Boeing 737
The Boeing 737 is an American short- to medium-range twinjet narrow-body airliner developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from the 707 and 727, the 737 has developed into a family of thirteen passenger models with capacities from 85 to 215 passengers; the 737 is Boeing's only narrow-body airliner in production, with the 737 Next Generation and the re-engined and updated 737 MAX variants. The 737 was envisioned in 1964; the initial 737-100 made its first flight in April 1967, entered airline service in February 1968 with Lufthansa. Next, the lengthened 737-200 entered service in April 1968. In the 1980s Boeing launched the longer 737-300, -400, -500 variants featuring CFM56 turbofan engines and wing improvements; the Boeing 737 Next Generation was introduced in the 1990s, with a redesigned, increased span wing, upgraded "glass" cockpit, new interior. The 737 NG comprises the 737-600, -700, -800, -900 variants, with lengths ranging from 31.09 to 42.06 m.
Boeing Business Jet versions of the 737 NG are produced. The 737 was revised again in the 2010s for greater efficiency, with the 737 MAX series featuring CFM LEAP-1B engines and improved winglets; the 737 MAX entered service in 2017 but, after a successful start, was grounded worldwide in March 2019 following two fatal crashes. The 737 series is the highest-selling commercial jetliner in history; the 737 has been continuously manufactured since 1967. Assembly of the 737 is performed at the Boeing Renton Factory in Washington. Many 737s serve markets filled by 707, 727, 757, DC-9, MD-80/MD-90 airliners, the aircraft competes with the Airbus A320 family; as of 2006, there were an average of 1,250 Boeing 737s airborne at any given time, with two either departing or landing somewhere every five seconds. Boeing had been studying short-haul jet aircraft designs, wanted to produce another aircraft to supplement the 727 on short and thin routes. Preliminary design work began on May 11, 1964, Boeing's intense market research yielded plans for a 50- to 60-passenger airliner for routes 50 to 1,000 mi long.
Initial design featured podded engines on the aft fuselage and a T-tail like the 727, five-abreast seating, but engineer Joe Sutter instead placed the engines under the wings to lighten the structure, enabling fuselage widening for six-abreast seating. The 737 design was presented in October 1964 at the Air Transport Association maintenance and engineering conference by chief project engineer Jack Steiner, where its elaborate high-lift devices raised concerns about maintenance costs and dispatch reliability; the launch decision for the $150 million development was made by the board on February 1, 1965. Lufthansa became the launch customer on February 19, 1965, with an order for 21 aircraft, worth $67 million in 1965, after the airline received assurances from Boeing that the 737 project would not be canceled. Consultation with Lufthansa over the previous winter resulted in an increase in capacity to 100 seats. On April 5, 1965, Boeing announced an order by United Airlines for 40 737s. United wanted a larger airplane than the original 737, so Boeing stretched the fuselage 36 in ahead of, 40 in behind the wing.
The longer version was designated 737-200, with the original short-body aircraft becoming the 737-100. Detailed design work continued on both variants at the same time. Boeing was far behind its competitors. To expedite development, Boeing used 60% of the structure and systems of the existing 727, the most notable being the fuselage cross-section; this fuselage permitted six-abreast seating compared to the rival BAC-111 and DC-9's five-abreast layout. Design engineers decided to mount the nacelles directly to the underside of the wings to reduce the landing gear length and kept the engines low to the ground for easy ramp inspection and servicing. Many thickness variations for the engine attachment strut were tested in the wind tunnel and the most desirable shape for high speed was found to be one, thick, filling the narrow channels formed between the wing and the top of the nacelle on the outboard side; the span arrangement of the airfoil sections of the 737 wing was planned to be similar to that of the 707 and 727, but somewhat thicker.
A substantial improvement in drag at high Mach numbers was achieved by altering these sections near the nacelle. The engine chosen was the Pratt & Whitney JT8D-1 low-bypass ratio turbofan engine, delivering 14,500 lbf thrust. With the wing-mounted engines, Boeing decided to mount the horizontal stabilizer on the fuselage rather than the T-tail style of the Boeing 727; the initial assembly of the Boeing 737 was adjacent to Boeing Field because the factory in Renton was filled to capacity with the production of the 707 and 727. After 271 of the Boeing 737 aircraft were built, production was moved to Renton in late 1970. A significant portion of fuselage assembly—previously done by Boeing in Wichita, Kansas—is now performed by Spirit AeroSystems, which purchased some of Boeing's assets in Wichita. Key to increasing production efficiencies, the entire fuselage is shipped since the 737 Next Generation while it was sent in two pieces before; the fuselage is joined with the wings and landing gear and moves down the assembly line for the engine
Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport
Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport is the primary international airport serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex area in the U. S. state of Texas. It is the largest hub for American Airlines, headquartered near the airport, it is the fourth busiest airport in the world by aircraft movements and the fourteenth busiest airport in the world by passenger traffic in 2017. It is second busiest in Texas. With nearly 900 daily flights, American Airlines at DFW is the second largest airline hub in the world and the United States, behind Delta's Atlanta hub. Located halfway between the major cities of Dallas and Fort Worth, DFW spills across portions of Dallas and Tarrant counties, includes portions of the cities of Irving, Euless and Coppell. At 17,207 acres, DFW is larger than the island of Manhattan, is the second largest airport by land area in the United States, after Denver International Airport, it has its own post office ZIP code, 75261, United States Postal Service city designation, as well as its own police, fire protection and emergency medical services.
The members of the airport's board of directors are appointed by the "owner cities" of Dallas and Fort Worth, with a non-voting member chosen from the airport's four neighboring cities on a rotating basis. As of April 2019, DFW Airport has service to 249 destinations, including 62 international and 187 domestic destinations within the U. S. In surpassing 200 destinations, DFW joined a small group of airports worldwide with that distinction; as early as 1927, before the area had an airport, Dallas proposed a joint airport with Fort Worth. Fort Worth declined the offer and thus each city opened its own airport, Love Field and Meacham Field, each of which had scheduled airline service. In 1940 the Civil Aeronautics Administration earmarked $1.9 million for the construction of a Dallas/Fort Worth Regional Airport. American Airlines and Braniff Airways struck a deal with the city of Arlington to build an airport there, but the governments of Dallas and Fort Worth disagreed over its construction and the project was abandoned in 1942.
After World War II, Fort Worth annexed the site and developed it into Amon Carter Field with the help of American Airlines. In 1953 Fort Worth transferred its commercial flights from Meacham Field to the new airport, 12 miles from Dallas Love Field. In 1960 Fort Worth purchased Amon Carter Field and renamed it Greater Southwest International Airport GSW in an attempt to compete with Dallas' airport, but GSW's traffic continued to decline relative to Dallas Love Field. By the mid-1960s Fort Worth was getting 1% of Texas air traffic while Dallas was getting 49%, which led to the virtual abandonment of GSW; the joint airport proposal was revisited in 1961 after the Federal Aviation Administration refused to invest more money in separate Dallas and Fort Worth airports. Although the Fort Worth airport was abandoned, Dallas Love Field became congested and had no more room to expand. Following an order from the federal government in 1964 that it would unilaterally choose a site if the cities could not come to an agreement, officials from the two cities agreed on a location for a new regional airport, north of the abandoned GSW and equidistant from the two city centers.
The land was purchased by the cities in 1966 and construction began in 1969. Voters went to the polls in cities throughout the Dallas/Ft Worth area to approve the new North Texas Regional Airport, named after the North Texas Commission, instrumental in the regional airport coming to fruition; the North Texas Commission formed the North Texas Airport Commission to oversee the planning and construction of the giant airport. Area voters approved the airport referendum and the new North Texas Regional Airport would become a reality. Under the original 1967 airport design, DFW was to have pier-shaped terminals perpendicular to a central highway. In 1968, the design was revised to provide for semicircular terminals, which served to isolate loading and unloading areas from the central highway, to provide additional room for parking in the middle of each semicircle; the plan proposed thirteen such terminals. DFW held an open house and dedication ceremony on September 20–23, 1973, which included the first landing of a supersonic Concorde in the United States, an Air France aircraft en route from Caracas to Paris.
The attendees at the airport's dedication included former Texas Governor John Connally, Transportation Secretary Claude Brinegar, U. S. Senator Lloyd Bentsen and Texas Governor Dolph Briscoe; the airport opened for commercial service as Dallas/Fort Worth Regional Airport on January 13, 1974, at a cost of $700 million. The first flight to land was American Airlines Flight 341 from New York, which had stopped in Memphis and Little Rock; the name change to Dallas/Fort Worth International did not occur until 1985. When it opened, DFW had four terminals, numbered 2W, 2E, 3E and 4E. During its first year of operations, the airport was served by American Airlines, Braniff International Airways, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Eastern Air Lines, Frontier Airlines, Ozark Air Lines, Rio Airways and Texas International Airlines; the Wright Amendment of 1979 banned long distance flights into Love Field, leaving Southwest Airlines as Love Field's only jet airline and operating as an intrastate air carrier in the state of Texas.
Braniff International Airways was a major operator at DFW in the airport's early years, operating a hub from Terminal 2W with international flights to South America and Mexico from 1974, London from 1978 and Europe and Asi
Abilene, Texas
Abilene is a city in Taylor and Jones counties in Texas, United States. The population was 117,463 at the 2010 census, making it the 27th-most populous city in the state of Texas, it is the principal city of the Abilene Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had a 2017 estimated population of 170,219. It is the county seat of Taylor County. Dyess Air Force Base is located on the west side of the city. Abilene is located between exits 279 on its western edge and 292 on the east. Abilene is 150 miles west of Fort Worth; the city is looped by I-20 to the north, US 83/84 on the west, Loop 322 to the east. A railroad divides the city down the center into south; the historic downtown area is on the north side of the railroad. Established by cattlemen as a stock shipping point on the Texas and Pacific Railway in 1881, the city was named after Abilene, the original endpoint for the Chisholm Trail; the T&P had bypassed the town of the county seat at the time. A landowner north of Buffalo Gap, Clabe Merchant, known as the father of Abilene, chose the name for the new town.
According to a Dallas newspaper, about 800 people had begun camping at the townsite before the lots were sold. The town was laid out by Colonel J. Stoddard Johnson, the auction of lots began early on March 15, 1881. By the end of the first day, 139 lots were sold for a total of $23,810, another 178 lots were sold the next day for $27,550. Abilene was incorporated soon after being founded in 1881, Abilenians began to set their sights on bringing the county seat to Abilene, in a three-to-one vote, won the election. In 1888, the Progressive Committee was formed to attract businesses to the area, which became the Board of Trade in 1890. By 1900, 3,411 people lived in Abilene, in that decade, the Board of Trade changed its name to the 25,000 Club in the hope of reaching 25,000 people by the next census. However, this committee failed when the population only hit 9,204 in 1910. Replacing it was the Young Men's Booster Club, which became the Abilene Chamber of Commerce in 1914; the cornerstone was laid for the first of three future universities in Abilene, called Simmons College, in 1891, which became Hardin–Simmons University.
Childers Classical Institute followed in 1906 Abilene Christian University, the largest of the three. In 1923, McMurry College was founded and became McMurry University. Much more Abilene succeeded in bringing Cisco Junior College and Texas State Technical College branches to Abilene, with the Cisco Junior College headquarters being located in Abilene. In 1940, Abilene raised the money to purchase land for a U. S. Army base, southwest of town, named Camp Barkeley, at the time twice the size of Abilene with 60,000 men; when the base closed, many worried that Abilene could become a ghost town, but in the post-World War II boom, many servicemen returned to start businesses in Abilene. In the early-1950s, residents raised $893,261 to purchase 3,400 acres of land for an Air Force base. Today, Dyess Air Force Base is the city's largest employer, with 6,076 employees. Abilene's population nearly doubled in 10 years from 45,570 in 1950 to 90,638. In the same year, a second high school was added, Cooper High School.
In 1966, the Abilene Zoo was created near Abilene Regional Airport. The following year, one of the most important bond elections in the city's history passed for the funding of the construction of the Abilene Civic Center and the Taylor County Coliseum, as well as major improvements to Abilene Regional Airport. In 1969, the Woodson elementary and high school for black students closed as the school system was integrated. In 1982, Abilene became the first city in Texas to create a downtown reinvestment zone. Texas State Technical College opened an Abilene branch three years later; the 2,250-bed French Robertson Prison Unit was built in 1989. A half-cent sales tax earmarked for economic development was created after the decline in the petroleum business in the 1980s. A branch of Cisco Junior College was located in the city in 1990; the Grace Museum and Paramount Theatre revitalizations, along with Artwalk in 1992, sparked a decade of downtown restoration. In 2004, Frontier Texas!, a multimedia museum highlighting the history of the area from 1780 to 1880, was constructed, a new $8 million, 38-acre Cisco Junior College campus was built at Loop 322 and Industrial Boulevard.
Subdivisions and businesses started locating along the freeway, on the same side as the CJC campus, showing a slow but progressive trend for Abilene growth on the Loop. Abilene has become the commercial, retail and transportation hub of a 19-county area more known as "The Big Country", but known as the "Texas Midwest", is part of the Central Great Plains ecoregion. By the end of 2005, commercial and residential development had reached record levels in and around the city. Abilene is located in northeastern Taylor County; the city limits extend north into Jones County. Interstate 20 leads west 148 miles to Midland. Three U. S. highways pass through the city. US 83 runs west of the city center, leading south 55 miles to Ballinger. US 84 runs with US 83 through the southwest part of the city but leads southeast 52 miles to Coleman and west with I-20 40 miles to Sweetwater. US 277 follows US 83 around the northwest side of the city and north to Anson but heads southwest from Abilene 89 miles so San Angelo.
According to the United States Census Bureau, Abilene has a total area of 112.2 square miles, of which 106.8 square miles are land and 5.4 square miles are covered by
Martin 2-0-2
The Martin 2-0-2 was an airliner introduced in 1947. The twin piston-engined fixed-wing aircraft was built by the Glenn L. Martin Company. Glenn L. Martin, president of the company, intended that the Model 2-0-2 would be a replacement for the Douglas DC-3, it was known as the "Martin Executive". The first flight of the model was in November 1946. Full civilian certification was gained in August 1947, several months before competing aircraft types; the total production of 2-0-2s and 2-0-2As was 47 aircraft. The aircraft was considered a long-range airliner; the fatal crash in 1948 of Northwest Airlines Flight 421 revealed a serious structural problem in the wings. Structural metal fatigue was the problem in a major wing spar. Alloy 7075-T6 was used, susceptible to stress-corrosion cracking and low toughness; the airliner was grounded and modifications were made. The wing components were redesigned and the engines replaced; the changed type was designated the Martin 2-0-2A. On November 13, 1945 Pennsylvania Central Airlines purchased a fleet of 35 Martin 2-0-2s from the Glenn Martin Company for $7,000,000.
Two weeks Colonial Airlines announced that they would purchase 20 airplanes for $4,000,000, scheduled for delivery in 1947. Early in the next year, Martin announced that Pennsylvania Central Airlines had ordered 15 more 2-0-2s, bringing the total aircraft on order in early January 1947 to 137 aircraft, with a sales value of $27,000,000. Despite the announcement of these large orders, the contract terms allowed the airlines to cancel them without any penalty; the 2-0-2 was unpressurised, unlike the competing Convair 240. Therefore, as delays in production built up, all airlines except Northwest, TWA, LAN, LAV cancelled their orders and only 31 2-0-2s and 12 2-0-2As were delivered to the airlines; the first scheduled flight was on Northwest between Minneapolis and Chicago on 13 October 1947. The 2-0-2 was the first airplane subjected to the CAA's new'Accelerated Service Test', introduced May 15, 1947. In this test, an airliner was to undergo a rigorous 150-hour test, attempting to squeeze one year's service into a week to 10 days of flying.
The 2-0-2 made such a test visiting about 50 cities in 7 days. At each city, comprehensive inspections were made of the aircraft systems to assess how wear or malfunction would occur. TWA and Northwest, initial customers of the 2-0-2 sold theirs to California Central and Pioneer Airlines. Allegheny Airlines acquired many of the 2-0-2s as part of the company's expansion plans, beginning June 1, 1955, they acquired a total of 18 aircraft. Only one of this type of aircraft is known to survive, at the Aviation Hall of Fame and Museum of New Jersey; this airliner was developed into the Martin 4-0-4, more successful. The Martin Company designated the following quantities for the airlines, listed by Martin Model number: 2-0-2 twin engine prototype: 3, in 1946 2-0-2FL twin engine commercial transport, Chile: 4, in 1947 2-0-2NW twin engine commercial transport, Northwest Airlines: 25, in 1947 2-0-2LAV twin engine commercial transport, Venezuela: 2, in 1947 2-0-2A twin engine commercial transport, Trans World Airlines: 21, in 1947 2-0-2E twin engine commercial transport, Eastern Airlines: 25, in 1947 ♠ original operators ChileLAN Chile ♠ ColombiaAeroproveedora JapanJapan Air Lines MexicoServicios Aéreos Baja PanamaRAPSA Panama United StatesAdmiral Airlines Allegheny Airlines California Central Airlines Martin Air Transport Modern Air Transport Northwest Orient Airlines ♠ Pacific Air Lines Pioneer Air Lines Southeast Airlines Southwest Airways Trans World Airlines ♠ Transocean Airlines VenezuelaLinea Aeropostal Venezolana ♠ The Martin 2-0-2 had 13 hull-loss accidents and incidents of which nine were fatal accidents.
29 August 1948 - Northwest Airlines Flight 421 crashed after losing a wing near Winona, United States, with 37 fatalities. 7 March 1950 - Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 307 crashed after hitting a flag pole near Minneapolis-St. Paul, United States, with 15 fatalities including two on the ground. 13 October 1950 - A Northwest Orient 2-0-2 crashed on a training flight at Almelund, with 6 fatalities. 7 November 1950 - Northwest Orient Flight 115 crashed into a mountain near Butte, United States, with 21 fatalities. 16 January 1951 - Northwest Orient Flight 115 crashed near Reardon, United States, after sudden unexplained loss of control during cruise. 10 fatalities. 5 November 1951 - Transocean Air Flight 5763 crashed on approach to Tucumcari, New Mexico, United States, with one fatality. 9 April 1952 - Japan Airlines Mokusei crashed into Mihara volcano, Ōshima Island, with 37 fatalities. 12 January 1955 - Trans World Airlines Flight 694 was destroyed in a midair collision with a Douglas DC-3 near Covington, United States, with 13 fatalities plus two on the DC-3.
14 November 1955 - A Allegheny Airlines 2-0-2 had a collapsed undercarriage during a training flight, landing at Wilmington-Newcastle Airport and was damaged beyond repair. 30 December 1955 - A Southwest Airlines 2-0-2 was destroyed in a hangar fire at San Francisco, United States. 21 August 1959 - A Pacific Air Lines 2-0-2A was damaged beyond repair after a ground incident with a C-46 Commando at Burbank, United States. 1 December 1959 - Allegheny Airlines Flight 371 crashed into a mountain on approach Williamsport, United States, with 25 fatalities. 2 November 196
Saab 340
The Saab 340 is a Swedish twin-engine turboprop aircraft designed and produced by a partnership between Saab AB and Fairchild Aircraft in a 65:35 ratio. Under the initial arrangement, Saab constructed the all-aluminium fuselage and vertical stabilizer along with final assembly of the aircraft in Linköping, while Fairchild was responsible for the wings and wing-mounted nacelles for the two turboprop engines. After Fairchild ceased this work, production of these components was transferred to Sweden. On 25 January 1983, the Saab 340 conducted its maiden flight. During the early 1990s, an enlarged derivative of the airliner, designated as the Saab 2000, was introduced. However, sales of the type declined due to intense competition within the regional aircraft market. In 1998, Saab decided to terminate production of the Saab 340. During the 1970s, Swedish aircraft manufacturer Saab AB became interested in the civil aircraft market. In 1974, the company decided to proceed with developing its first major civilian aircraft, having focused entirely upon military aircraft.
During the late 1970s, internal studies had determined that a short-haul airliner should be optimised to seat around 30 passengers. It was decided that to make use of turboprop propulsion, slower but more economical than turbofan engines, to optimise the airliner to take advantage of this type of powerplant. According to author Gunnar Eliasson, the selection of a turboprop engine made the type less attractive to airlines than jet-powered competitors, however recognised that the General Electric CT7-5A2 engine picked was quite competitive with the jet engines of that era; as conceived, the airliner was to match the performance of jets within its short-haul role. Towards the end of the 1970s, the regional airliner venture had become the largest industrial venture in Sweden and was recognised as being too large for Saab to conduct alone. Accordingly, in January 1980, it was announced that Saab had entered into a partnership arrangement with US manufacturer Fairchild Aircraft to develop and produce the upcoming regional airliner.
Under this partnership, Fairchild became responsible for the manufacture of sections such as the wings, tail unit, engine nacelles while Saab was responsible for 75 per cent of the costs of development, system integration and certification. To match the new partnership, the type received the designation of SF340; the decision to develop a new generation regional airliner had fortuitously coincided with the removal of control by the US federal government under the 1978 Airline Deregulation Act, an event which would notably contribute to sales of the type during the following decade. The 340 shared several manufacturing and design techniques that were used in Saab's military aircraft, such as the in-development Saab JAS 39 Gripen multirole combat aircraft. One such technique was eliminating the use of rivets on the aluminium structures, using diffusion bonding instead, to reduce weight. On 25 January 1983, the first SF340 performed its maiden flight. Shortly following its launch onto the market in 1984, the Saab 340 became the best selling commuter aircraft in the world.
By 1987, all activity by Fairchild on the programme had ceased, the US company having chosen to curtail its aircraft activities, thus Saab became responsible for producing the 340. In 1985, due to Fairchild's decision to exit the aircraft manufacturing business following the completion of the first 40 units, Saab dropped the Fairchild name from the project and proceeded to continue aircraft production, referring to the type under the designation Saab 340A. A total of 159 A models were manufactured. In 1989, an improved version of the airliner, the second generation 340B, introduced more powerful engines and wider horizontal stabilizers. A total of 200 aircraft were built. In 1994, the final third generation version, the 340B Plus, was delivered for service and incorporated improvements that were being introduced at the same time upon the larger Saab 2000, itself a derivative of the 340. A total of 100 aircraft were completed; the Saab 340 seated between 30 and 36 passengers, with 34 seats being the most common configuration.
The last two 340s built were constructed as older configuration 36-seat aircraft for Japan Air Commuter. One of the major improvements introduced in the 340B Plus was the installation of an active noise and vibration control system in the cabin, reducing noise and vibration levels by about ten dB during cruising flight; this optional feature carried over from the 340B was standard in the 340B Plus along with extended wingtips, an option on the 340B, about 30 aircraft having the WT option. Another change from earlier models was a more modern interior design and the moving of the lavatory compartment from the aft of the passenger cabin to just aft of the flight deck in most 3rd generation units; this increased total available cargo volume as the original location intruded into the cargo bin area. While the active noise control became standard on all Saab 340Bs in 1994 the first-ever 340B Plus was delivered new to Hazelton Airlines in Australia in 1995 operating for Regional Express, for the Japanese Coast Guard.
The system could be retrofitted onto existing airliners. During the early 1980s, Sweden's Defence Materiel Administration requested that Ericsson, a Swedish electronics company, develop a suitable radar for an airborne early warning system; the corresponding system was soon paired with the 340 as a platform. Several military variants of
Envoy Air
Envoy Air Inc. is an air carrier headquartered in Irving, Texas, in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of American Airlines Group that, along with several carriers outside the group, feeds the American Airlines route network under the American Eagle brand. With over 1000 flights a day, serving 150 cities across the United States, Canada and the Caribbean, Envoy is considered to be one of the world's largest regional airline systems. Envoy is an affiliate member of the Oneworld airline alliance; the name "American Eagle Airlines" was used between April 1980 and April 1981 by an unrelated air charter service that suspended operations and filed bankruptcy before flying any scheduled operations. Envoy began as a collection of regional carriers with contracts to carry the American Eagle brand name; the first American Eagle flight was operated by Metroflight Airlines, a wholly owned subsidiary of Metro Airlines, on November 1, 1984, from Fayetteville and Fort Smith, Arkansas, to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.
Metroflight utilized Convair 580 turboprop aircraft, operated by Frontier Airlines. Other carriers that have flown in American Eagle livery include Executive Airlines, Command Airways, Air Virginia, Simmons Airlines, Chaparral Airlines and Wings West Airlines. Among other aircraft in its fleet, Chaparral flew Grumman I-C turboprops which were stretched, 37 passenger regional airliner versions of Grumman's successful propjet business aircraft and was one of only a few air carriers to operate the type in scheduled passenger service; until 1987 these third-party carriers flew under contract with American Airlines to provide regional feed to its hubs. During 1987 and 1988 AMR Corp. acquired its regional carriers, starting with Simmons Airlines. AMR's final airline d/b/a American Eagle acquisition was Executive Airlines in 1989. By mid-1991 AMR had consolidated the number of carriers to four; the May 15, 1998, merger of Wings West and Flagship into Simmons reduced the number of carriers flying as American Eagle under separate operating certificates to two: American Eagle Airlines, Inc. and Executive Airlines, Inc.
During 2007, AMR began studying ways to spin American Eagle Airlines off into a separate company, but not limited to, the possibilities of selling the company to either stockholders or to an unaffiliated third party. In 2008, AMR said any plans had been put on hold until the airline industry stabilized after the worldwide financial crisis. In July 2011, AMR announced the spin-off of American Eagle Airlines but those plans were again put on hold when Parent AMR Corp. filed for bankruptcy in November 2011. In 2014 the company changed its name to Envoy Air Inc. but American Eagle continues to live on as a brand, as well as livery for Envoy-operated and third party-operated regional flights. In January 1988, Nashville Eagle became AMR Corp.’s first and only start-up airline, using equipment acquired from Air Midwest. American Eagle Airlines launched its regional jet service in May 1998 using Embraer ERJ 145 aircraft. Business Express was acquired by AMR Eagle Holdings Corporation in March 1999, although it never flew under the American Eagle brand before being integrated into American Eagle Airlines, Inc. in December 2000.
On January 14, 2014, American Airlines Group announced the rebranding of its American Eagle subsidiary as Envoy. Aircraft operated by American Eagle continued to operate under the current American Eagle branding, but an "Operated by Envoy Air" label was added, similar to the label used by other contract airlines that fly aircraft with American Eagle livery; this name change was created to avoid confusion when American Airlines announced that other regional carriers would operate on behalf of American. The term'Envoy' is a reincarnation of the now deprecated Envoy Class of seating on US Airways aircraft; the headquarters is in Irving, Texas, in two buildings located north of the northeast portion of DFW Airport. American Eagle was headquartered at the American Airlines headquarters in Fort Worth and had employees in several buildings: HDQ1, HDQ2, the Systems Operations Control center, the DFW American Eagle hangar, the DFW-area warehouse CP-28, Flight Academy, the Flagship University, it was scheduled to move 600 employees.
For a brief period American Eagle Airlines cooperated with Trans World Airlines by allowing the placement of the TW two letter IATA code upon American Eagle Airlines flights feeding into Los Angeles and New York's JFK Airports. These services were known as the Trans World Connection; these American Eagle Airlines/Trans World agreements were forged prior to and well in advance of AMR Corporation's route and asset acquisition of TWA in 2001. Until April 11, 2012, the carrier had a codeshare agreement with Delta Air Lines on California routes. Chicago, Illinois – Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas – Miami, Florida – New York, New York – There were bases in Boston, Los Angeles, Raleigh/Durham, San Juan; as of April 2019, the Envoy Air fleet consists of the following aircraft: In September 2009, AMR Corporation announced plans to add a First Class cabin to its fleet of 25 Bombardier CRJ700 regional jets and signed a letter of intent with Bombardier, Inc. to exercise options for the purchase of 22 additional CRJ700 aircraft for delivery beginning in the mi
