eastern was crippled by severe labor unrest that began long before the acquisition. Asked to accept deep cuts in pay and benefits, on March 4, 1989, Lorenzolocked out Eastern's mechanics and ramp service employees, represented by theInternational Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM). Concerned that Lorenzo's successful breaking of the IAM would do the same to the pilots' and flight attendants' unions, the pilots represented byAir Line Pilots Association (ALPA) andflight attendants represented by theTransport Workers Union (TWU) called a sympathy strike, which effectively shut down the airline's domestic operations. Non-contract employees, including airport gate and ticket counter agents and reservation sales agents, could not honor the strike. Due to the lockout and sympathy strike, cancelled flights resulted in the loss of millions of dollars in revenue.[26][citation needed]
As a result of the strike, a weakened airline structure, high fuel prices, an inability to compete after deregulation and other financial problems, Eastern filed forbankruptcy protection on March 9,[27] which allowed Eastern to continue operating on a smaller scale. Lorenzo initially sought a sale of the entire airline, and on April 6, Eastern agreed to be acquired by former Major League Baseball commissionerPeter Uberroth for $464 million. However, the transaction was terminated on April 12 after Lorenzo refused to give temporary control to a trustee. The sale process was then terminated on April 18, and Lorenzo proposed a sale of $1.8 million in assets that would allow the airline to continue operating independently.[28]
In May 1989, Eastern sold its East Coast shuttle service to real estate mogulDonald Trump for $365 million. Trump continued operating the service as theTrump Shuttle. In August, Eastern signed a deal to sell sixteen DC-9 aircraft and gates in Philadelphia, Washington, and New York toMidway Airlines for $210 million.[29] In May 1990,American Airlines acquired Eastern's Latin American routes and related assets for $471 million.[28]
After several failed attempts at obtaining creditor approval for restructuring plans, Lorenzo lost control of Eastern in April 1990, when former Continental president Martin Shugrue was appointed as trustee to manage Eastern's reorganization. A report prepared by David Shapiro, an examiner appointed by the bankruptcy court overseeing Eastern's bankruptcy filing, concluded that Eastern was shortchanged by Texas Air in numerous transactions between the two. For example, Texas Air bought assets like System One, a computer reservation operation, from Eastern at a price far below market value.[30] Eastern tried to remain in business in an attempt to correct its cash flow, but to no avail.[31]
Under bankruptcy, Eastern launched a "100 Days" advertising campaign, in which it promised to "become a little bit better every day". The ads were conceived by advertising agencyOgilvy & Mather in New York, and started being broadcast on June 17, 1990, during the prime-time hours in 33 markets around the United States. The ads featured Martin Shugrue, the airline's court-appointed trustee.[32] While the campaign helped the company increase by 73% the number of bookings, it did not stop the company from going bankrupt.[33]
Ultimately, Eastern Airlines stopped flying at midnight on Saturday, January 19, 1991. The previous evening, company agents, unaware of the decision, continued to take reservations and told callers that the airline was not closing. Following the announcement, 5,000 of the 18,000 employees immediately lost their jobs. Of the remaining employees, reservation agents were told to report to work at their regular times, while other employees were told not to report to work unless asked to do so.[34] The Eastern shutdown eliminated many airline industry jobs in theMiami andNew York City areas.[35]
Several regional and commuter airlines provided passenger feed for Eastern viacode sharing agreements with their aircraft liveries reflecting the Eastern mainline paint scheme. There were a number of brandings including: Eastern Express, Eastern Atlantis Express, and Eastern Metro Express.LIAT, a Caribbean-based airline, also operated Eastern Partner service.
Eastern Express air carriers and their aircraft included:[41][42]
Eastern also worked closely with another Caribbean-based airline,Caribair (Puerto Rico). The June 13, 1967, Eastern system timetable lists connecting flights operated by CaribairConvair 640 turboprops with service between Eastern's San Juan hub and St. Croix and St. Thomas.[46] By 1970, San Juan-based Caribair had become an all-jet airline operatingMcDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 aircraft serving fourteen Caribbean islands as well as Miami with the air carrier subsequently being acquired by Eastern in 1973.[47]
August 10, 1937, Trip 7, aDouglas DC-2 (NC13739), crashed on takeoff atDaytona Beach Municipal Airport after it struck a utility pylon during a nighttime take off, killing four of nine on board.[48]
February 26, 1941,Flight 21, aDouglas DST, crashed near Atlanta in fog due to a misread altimeter, almost killingEddie Rickenbacker, who was traveling on airline business. His recovery in the hospital received broad press coverage; during his initial recovery, several incorrect news reports claimed that he had died. Of 16 on board, 8 died, including CongressmanWilliam D. Byron.Clara Savage Littledale, editor ofParents magazine, survived.[49] Littledale recounted her experience of the crash forParents.[50] Her husband,Pulitzer Prize–winning journalistHarold A. Littledale, was paralyzed as a result of the crash.[51]
July 12, 1945:Flight 45, aDouglas DC-3-201C (NC25647) flying from Washington, DC toColumbia, SC, collided in mid-air withUSAAFA-26C Invader near Florence, South Carolina. The A-26 lost control and crashed; two crew parachuted but only one survived. The DC-3 executed aforced landing in a cornfield, killing one passenger, a two-year-old boy.[52]
September 7, 1945: Flight 42, a Douglas DC-3-201G (NC33631), crashed near Florence, South Carolina following an unexplained fire in the rear of the aircraft. Control was lost after the right elevator also caught fire and the aircraft crashed in a swampy, wooded area, killing all 22 on board.[53]
December 30, 1945: Flight 14, a Douglas DC-3-201 (NC18123), overran the runway while landing at LaGuardia Airport after approaching too high and too fast, killing one of 14 of board.[54]
January 18, 1946: Flight 105, a Douglas DC-3-201E (NC19970), crashed at Cheshire, Connecticut after a loss of control caused by wing separation, killing all 17 on board. A fire, caused by a fuel leak, started in the left engine and spread to the wing, causing it to collapse and fail.[55]
January 12, 1947: Flight 665, aDouglas C-49 (NC88872), crashed at Galax, Virginia after the pilot deviated from the flight route, killing 18 of 19 on board.[56]
May 30, 1947:Flight 605, aDouglas DC-4 en route from Newark to Miami, crashed near Bainbridge, Maryland, killing all 53 aboard. At the time, Flight 605 was the deadliest crash in United States aviation history. "Loss of control" was cited as the reason for the crash.
January 13, 1948: Flight 572, a Douglas DC-3-201F (NC28384), crashed at Oxon Hill, Maryland after striking trees while on approach to Washington National Airport, killing five of nine on board; the aircraft was flying too low.[57]
February 7, 1948: Flight 611, aLockheed L-649 Constellation (NC112A), suffered a propeller blade separation over the Atlantic Ocean 156 mi off Brunswick, Georgia. Three hours after takeoff, the number three propeller failed and a portion of a blade penetrated the fuselage, cutting control cables, electrical wires and engine controls and killing a crew member before exiting the fuselage on the opposite side. After this the front portion of the number three engine broke free and fell off. A rapid descent was initiated. At 12,000 feet the descent was stopped. Due to instrument failure the aircraft descended visually to 1,000 feet. On landing the number four engine was shut down and the brakes applied hard, which blew out a tire. Fires started in the landing gear and number four engine but were quickly extinguished. Despite the damage, the aircraft was repaired and returned to service.[58]
November 1, 1949:Flight 537, aDouglas DC-4 (N88727) on approach toWashington National Airport, collided in mid-air with aLockheed P-38 Lightning being test-flown for acceptance by the Government of Bolivia, killing all 55 aboard the DC-4 and seriously injuring the pilot of the P-38. At the time it was the deadliest airliner crash in United States history.
December 21, 1955: A Lockheed L-749A Constellation (N112A) crashed on approach to Jacksonville's Imeson Airport arriving from Miami, with further scheduled stops at Washington, DC, New York and Boston. Twelve passengers and a crew of five were killed.[60]
February 25, 1964:Flight 304 (aDouglas DC-8) flying from New Orleans International Airport toWashington-National Airport crashed intoLake Pontchartrain en route due to "degradation of aircraft stability characteristics inturbulence, because of abnormal longitudinal trim component positions". All 51 passengers and seven crew aboard were killed.
February 8, 1965:Flight 663, a Douglas DC-7 departing fromNew York City toRichmond, Virginia, crashed atJones Beach State Park after takeoff fromJFK when it was forced to evade inboundPan Am Flight 212. All 84 on board died. The evasive action was blamed for causing the plane to lose control.
December 4, 1965: Flight 853, a Lockheed L-1049C Super Constellation,collided with TWA Flight 42, aBoeing 707, over Carmel, New York. The Constellation crashed on Hunt Mountain in North Salem, New York, killing four of 53 on board while the 707 landed safely with no casualties.
December 29, 1972:Flight 401 (a brand newLockheed L-1011) was preparing to land inMiami, when the flight crew became distracted by a non-functioning gear light. The flight crashed in theEverglades, killing 101 of 176 on board. This was the first major crash of a widebody jet aircraft.
September 11, 1974:Flight 212, aDouglas DC-9-31 carrying 78 passengers and four crew, crashed while conducting aninstrument approach in dense ground fog atDouglas Municipal Airport. The aircraft crashed just short of the runway, killing 72; three survivors subsequently died from their injuries. Killed on this flight wereJames, Peter, and Paul Colbert, the father and older brothers (respectively) of comedianStephen Colbert.[61]
June 24, 1975:Flight 66, aBoeing 727, crashed into runway approach lights as it penetrated a thunderstorm near the ILS localizer course line atJFK in New York City, killing 113 passengers and crew. The official cause of the accident was a sudden high rate of descent, caused by severe downdrafts from the thunderstorm, and the continued use of the runway despite the hazardous weather.ABA basketball starWendell Ladner was one of the passengers killed in the crash.
Flight 601, the subject of a July 19, 1951, incident
December 19, 1936: A Douglas DC-2-112 (NC13732) struck trees and crashed near Milford, Connecticut due to pilot error and radio problems; all 11 on board survived. The aircraft was leased from North American Aviation.[62]
October 18, 1938: A Douglas DC-2-112 (NC13735) had engine failure while taking off from Montgomery, Alabama. The engine caught fire and fell from the plane. The plane struck a tree upon landing in a field just a few miles from the airport. All 13 on board, including the crew of 3, survived with only the Captain,John David Hissong, sustaining minor burns.
April 3, 1941: A Douglas DC-3-201B (NC21727) crashed into water off Vero Beach, Florida during a storm; although all 16 on board were injured, none were killed. The aircraft was written off.[63]
November 19, 1943: Trip 12, a Douglas DC-3-201E (NC19968), made an emergency landing at New Orleans en route from Houston after the pilot allowed the aircraft to descend too low during the second attempt to land. The number one propeller hit the water, causing portions of the engine and cowling to break off. All 15 on board survived. The aircraft was repaired and returned to service.[64]
October 11, 1946: Flight 546, aDouglas C-54B (NC88729), struck a ridge near Alexandria, Virginia while on approach to Washington National Airport; all 26 on board survived. During the approach, the aircraft had descended too low.[65]
December 19, 1946: Flight 605, a Douglas C-54B (NC88813) collided in mid-air with Universal Air Lines Flight 7, a Douglas C-47 (NC54374), near Aberdeen, Maryland. The C-47 departed Newark for Raleigh, while the C-54 departed Newark 15 minutes later for a non-stop flight to Miami. Near Aberdeen the C-54 flew past the C-47. The C-54 co-pilot saw the lights of an aircraft close and to the left of the C-54, which turned out to be the C-47. The C-54 pilot rolled into a right bank and forcefully pulled up the nose, causing the rear of the C-54 to strike the forward top portion of the C-47. The C-47 landed safely at Philips Army Air Field while the C-54 diverted to Washington. There were no casualties on either aircraft and both aircraft were repaired and returned to service.[66][67]
January 21, 1948: Flight 604, a Lockheed L-649 Constellation (NC111A), crashed into a snow bank while landing at Logan International Airport following a loss of control due to a snow-covered runway; all 25 on board survived.[68]
July 19, 1951: Flight 601, a Lockheed L-749A Constellation (N119A), suffered severe buffeting after an access door opened in flight. A flapless wheels-up landing was made atCurles Neck Farm, Virginia. The aircraft was later repaired and returned to service.[69]
November 27, 1951: Flight 167, a Douglas DC-3-201C (N25646) collided in mid-air withCivil Air PatrolPiper L-4J45-5151 near Ocala, Florida. The Piper was climbing after a left turn when it struck the DC-3. The DC-3's number one propeller made several cuts in the Piper's left wing, causing a loss of control and the Piper crashed, killing the pilot. The DC-3 circled the airport for a few minutes before landing safely with no casualties.[70]
September 6, 1953: An L-1049 Super Constellation (N6214C) crashed on landing at McChord Air Force Base due to a hydraulic failure caused by engine problems; all 32 on board survived.[71]
May 8, 1954: Eastern Air Lines Flight 2634W made an emergency landing at Naval Auxiliary Air Station Edenton (nowNortheastern Regional Airport)inEdenton, NC. All crew and passengers survived. This is according to a letter written by chairman of the board, Eddie Rickenbacker to Marine Air Base Squadron 14.
February 17, 1956:Eastern Air Lines Flight 156 crashed nearOwensboro, Kentucky, due to pilot error; all 23 on board survived. The aircraft stalled and crashed following an improperly executed final approach.[72]
March 10, 1957: A Martin 4-0-4 (N453A) crashed on landing atStandiford Field due to pilot error; all 34 on board survived. A portion of the left wing separated inboard of the number one engine due to excessive sink rate caused by the pilot's landing approach technique.[73]
June 28, 1957: ADouglas DC-7B (N808D) had just returned from a training flight and was taxiing to the maintenance hangar atMiami International Airport when it collided with a parked Eastern Air Lines L-1049 Super Constellation (N6212C) near the hangar. Fuel leaked and both aircraft caught fire and burned out.[74][75]
March 17, 1958: AMartin 4-0-4 (N496A) (Flight # unknown) on final approach toMelbourne Municipal Airport inMelbourne, Florida, struck an unmarked pile of gravel at the approach end of the runway. During the landing roll the landing gear collapsed, and the aircraft caught fire and burned. All 10 occupants (3 crew, 7 passengers) evacuated safely.[76]
October 18, 1966: A Lockheed L-1049C Super Constellation (N6219C) caught fire during refueling at Miami after a fuel line ruptured, causing substantial damage to the wing. The aircraft was written off, and broken up in June 1967.[77]
May 18, 1972: Flight 346, a Douglas DC-9-31 (N8961E) landed hard at Fort Lauderdale International Airport, collapsing the landing gear and breaking off the tail; all ten on board survived.[78]
November 27, 1973: Flight 300, aMcDonnell Douglas DC-9-31 inbound fromPittsburgh International Airport toAkron-Canton Airport landed too far down the runway, hydroplaned and went off the end of the runway and over an embankment in fog, low ceilings, light rain and 1.5 mile visibility. The aircraft was severely damaged and written off. All 26 on board (5 crew, 21 passengers) survived with various injuries.[79]
July 2, 1976: A Lockheed L-188 Electra (N5531) was blown up on the ground by a bomb at Logan International Airport.[80]
September 26, 1978: Eastern Air Lines Flight 75, an L-1011, overtookAir Caribbean Flight 309, a Beech 18, on approach toIsla Verde International Airport inSan Juan, Puerto Rico. There were no injuries on the Eastern airplane, but all six occupants on the Air Caribbean plane were killed when it plummeted and crashed on to a local bar. Eastern Airlines and the FAA later settled with family members of the six dead people as well as injured bar clients, paying them almost $5,700,000 for damages.[81]
May 5, 1983:Flight 855, a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar, had all three engines shut down in flight. The pilot restarted one of the engines before returning toMiami International Airport. All 172 on board survived.
April 21, 1984: Eastern Air Lines Flight 494, a DC-9, suffered an uncommanded deployment ofreverse thrust during a flight fromHartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) toPiedmont Triad International Airport (GSO) in Greensboro, North Carolina, causing the aircraft to roll quickly to the right. The flight crew disabled the affected engine and returned safely to Atlanta. The pilots received the Air Line Pilots Association's Superior Airmanship Award for their handling of the incident.[82]
September 15, 1987: Flight 216, a Boeing 727 (N8857E), was seriously damaged in ahard landing in severe winds atTulsa International Airport; the 55 passengers and 7 crew were not injured. The aircraft was inspected by mechanics at theAmerican Airlines Tulsa maintenance base and cleared to fly; it was then flown to Kansas City and Chicago with passengers, only to be removed from service after skin wrinkles in thefuselage were noticed. A senior American Airlines official later conceded that the Tulsa mechanics "erred" in their inspection.[83][84]
December 27, 1987: Flight 573, a Douglas DC-9-31 (N8948E), landed hard atPensacola Regional Airport. The nose gear touched down first, and the aircraft bounced and touched down again, breaking the passenger cabin aft of the wings. The plane stopped with its tail resting on the runway but all 103 passengers and 4 crew survived.[85]
January 18, 1990: Eastern Air Lines Flight 111, a Boeing 727 (N8867E), collided with an Epps Air ServiceBeechcraft King Air upon landing at Atlanta-William B. Hartsfield International Airport, Georgia. The plane received substantial damage, but all 149 passengers and 8 crew members survived unharmed. The plane was later repaired. The King Air was destroyed, with the pilot killed and the first officer seriously injured.[86]
July 24, 1961: Flight 202, a Lockheed L-188 Electra, was hijacked to Cuba. A fighter plane from Homestead AFB followed the airliner until it reached Cuban airspace.[87]
February 3, 1969: Flight 7 was hijacked to Cuba. The presence ofCandid Camera hostAllen Funt on the flight led many of the passengers to conclude that the hijacking was actually a prank.[89] Funt and others were later released after 11 hours of captivity.[90]
March 17, 1970: Both pilots ofEastern Air Lines Shuttle Flight 1320, a DC-9-31 carrying 68 passengers and 5 crew, were shot by a deranged hijacker. The first officer was able to take the hijacker's gun and shoot him three times before succumbing to his own wounds. Despite gunshot wounds in both arms, the captain was able to fight off the wounded hijacker and land the aircraft safely.
In 2011, a group purchased the intellectual property, including trademarks, of Eastern Air Lines and formed the Eastern Air Lines Group. The group announced in early 2014 that it had filed an application with the United States Department of Transportation for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity, which will be followed by certification with the Federal Aviation Administration. The new airline began service through charter and wet-lease flights out of Miami International in late 2014 withBoeing 737-800 jetliners painted in the classic Eastern "hockey stick" livery. The IATA and ICAO codes of the original airline, as well as its callsign, were used by the new iteration of Eastern Air Lines.[91][92] After a sale toSwift Air, the trademarks were passed on toEastern Airlines, LLC in 2018. On January 12, 2020, after nearly two decades of being officially defunct, the first flight of the renewed Eastern Airlines landed at JFK airport, heralding a new era for the brand name.[93]
^Thomas Petzinger,Hard landing: The Epic Contest for Power and Profits that Plunged the Airlines into Chaos (Random House, 1996)
^then, AirlineGeeks com StaffAirlineGeeks com was founded in February 2013 as a one-person blog in Washington D. C. Since; industry, we’ve grown to have 25+ active team members scattered across the globe We are all here for the same reason: we love deep-diving into the fascinating realm of the airline (March 31, 2016)."TBT (Throwback Thursday) in Aviation History: Caribair | AirlineGeeks.com".AirlineGeeks.com.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^Littledale, Clara Savage. Edited by Barbara Sicherman, 1934- and Carol Hurd Green, 1935-; in Notable American Women: The Modern Period (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1980), 458-459
^Hecht, G. J., & Clara, S. L. (1941, 05). Mrs. Littledale is doing nicely, thanks! Parents' Magazine, 16, 40.
^Broyles, Gil (September 19, 1987)."WRINKLES IN JET'S SKIN OVERLOOKED".The Dallas Morning News. Dallas, Texas. RetrievedNovember 7, 2019."Our current thinking is that we erred,' said David Kruse, vice president of American's Maintenance and Engineering Center at Tulsa International Airport.
Carriers that operated for all/part of 1938–1978 when most were under close economic control of theCAB.Bold indicates survived into deregulated era (1979–today)
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