Kendell Airlines

Infobox Airline
airline = Kendell Airlines

logo_size = 175
IATA = KD
ICAO = KDA
callsign = Kendell
parent = Ansett Australia
founded = 1967
ceased = 2001
key_people = Don Kendell "(founder, former owner and CEO)"
headquarters = Wagga Wagga, Australia
hubs = Wagga Wagga
frequent_flyer = "Global Rewards"
lounge = "Golden Wing Club"
alliance = Star Alliance
destinations = Adelaide, Broken Hill, Ceduna, CooberPedy, Kingscote, Mt Cambier, Olympic Dam, Pt Lincoln, Whyalia, Canberra, Rockhampton, Brisbane, Melbourne, Albury, Burnie, Canberra, Devonport, Hobart, King Island, Launceston, Merimbula, Miidura, Mt Gambier, Portland, Wagga Wagga, Sydney, Ballina and Coffs Harbour
fleet_size = "58"
website = [http://www.kendell.com.au/ www.kendell.com.au]

Kendell Airlines was once Australia's largest regional airline. It serviced major regional centres in New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania from Melbourne, Adelaide, and Sydney as well as working with Ansett Australia in providing the Capital Shuttle between Sydney and Canberra. Kendell was placed into administration with its parent company, Ansett Australia Group in 2001. Unlike Ansett Australia, Kendell continued to operate a limited schedule, and also filled a temporary void left by Ansett Australia by flying between Sydney-Canberra-Melbourne and Melbourne-Mt Gambier-Adelaide.

In 2002, Kendell, and fellow Ansett subsidiary, Hazelton Airlines, were sold to a consortium known as Australiawide Airlines. In August 2002, Hazelton and Kendell, under the ownership of Australiawide Airlines , merged to create Regional Express which operate 12 of Kendell's Saab 340 aircraft.

History

Don Kendell, after training as a pilot in Australia and pursuing a successful career flying Herons, DC3s and Viscounts for British European Airways in the United Kingdom between 1955 and 1959, returned to farming in south western New South Wales.

However, aviation remained a strong interest and in 1965 he moved to Wagga Wagga to become involved in a small general aviation operation. Don and his wife Eilish later purchased the operation and incorporated it in 1967 as Premiair Aviation, an air charter and flying school company.

In 1971 he took over the Wagga Wagga-Melbourne route from Ansett, flying a Piper PA-31(VH-DAP) [http://www.spiritsofansett.com/history/history_kd.htm] . At that time the name of the company was changed to Kendell Airlines and it added the West Wyalong-Sydney and Wagga Wagga-Canberra routes to start what has since become one of Australia's most successful airlines.

The network grew as Kendell added De Havilland Heron aircraft and, after the oil crisis of the late 1970s, its first 19-seat (eventually reduced to 16 seats) fully pressurised turboprop Swearingen Metro II (Metroliner) on May 24, 1979, (registered as VH-KDR, today VH-IAU). On 16 February 1985 Kendell introduced its first 34-seat Saab 340A (registered as VH-KDK) advanced technology regional airlinerndash the first airline in the southern hemisphere to operate the Saab which is still in service todayndash and less than 12 months later, Kendell virtually doubled its network overnight when it took over the South Australian routes of Airlines of South Australia, an operator owned by Ansett Australia. In May 1986 Kendell added its second Saab 340A (VH-KDP), and followed with its third in October 1988 (VH-KDI). The fourth VH-EKD entered service in 1989.

Since then Kendell coped with competition and expanded its route network, adding additional Saab 340 and Metro aircraft to its fleet. Kendell has expanded partly through the acquisition of routes and services from Ansett Australia. Deregulation of the domestic trunk routes in 1990 made it difficult for trunk operators to maintain unviable regional and country services.

Services to Burnie, Tasmania, were introduced in 1989 in the wake of the crippling pilots' dispute. This did not affect Kendell which later extended to Devonport. Wagga Wagga and Albury to Sydney were added to the network in 1995. For its Sydney network, Kendell leased 3 brand new Saab 340B+ aircraft, plus some additional older 340B's.

Kendell's outstanding record was recognised in 1990 when it won the inaugural Civil Aviation Authority's Airways Award for Excellence for the Best Airline. Qantas and Continental Airlines were runners-up.

In August 1991, Kendell moved its head office to larger premises at 86 Bayiis Street, Wagga Wagga.

In February 1992, Kendell was awarded the prestigious Regional Airline of the Year Award by the Washington based international aviation magazine, Air Transport World.

A further milestone was the start in March 1996, in conjunction with Ansett Australia jet services, of the "Capital Shuttle"ndash a high frequency service between Sydney and the nation's capital, Canberra. As part of this high quality service, Kendell operated up to 1 3 return flights a day. The "Capital Shuttle" was significant in that it was the first service where Ansett Australia and Kendell operated services on the same route. It was also the first regular service Kendell operated on what was traditionally defined as a trunk route.

In July and August 1996, this principle of Ansett jet services being complemented by turboprop Kendell services was extended to the Sydney-Coffs Harbour and Sydney-Ballina routes.

The continuing expansion led to additional Saab 340s (in Ansett Colour schemes) being acquired and the Saab fleet comprisesed 16 of the type including new Saab 340B aircraft (and 1 more Saab 340A) which entered service starting in 1995. The original 6 Saab 340's were converted to the Ansett colour scheme and 5 of those 6 units eventually survived with Regional Express.

The major route expansion and the purchase of 12 new CRJ jet aircraft saw the airline more than double in size. But these planes were taken back to Canada when the airline ceased operations.

The name behind the Airline

Don Kendell, founder and Chairman of the airline that bears his name, had a life-long love of flying. The success of Kendell Airlines is due largely to his love of aviation, together with his persistence inherited from his time on the land and business acumen.

Even as a small boy on his parents' wheat and sheep property in south western New South Wales, aviation held a fascination for Don. He remembers as a seven-year-old he ran barefoot for nearly a mile through paddocks full of saffron thistle to just watch a biplane take off.

He attended Geelong College after a period at bush schools but returned to his parents' property near Lockhart, NSW, to help during a drought in 1946. But the flying bug was strong and in 1949 at the age of 19, Don took flying lessons in Wagga Wagga and soon obtained his licence.

After a period in the RAAF Reserves, successful barnstorming trips around western Victoria flying Tiger Moths and a round Australia odyssey looking for flying work, Don set off for England in 1955.

There he sat for and passed his commercial pilots licence and started working for British European Airways flying Herons, DC3s and later turboprop Viscounts. While in the United Kingdom he met and married Eilish Burke.

He returned to Australia and farming in 1959 but the aviation bug soon took hold again and in 1965 he and his wife moved to Wagga Wagga to become partners in a small flying business.

After buying out their partners, Don and Eilish Kendell set up Premiair Aviation with two Piper Cherokee aircraft. The company was incorporated in 1967 and the name changed to Kendell Airlines in 1971. Since then Kendell has grown steadily despite setbacks caused by rural downturns and the oil crisis.

In a business notorious for a very high failure rate, Kendell Airlines prospered and grew while many other companies came and went.

Don Kendell's individual style and integrity has earned him enormous respect and admiration throughout the airline industry.

He had a simple philosophy: Offer a reliable, frequent service at the best possible price. He believed that there is no room for sentiment in the airline businessndash if a route does not pay then you cease to operate it. It is a yardstick that stood him in good stead.

In 1992, Don Kendell was made a member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the Queen's Birthday Honors for his services to aviation.

While retired from day to day activity with the airline, Don retained a keen interest as non-executive chairman until early 2001. Don Kendell died on 15 October 2001 [http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/stories/s391168.htm] at the age of 71 after a battle with cancer.

A rugged individualist Don Kendell was a no nonsense man who looked more like a prosperous farmer than the boss of a major airline. He remained firmly committed to regional Australia and resisted attempts to move the airlines head office from Wagga Wagga.

He is survived by his wife Eilish, two sons, Guy and Miles, and two daughters, Mary and Sarah, and grandchildren.

Fleet

Kendell had 23 turboprop, pressurised regional airlinersndash 16 Saab 340s (15 were 34 seaters, one was a 33 seater) and seven 19 seat Fairchild Metro 23s (Metroliners) and was in the process of taking delivery of 12 new 50-seat Bombardier CRJ200 jet aircraft. Kendell had options for a further 12 CRJ aircraft. 9 of the 16 Saabs that operated for Kendell are now operating for Regional Express with some of them refurbished with complete new paint and upgraded leather interiors. 11 out of the 12 CRJ-200 jets were sold to Mesa Airlines.

AAB 340

FAIRCHILD METRO 23 (METROLINER)

External links

* [http://www.rex.com.au/ Official REX Regional Express Website]
* [http://www.freewebs.com/ansett Ansett Australia | One Of The World's Great Airlines]