Eastwind Airlines

Airline infobox
airline=Eastwind Airlines
logo=Eastwind.pnglogo_size=150| fleet_size=5
destinations=11
IATA=W9
ICAO=BBE
callsign=Stinger Bee
parent=
founded=August 1995
headquarters=Trenton, NJ" [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE0DB123BF93BA35753C1A963958260 IN BRIEF; Trenton-Based Airline To Add Florida Flights] ," "The New York Times"] /Greensboro, NC" [http://www.bizjournals.com/triad/stories/1999/05/10/story1.html?t=printable Eastwind struggles in turbulent times] ," "The Business Journal"] "The fledgling: tiny Eastwind Airlines fights for flights, spreading its wings at Piedmont Triad International Airport." "Business North Carolina". [http://www.allbusiness.com/north-america/united-states-north-carolina/688542-1.html 2] .] | key_people=Jim McNally
hubs=Trenton, NJ/Greensboro, NC
frequent_flyer=
lounge=
alliance=
website= [http://web.archive.org/web/19981212024546/http://www.eastwindairlines.com Eastwind Airlines] (defunct)

Eastwind Airlines was a start-up airline formed in mid-1995 and headquartered in Trenton, New Jersey, United States, and later in Greensboro, North Carolina. Jim McNally, a former Price Waterhouse analyst who had headed that firm's recovery teams when several other airlines sought management and investment help, founded the airline. McNally's paper airline found a benefactor in UM Holdings, a Haddonfield, New Jersey-based investment company, which provided investment capital."The fledgling: tiny Eastwind Airlines fights for flights, spreading its wings at Piedmont Triad International Airport." "Business North Carolina". [http://www.allbusiness.com/north-america/united-states-north-carolina/688542-1.html 3] .]

The airline began in August 1995. Eastwind chose Trenton as no major airlines served Trenton and the airline believed that it could attract passengers from Philadelphia and New York City. [The fledgling: tiny Eastwind Airlines fights for flights, spreading its wings at Piedmont Triad International Airport." "Business North Carolina". [http://www.allbusiness.com/north-america/united-states-north-carolina/688542-1.html 4] .] The headquarters moved to Greensboro in 1996 after Continental Airlines ended the Continental Lite operations in Greensboro.

Destinations

The airline had destinations across the East Coast of the United States including:

Florida

*Fort Lauderdale (Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport)
*Jacksonville, Florida (Jacksonville International Airport)" [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0CE2D61F39F935A35755C0A960958260 NEW JERSEY DAILY BRIEFING;New Flights to Atlanta] ," "The New York Times"]
*Orlando (Orlando International Airport)" [http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/stories/1999/07/26/daily24.html Eastwind ousts execs] ," "Orlando Business Journal"]
*Saint Petersburg (Saint Petersburg Clearwater International Airport)
*Tampa (Tampa International Airport)
*West Palm Beach (Palm Beach International Airport)

=Georgia=

*Atlanta (Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport)

Massachusetts

*Boston (Logan International Airport)

New Jersey

*Trenton (Trenton-Mercer Airport)

New York

*Rochester (Greater Rochester International Airport)

North Carolina

*Greensboro/High Point/Winston-Salem (Piedmont Triad International Airport)

Pennsylvania

*Philadelphia (Philadelphia International Airport)
*Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh International Airport)

Rhode Island

*Providence (T.F. Green Airport)

Virginia

*Richmond (Richmond International Airport)
*Washington, DC area (Washington Dulles International Airport)

Fleet

At the height of the airline's operation in 1998, it operated a fleet of three Boeing 737-200 and two Boeing 737-700 aircraft.

Accidents and incidents

On June 9, 1996 Eastwind Airlines Flight 517, a Boeing 737-200 experienced a reported loss of rudder control while on approach to Richmond from Trenton. There was one minor injury to a flight attendant and no damage to the airplane as a result of the incident. At the time of the event the airplane's airspeed was about 250 knots and at 4,000 feet MSL. On approach the crew experienced unexpected movement of the rudder causing the airplane rolling to the right. The crew applied opposite rudder imput to keep the plane from rolling over. Thirty-seconds later the plane righted itself back to normal flight. As the crew performed the emergency checklist the plane again rolled over to the right. Another thirty-seconds went by before the plane snapped back to level. The crew declared an emergency and landed safety in Richmond. Investigation of this incident would later help solve two other mysterious accidents: United Airlines Flight 585 and USAir Flight 427.

An Eastwind Airlines flight described the first reports of TWA Flight 800 exploding. ["The fledgling: tiny Eastwind Airlines fights for flights, spreading its wings at Piedmont Triad International Airport." "Business North Carolina". [http://www.allbusiness.com/north-america/united-states-north-carolina/688542-1.html 6] .]

Financial problems

Due to the short runway at Trenton-Mercer Airport, the airline served Philadelphia for a short time, but consolidated its flights back to Trenton, New Jersey in early 1999 when Delta Air Lines terminated their contract to handle ground services.

By 1999, the airline faced some performance concerns as well as financial trouble. In July 1999, the airline terminated several senior managers including its CEO. [ [http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/stories/1999/07/26/daily24.html Eastwind ousts execs - Orlando Business Journal: ] ]

The financial problems were exacerbated by the purchase of two new Boeing 737-700 aircraft in 1997. Service issues created tension with its customers, resulting in large numbers of complaints filed with the FAA. In 1999, two passengers in Greensboro who feared being stranded in Greensboro refused to get off an airplane forcing the captain to call authorities.

While the airline's management refused to file for bankruptcy, in October 1999, three creditors filed a petition for involuntary bankruptcy in an effort to force the airline to liquidate. The airline ceased operations not long afterwards.

References

External links

* [http://web.archive.org/web/19981212024546/http://www.eastwindairlines.com/ Eastwind Airlines Website Circa 1998 (Courtesy of Archive.org)]
* [http://www.ntsb.gov/events/usair427/images.htm Eastwind 517 NTSB images]