CUBA AEROPOSTAL, S. A.: Cuba (1948-1961). CA is set up at Havana on August 16, 1948 to operate all-cargo services around the island. Three Curtiss C-46 Commandos are acquired and revenue flights commence on May 3, 1949 over a route to Nueva Gerona.
Unheralded flights continue until June 1961 when the carrier is taken over by Cubana (Empresa Consolidada Cubana de Aviacion, S. A.).
CUBANA (COMPANIA CUBANA DE AVIACION, S. A.): Cuba (1945-1959). Cubana (Compania Nacional Cubana de Aviacion, S. A.), a wholly owned subsidiary of Pan American Airways (PAA), is
Renamed in the fall of 1945. Plans are now made to allow Cuban interests to acquire shareholding and, on December 31, private local concerns and citizens purchase 48,000 shares or 48% interest.
Although the Ford 5-AT-40 is sold to Air Tours of Put-in-Bay, Ohio, on July 26, 1946, it will end its days with Johnson Flying Service of Montana in 1953. Paralleling in reverse the original 1927 Pan American Airways (PAA) inaugural route, the carrier, now employing the Cubana marketing name, launches its first international service on May 15, 1946, Havana-Miami. The fleet in 1947 comprises 12 Douglas DC-3s.
Cuban interests gain 52% majority control of the carrier on April 5, 1948, although Pan American Airways (PAA), as principal minority owner, continues strong administrative and technical support. Employing a DC-4 leased from its former parent and christened Estrella de Cuba, Cubana initiates transatlantic Havana-Madrid service via the Azores on April 26. Pan American Airways (PAA) delivers a second DC-4, Ruta da Colon, later in the fall. Five additional DC-4s are acquired in 1949.
The holding by Juan Trippe’s carrier insures award of a U. S. airmail contract on February 15, 1950 and DC-4s now replace DC-3s on the Miami frequencies. A DC-3 is lost in dense fog at Holguin, Cuba, on November 25; although the aircraft must be written off, there are no fatalities.
Shareholding by Pan American World Airways (1), as the American major is now known, is reduced to 42% on March 31, 1951.
En route from Havana to Miami on April 25, a DC-4 with 5 crew and 34 passengers collides off Key West with a USN Beech SNB with four crew, which is on an instrument training mission; both aircraft go down and there are no survivors.
On June 3, a joint Transocean Air Lines (TAL) and Loftleidir, H. F./ Icelandic Airlines U. S. to U. K. charter flight, with British war brides and children aboard, is rerouted via Cuba and France. The U. K. has refused the TOAL DC-4 a landing permit, acting under a CAB rules limiting charter flights to educational and religious groups. At Havana, the charter is shifted to Cubana, which is allowed to fly to the U. K. on June 7.
On January 1, 1952, a CAB ban on New York to Havana flights by Cubana is lifted. A DC-4 with 5 crew and 32 passengers en route from Madrid to Havana on December 6, crashes in the Atlantic Ocean, 2 miles off Kindley Air Base, Bermuda (37 dead)
Cuban interests take 80% shareholding on April 7, 1953. Meanwhile, long-haul and regional route expansion from Miami to Varadero Beach begins January 23), Havana to New York, reciprocal with National Airlines, on May 1, Havana to Mexico City via Merida on September 17, and Havana-to Port-au-Prince on November 28. Two ex-Pan American World Airways (1) Lockheed L-049s are purchased during the summer and are placed in service on the Mexico City route in the fall.
A C-46A is lost at Rando Boyeros on May 17, 1954; there are no fatalities, but the aircraft must be written off.
On July 23, Juan Trippe’s airline sells its last shares and ends its 22-year sponsorship. To avoid the adverse publicity surrounding the major’s pull-out, Cubana launches a large advertising campaign in the U. S. aimed at luring travelers who might gravitate to other Cuba-bound American-owned airlines.
A Lockheed L-1049E is leased from Pan American World Airways (1) and placed on the Madrid and Mexico City routes while orders are placed for 3 new L-1049Gs and 12 Curtis C-46A/D freighters. A second L-1049E is purchased and this is delivered from Los Angeles to Havana on November 22 in a record 7 hrs. 20 min. On December 1, it, too, begins flying from Havana to Madrid via Bermuda, Santa Maria in the Azores, and Lisbon.
The first C-47A/Ds join the fleet in 1955, providing all-cargo services to Miami and other destinations. The new L-1049E also begins to fly to New York and Mexico City. Two L-049s are sold to El Al Israel Airlines, Ltd. in October and 3 British-built Vickers Viscount 755s are ordered in December.
The first of 3 L-1049Gs to arrive in 1956 is delivered on February 20. The Super Connies are placed on the Madrid and Mexico City services on March 14 and are employed to launch nonstop, daily flights to New York on May 12. The Viscounts arrive simultaneously and enter operations on May 25. Additional orders are sent to Vickers in the fall as the leased Pan American World Airways (1) L-1049E is returned and the owned L-1049E is sold to Seaboard & Western Airlines. Former General Manager Juan M. Palli Diaz becomes president at year’s end.
Five Viscount 818s are introduced during 1957. Early in the year, President Palli Diaz hires top artists to provide nightclub-style entertainment as an inducement on the Thursday evening L-049 Havana-Miami service; the publicity and load factors gained by “The Tropicana Express” are significant. The Viscount 755s begin to arrive in late spring and are placed on the Miami route beginning in August.
On April 4-5, 1958, 16 Cubana pilots seek political asylum in Miami after refusing to fly guns for President Batista’s army. Four days later, the first in a series of revolution-related skyjackings will occur as a DC-3, en route from Havana to Santa Clara, is diverted to Merida, Mexico. The plane and its hostages are returned next day.
On April 13, the crew of a DC-3 with 25 passengers en route from Havana to Santa Clara defects with the aircraft to Miami. There they seek political asylum, complaining that the Cuban government is ordering them to fly over combat areas. Four Bristol Britannia 318s are ordered in August.
On October 22, a DC-4 en route from Cayo Mambi to Moa Bay with 14 passengers is seized by several of Fidel Castro’s rebels. Although the pilot is shot and wounded and the Douglas is diverted to Florida, all of the hostages and the aircraft are later released.
Flight 495, a Vickers Viscount 755D with 4 crew and 17 passengers en route from Miami to Veradero, Cuba, on November 1, is hijacked by 5 Cuban rebels. In the evening, the aircraft is observed circling near Antilla in Oriente province, as it prepares to land at Preston Airport. Out of fuel, the turboprop, instead, crashes into Nipe Bay, 1,300 ft. offshore (18 dead).
A DC-3 with 25 passengers is hijacked five days later while on a scheduled flight from Manzanillo to Holguin and is held for awhile at a rebel airstrip before the hostages are released. This latest skyjacking results in the cancellation of all Cuban domestic airline services.
It is announced on November 24 that the carrier will feature bingo games on its Havana to New York and Havana to Mexico City flights. The first Britannia 318 arrives in time to begin Mexico City service on December 22. Meanwhile, orders are placed for 2 Boeing 707-138Bs.
The second Britannia 318 starts Havana-New York service in January 1959 while Fidel Castro takes control of the government on February 16.
Four anti-Castro men seize a DC-4 on April 16 and force the pilot to divert it from its domestic flight to Miami.
On April 25, a Vickers Viscount 755D with 16 passengers en route from Varadero to Havan, is seized by 4 passengers, one of who was a top general to former president Batista, and two women, who have hidden pistols under their skirts. The skyjackers demand to be flown to Miami, but because of the turboprop’s low fuel supply, settles for a diversion to Key West. On May 25, Cubana is nationalized and given its present name.
CUBANA (COMPANIA NACIONAL CUBANA DE AVIACION, S. A.): Cuba (1932-1945). Pan American Airways (PAA) purchases Compania Nacional Cubana de Aviacion Curtiss, S. A. from North American Aviation Corporation on May 6, 1932 and renames it, dropping the word Curtiss not only to show ownership change but to allow for an easier company abbreviation—CNAC. All of the non-Ford aircraft previously employed are discarded throughout out the remainder of the year and 1933.
On January 16 of the latter year, one of the last company-owned Curtiss C-1 Robins, with a pilot and four passengers, is forced down at sea. The wreck is sighted by both a Cuban Air Force aircraft and a PAA search plane. All five are rescued by a Cuban gunboat the next day.
In an episode usually attributed to Chalk’s International Airlines with embellishments, Cuban dictator Gen. Gerardo Machado peacefully departs Havana’s Rancho Boyeros Airport on August 12 aboard a Sikorsky S-38 piloted by the carrier’s chief pilot, Capt. Arthur Lee, who had been seconded, along with the amphibian, from PAA.
The first of 5 ex-Pan American Airways (PAA) Lockheed Model 10AElectras joins the fleet late in 1934. With all five machines in hand, the Fords are replaced on the primary Cuban Air Limited Havana-Santiago multistop route on July 29, 1935. The 5-ATs are, however, retained on secondary segments, including a Santiago-Baracoa extension christened the Oriente Flyer.
Pan American Airways (PAA) turns over the Ford 5-AT-27 on November 30, 1936; it will be followed into service by another Tri-Motor no longer required by Juan Trippe’s line, the 5-AT-40, which arrives on June 15, 1938. The entire Cubana route network is integrated by 1939 and linked to the American parent’s international network.
An ex-Pan American Airways (PAA) Lockheed Model 12 is introduced in 1940. A Ford 5-AT is leased to newly established CDA (Compania Dominicana de Aviacion, S. A.) in 1944. In March 1945, 2 former military C-47s, reconfigured to civil DC-3 standard, are placed in service. In the fall, the carrier’s name is changed to Cubana (Compania Cubana de Aviacion, S. A.).
CUBANA (COMPANIA NACIONAL CUBANA DE AVIACION CURTISS, S. A.): Cuba (1929-1932). On October 8, 1929, through its International Aviation subsidiary, North American Aviation Corporation establishes Compania Nacional Cubana de Aviacion Curtiss. Employing 2 Curtiss C-1 Robins and 1 Curtiss Thrush plus 3 ex-Eastern Air Transport Ford 4-ATs (Dash-63, Dash 69, and Dash-70), Cubana begins multistop Havana-Santiago domestic flights—Cuban Air Limited—on October 30, 1930. On December 10, one of these crashes in mountainous terrain while en route from Santiago to Havana (four dead).
Travel Airs plus 2 ex-Pan American Airways (PAA) Sikorsky S-38Bs are placed in service during 1931. The carrier is purchased by Juan Trippe’s carrier on May 6, 1932 and renamed Cubana (Compania Nacional Cubana de Aviacion, S. A.).
CUBANA (EMPRESA CONSOLIDADA CUBANA DE AVIACION, S. A.): Calle 23 Pt 64 Vedado, La Rampa, Havana 4, Cuba; Phone 53 (7) 784 961; Fax 53 (7) 793 333; Http://www. cubana. cu; Code CU; Year Founded 1959. Following the overthrow of the previous Cuban regime by Fidel Castro in February 1959, Cubana (Compania Cubana de Aviacion, S. A.) is nationalized on May 25 and given its present name. In June, a third newly received Bristol Britannia 318 is placed on the Madrid route as the New York run becomes all-Britannia. The fourth Bristol joins the fleet on August 25.
Three passengers on a domestic Vickers Viscount 755D, with 34 other passengers en route from Havana to Santiago, force the pilot to fly them to Miami on October 2. On October 22, 45 Cubana employees at New York (IDL) stop work for an hour to show their loyalty to the new Castro government.
The year closes with the airline—and the nation—in financial difficulty.
Financial problems mount in 1960. One Britannia 318 is leased to Eagle Airways, Ltd. and 2 undelivered B-707-138Bs are chartered to Western Airlines. The 5 Viscount 818s and 3 Lockheed L-1049G Super Constellations are put up for sale.
The pilot, two crew members, and a passenger of Flight 800, an L-1049G, defects at Miami on April 12 after the pilot burns out the plane’s engines upon landing.
As of July 1, those companies whose oil refineries have been seized by Cuba, bar Cubana’s Havana-Madrid flight from refueling at Bermuda; as a result, Castro’s airline must abandon the service. A rash of hijackings continues.
Four days later, a Britannia 318 en route from Havana to Madrid is hijacked by two members of its crew and diverted to Miami. On July 17, the pilot of a Vickers Viscount 755D en route from Havan to Miami, takes over his own aircraft and diverts it to Jamaica. With their families (two women and two children) in place to greet them when they arrive in Miami, a DC-3 is taken over on July 28 by its captain, with the aid of two passengers, and diverted to Florida from a scheduled service to Antilla.
Lack of service payments leads to the impoundment of several aircraft. On September 16, a Britannia is seized in New York in connection with the Harris Outdoor Ad Company’s suit to recover $237,000 in lost advertising revenues. The Cuban tourist committee reports the Harris bill paid on September 18, but it is not. Two days later, a second aircraft, a DC-4, is seized at New York, followed by another Britannia on September 21, the latter as the result of O. Manalich’s desire to protect its holdings in Cubana.
On September 24, the Harris firm bills Castro for its advertisements in the journal El Diario. Four days later, Castro is forced to visit the UN and return home aboard an Aeroflot Soviet Airlines aircraft. The Cuban delegation protests to the U. S. State Department and seeks a court order freeing its impounded aircraft. Meanwhile, Cuba sues Harris for $3 million in damages, denying it owns the firm a debt. On September 29, one aircraft is freed on the grounds of diplomatic immunity.
A DC-4 with 36 aboard en route to the Isle of Pines on October 29, is diverted to Key West, Florida, after the copilot and 8 passengers kill an airliner guard and 3 others in a gun battle. The next day, the 9 hijackers win a hearing on their bid for political asylum while the other 26 passengers are allowed to return with their aircraft to Cuba. The second impounded aircraft is freed on November 9, but litigation continues.
An L-049 Constellation, which has been acquired by Trans-European Aviation, Ltd. and is en route to London, is attached at Charlotte, North Carolina, on January 27, 1961, in the name of refugee Jacob Shapiro, who claims Cuba has nationalized his hosiery mill, valued at $750,000. TEA never receives this aircraft.
Although the Madrid route is maintained, national political confrontation with the U. S. now results in abrupt termination of flights to America. Citing American “hostility,” the company ends its Havana to Miami and New York service on February 10. Having by now forged close ties to the Eastern bloc, Cubana, also in February, signs an agreement with CSA Czechoslovak Airlines to operate its Britannias, in CSA livery, on Cuban’s behalf over a new multistop Havana-Prague route that begins on March 1.
On April 20, the Florida Circuit Court denies an appeal against the sale of five aircraft as part of the assets sold in a 1960 damage award to Harris Outdoor Ad Company for its unpaid advertising fees. Havana to New York service is resumed on April 25, followed by the restoration of flights to Miami from the Cuban capital on May 6.
En route from Havana to Veradero on July 3, a DC-3 with 20 passengers is commandeered by 11 men and 3 women A security guard is shot and wounded in the takeover, with the Douglas transport subsequently flown to Miami.
Three planes flown into the U. S. on July 4 are seized to satisfy the Harris claim. On August 2, the State Department advises Cuba that, to prevent the sale of the planes seized a month earlier, it must request diplomatic immunity for them.
The Cuban government, on September 15, cancels over 15,000 reservations held by Cubans for flights to the U. S., purportedly to end ticket speculation. A new procedure is established for obtaining seats. In October, the U. S.S. R. delivers the initial 5 of 11 ordered Ilyushin Il-14s, which are placed on the country’s domestic routes. On November 4, the State Department seeks a permit to intervene in the litigation over Harris’s seizure of Cuban airliners to satisfy its judgment against the Castro government; Washington holds that the aircraft are immune to seizure.
An Il-14 with 4 crew and 18 passengers fails its initial climb away from Santiago de Cuba on March 27, 1962 for a flight to Havana; there are no survivors from the subsequent crash.
As replacements for the British turboprops, Cubana receives as a transfer from Aeroflot Soviet Airlines the first 3 of 5 requested Il-18s and an Antonov An-12 in late fall; they are placed in service from Havana-Mexico City and other regional destinations.
During 1963, the company begins a 5-year effort to replace almost all of its American and British aircraft with Soviet, including 12 Il-14s 1 Antonov An-12, 7 Il-18s, and 10 An-24s.
On September 17, 1964, the company receives permission from the British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) to begin Havana to Nassau weekly service. Both the U. S. and Bahamian governments seek to persuade the British not to grant landing rights; however, the British report that Cubana has received its route under a 1948 agreement.
When the first Cuban airliner arrives at Nassau on September 21, a crowd is present to jeer its passengers and crew. After the U. K. rejects a formal Bahamian request of September 25 to void the 1948 pact, Cubana ceases services to the island next day. A Britannia is attached at Montreal on October 15 by World Wide Airways, Ltd., seeking to recover C$953,858 in claims against the Cuban government; the aircraft is released under a C$1-million surety.
Operations proceed without undue incident in 1965. Two bloody hijackings, one successful and one not, occur in 1966.
En route to Havana from Santiago on March 27, an Il-18V with 91 passengers is the subject of the first attempt. The flight engineer takes over the aircraft, killing a security guard in the process. Under cover of darkness, the plane is landed at what the hijacker initially believes is Miami, but which is, in fact, Havana’s Jose Marti Airport. When he learns of the ruse after landing, the pirate kills the pilot and wounds the copilot, forcing the Ilyushin to swerve off the runway into a fence. The hijacker escapes, but is captured two weeks later and executed.
On July 8, an Il-18V bound to Havana from Santiago is hijacked by nine Cubans, including the pilot, who fly the plane to Jamaica and seek asylum. The copilot, who had been shot, an injured crewman, and the plane are returned to Cuba the next day.
An Il-18B is lost near Cienfuegos under unknown circumstances on July 10.
The first of 12 Antonov An-24s are delivered during the second half of the year.
The carrier’s lone An-12 with 10 aboard explodes just after landing at Mexico City on February 9, 1967; there are no survivors. The world press speculates that the disaster has been caused by a bomb placed aboard by anti-Castro elements. The first of the An-24s is now received. Although all transatlantic flights stop during 1968-1969, regional services are maintained.
Operations continue apace in 1970 and, on June 21, 1971, Havana to Santiago de Cuba flights begin. While on a July 12 domestic flight from Havana to Cienfuegos, two men attempt to hijack Flight 740, an Il-14, but when faced with failure, they drop a live grenade that explodes, killing one passenger and wounding three others. In the confusion, the pirates are subdued and the plane lands safely.
All of the company’s remaining C-46 Commandos are sold during August-October 1972. Cuba and Guyana sign an agreement on July 1, 1973, that links company services with Africa through Guyana and the Caribbean.
The first pure jetliner to be received since the revolution is an Ilyushin Il-62, which begins Havana-Madrid flights in November 1974. Cubana begins weekly roundtrip flights between Havana and Panama City on July 27, 1975. The last of 12 An-24s is delivered during the fall.
On March 18, 1976, Flight 455, a DC-8-43 leased from Air Canada, Ltd., with 16 crew and 13 passengers, collides in midair near Havana with a company An-24B with five crew out on a training flight. The Antonov crashes and there are no survivors. The Douglas, meanwhile, suffers the separation of the outer portion of its wing, including an engine, but is able to land safely with no serious injuries reported.
On October 6 there is another in-flight bomb explosion. Flight 455, a DC-8-33 also leased from Air Canada, Ltd., with 15 crew and 57 passengers en route from Georgetown, Guyana, to Kingston, Jamaica, via Barbados, crashes into the sea 5 mi. W of Bridgetown, Barbados, shortly after takeoff from Seawell International Airport. The El Condor exile group claims responsibility for this terrorism. It is later claimed that the infamy is masterminded by U. S. CIA-trained Bay of Pigs veteran Luis Posada Carriles and carried out by his expert bomb-making associate Hernan Ricardo Losano, who is arrested in Venezuela. Years later, the pair will be jailed in Venezuela for their participation in the tragedy. Deon E. Phillips reviews the incident in his “Terrorism and Security in the Caribbean: The 1976 Cubana Disaster Off Barbados,” in Terrorism 14 (Fall 1991): 209+.
Airline security is increased on November 1, but, six days later, Cubana’s Madrid office is bombed. Heavy damage is caused, but there are no casualties.
From 1977-1982, the fleet is increased by the addition of 7 Il-62Ms,
5 Tupolev Tu-154s,1 Il-76, 7 Yak-40s, and 6 An-26s. Five Il-18s and
6 Il-14s are retired. However, as late as 1978, General Manager Julio Rodriguez and his 1,775 employees still include the Canadian DC-8-43 and 3 Britannia 318s among their flight equipment.
In addition to the maintenance of a 15-point domestic network, long-haul services are started to Montreal with Tu-154s, and East Berlin, Prague, Paris, Madrid, Luanda, Maputo, Sal, and Tripoli with Il-62s. The Yak-40s, Il-18s, and An-26s fly to Barbados, Georgetown, Kingston, Lima, Managua, Panama City, and Port of Spain.
A Yak-40 with 4 crew and 33 passengers crash-lands at Baracoa on February 3, 1980 (one dead). While on a training flight on May 13, an Il-14 with three crew crashes into the sea 500 yards off Varadero; there are no survivors.
On March 4-5, 1983 the daily Cubana flights from New York (JFK) deviate from their flight plans toward Griffis AFB, near Syracuse. As a result, on March 25 the carrier is banned from U. S. airspace for two weeks by order of the State Department. Three days later, the carrier apologizes for its two violations in air traffic routing. There are no further problems during the remainder of the year or in 1984.
Enplanements in 1985 total 894,000, excluding troops ferried to Africa.
During the climb away from Havana on January 19, the pilot of an Il-18D with 5 crew and 33 passengers loses control. The turboprop crashes while he attempts to recover and land on a highway near San Jose de Las Lajas; there are no survivors.
The boarding figure climbs to 912,127 in 1986.
While on its takeoff roll from Havana’s Jose Marti Airport on March 10, 1987, for a scheduled service to Nueva Gerona, on the Island of Pines, an An-24, with 48 passengers, is subjected to an attempted hijacking. The assailant is armed with a hand grenade and demands to be flown to the U. S. When the pilot refuses, the pirate drops a grenade, which explodes wounding 13 persons. In the confusion, an off-duty policeman comes forward and shoots the skyjacker dead.
Enplanements for the year drop back by 1.6% to 889,013.
The workforce is increased by 4.5% in 1988 to 4,600. In late summer and fall, Hurricanes George and Mitch cause great damage throughout Central America and the Caribbean. Cuban medical brigades and relief supplies are transported to Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, and Nicaragua in Cubana aircraft placed at the disposal of the government.
Despite the weather, passenger boardings for the year jump 8.4% to 963,881 and freight is ahead by 9.1%, 27.81 million FTKs.
Company employment grows by 28.9% in 1989 to 6,007, as General Director Rolando Teutelo orders 4 Yak-42Ds for his short - and medium-haul operations.
Just after takeoff from Havana for Berlin in heavy rain on the night of September 4, an Il-62M with 11 crew and 115 passengers is caught in downdrafts that force it to hit a navigational aerial and then crash into a residential area. All aboard the jetliner are killed, along with 45 people on the ground. The event will remain Cuba’s worst airline disaster.
The first of 2 ordered Yak 42D arrives in Havana on September 14 from Russia via Shannon, Ireland.
Customer bookings swell 6.1% to 1,212,345, but cargo is down by 13.5% to 37.19 million FTKs.
Employment remains the same in 1990 and the fleet includes 12 Il-62Ms, 9 Tu-154s, 8 Yak-40s, 12 An-24s, 26 An-26s, 4 Il-18s, and 2 Il-76s.
An An-26 with 41 passengers fails its takeoff from Santiago de Cuba on March 20 and crashes; the aircraft is burned out and there are no survivors.
While on initial approach to Punta Jardinero on a nonscheduled service from Camaguey on October 24, Flight 2886, a Yak-40 with 7 crew and 24 passengers, strikes the ground 4 km. short of the runway at a speed of 280 km./h. (11 dead).
Enplanements fall to 1,137,481 and freight is down 40.2% to 11 million FTKs.
The company enjoys a good year in 1991. In March, discussions are undertaken with VASP Brazilian Airlines (Viacao Aerea Sao Paulo, S. A.) concerning an eventual joint operation of routes to Canada and Europe. The second new Yak-42D is delivered in July, replacing on passenger routes the last of the Il-18s, which are now converted into freighters. Five Yak-40s are also added.
ATu-154B-2, with 12 crew and 100 passengers, lands too far down the runway at Mexico City on September 14 and goes off the end, sustaining massive damage. No fatalities are reported.
Passenger boardings inch up 1.5% to 1,154,803 while freight rises 28% to 55.83 million FTKs.
Airline employment stands at 5,000 in 1992. On January 3, German Pompa, a Cuban military pilot assigned to ferry tourists in the Va-radero Beach resort east of Havana, hijacks one of the airline’s Mil Mi-8 helicopters from Varo Daro Airport. He flies himself and 34 other defectors to Tamiami Airport near Miami. All aboard receive political asylum and the helicopter is allowed to return to Cuba five days after its arrival.
Statistics are reported through October and show customer bookings down 9.2% to 876,449. Cargo, on the other hand, increases 22.3% to 35.16 million FTKs. Revenues total $237.5 million, but expenses are higher. Consequently, Cubana suffers an operating loss of $8.3 million and a net loss of $6.1 million.
In 1993, General Director Heriberto Priego oversees an entirely Soviet built fleet that consists of 12 Antonov An-24RVs, 25 An-26s, 4 Il-18s, 12 Il-62Ms, 1 Il-62MK, 4 Il-76MDs, 4 Tu-154B-2s, 4 Tu-154Ms, 8 Yak-40s, 1 Yak-40F, and 4 Yak-42s.
Markets served from Havana include not only domestic communities but such international destinations as Basel, Berlin, Bonn, Brussels, Buenos Aires, Cancun, Frankfurt, Helsinki, Kingston, Lima, Lisbon, London (STN), Luanda, Madrid, Managua, Mexico City, Milan, Montreal, Moscow, Panama City, Paris, Quebec, Santiago de Chile, Toronto, and Vienna.
On January 1, pilot Carlos Cancio Porcel diverts his Yak 40, with 48 relatives and friends aboard, to Miami. With Cuba a popular holiday destination for Brazilian tourists, Cubana launches, in the fall, twice-weekly Il-62M roundtrips from Havana to Sao Paulo.
Passenger boardings for the year as a whole decline another 11.2% to 901,645.
Six Fokker F.27-600s and a Douglas DC-10-30 are received from Aviacion y Comercio, S. A. (AVIACO) of Spain in early spring 1994. At this point, a new color scheme is introduced. The Douglas wide-body is immediately assigned to the carrier’s Havana to London service.
Customer bookings inch up 1.1% to 911,519, but cargo accelerates by 19.3% to 37.21 million FTKs.
The carrier’s 88 airliners transport a total of 1,035,883 passengers in 1995, a 13.6% increase. Freight grows 17.3% to 43.65 million FTKs.
Airline employment stands at 1,100 in 1996. In addition to domestic markets, the company now also visits points in the Caribbean and Latin America, plus Basel, Berlin, Brussels, Cologne, Frankfurt, London, Moscow, Munich, Paris, and Prague.
The international airports at Holguin and Camaguey are upgraded and a $25.5-million contract is signed with Intelcan Technosystems of Canada for the construction of a third terminal at Havana’s Jose Marti International Airport. Funding to purchase Canadian goods and services to be employed in the task are advanced by that nation’s Export Development Corporation.
The airline is subjected to two hijackings during the summer, both of which are successful.
While on a scheduled domestic service on July 7, an An-24 is taken over by a lone gunman, who orders the aircraft diverted to the U. S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay. En route from Havana to Varadero on August 16, a single-engine lightplane is seized by three men waving knives, who also order it to land at “Gitmo.”
Customer bookings jump 12% to 1,159,890 and 58.27 million FTKs are operated, a 28.9% increase.
Destinations visited in 1997 include Baracoa, Barcelona, Bayamo, Berlin, Bogota, Brussels, Buenos Aires, Camaguey, Cancun, Caracas, Cayo Coco, Cayo Largo del Sur, Ciego de Avila, Fort de France, Frankfurt, Guantanamo, Guayaquil, Holguin, Kingston, Las Tunas, Lima, Lisbon, London (LGW), Madrid, Manzanillo, Mendoza, Mexico City, Moa, Montevideo, Montreal, Moscow, Nueva Gerona, Panama City, Paris (Orly Airport), Pointe-a-Pitre, Quito, Rio de Janeiro, Rome, San Jose, Santiago, Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Cuba, Santo Domingo, Sao Paulo, Toronto, Varadero, and Vitoria.
It is reported by the Communist Party daily Granma on January 8 that the three state-owned airlines and service firms will be rolled into a single corporation for the purpose of doubling passenger capacity and boosting airline earnings.
Just after takeoff from Santiago on a July 11 service to Havana, Flight 787, an An-24RV with 5 crew and 39 passengers, crashes into the sea off the southern coast; there are no survivors.
Traffic figures are revealed for the first quarter and show passenger bookings up 16.4% to 334,787, while freight climbs 10.8% to 14.61 million FTKs.
Services continue in 1998, but not without cost.
While taking off from Quito, Ecuador, on an August 29 service to Havana via Guayaquil, Flight 409, a Tu-154M with 14 crew and 76 passengers, loses altitude. It clips the top of an auto mechanic’s shop just beyond the runway, barely missing a middle-income residential area, before crashing into a soccer field. A total of 69 people aboard the aircraft and 9 on the ground are killed, with many others wounded, including children playing soccer.
With the cause of the crash still unsolved by September 10, the aircraft’s flight-data and cockpit-voice recorders are sent to Moscow for analysis.
The carrier must cancel its domestic and international departures on September 25 when Hurricane Georges sweeps across the island.
On August 20, a $30-million, 18-month aircraft, crew, management, and insurance (ACMI) contract is signed with Ireland-based TransAer International, Ltd. for the wet-lease of two Airbus Industrie A320-231s. The first aircraft, wearing dual TransAer and Cubana titles, arrives at Havana in early November and replaces Tupolev Tu-154Ms on regional services to Mexico City and Central America. The second aircraft will be delivered before the end of the year.
Flights continue in 1999. Cubana and TransAer International, Ltd. come to an agreement in January, which is announced on February 7. The Cuban flag carrier will replace its leased DC-10-30 later in the year with a pair of A340s chartered from the Irish line.
On March 9, the U. K. Consumers’ Association’s magazine, Holiday Which?, releases a new survey of customer satisfaction from 20,000 airline travelers who have been asked which carrier they would recommend to a friend. Cubana is the worst-rated airline overall, with one in two passengers surveyed reporting they could not recommend it.
Thrice-weekly nonstop roundtrips are inaugurated on June 21 between Havana and Guatemala City.
The TransAer International, Ltd. contract is renewed in mid-August.
A code-sharing agreement is signed with Aeroflot Russian International Airlines (ARIA) on November 19. Under its terms, the Russian line is able to place its designator on Cubana flights into Latin America.
Employing a pair of DC-10-30s wet-leased from AOM French Airlines, S. A., Cubana launches twice-weekly roundtrips on December 15 from Havana to both Rome and Milan. Weekly DC-10-30 return flights from Havana to Geneva begin the next day.
While landing on a slippery Runway 19 at Guatemala City following a December 21 service from Havana, Flight 261, a DC-10-30 with 18 crew and 296 passengers, slides off the end down a steep bank into 10 houses. Sixteen aboard the Jumbojet are killed, along with two people on the ground.
Four days later, on Christmas Day, another DC-10-30 with 12 crew and 10 passengers crashes into a San Luis hill while on approach to Valencia, Venezuela, on a service from Havana. This time there are no survivors.
Passenger boardings for the year total 1,259,000 and 1.63 million FTKs are operated.
As a result of the capacity problems caused by the December accidents, the new route between Havana and Geneva is dropped on January 24, 2000.
Employing a B-767-3Q8ER and a B-777-2Q8 from its partner, the company begins dual designator service with Air Europe, S. p.A. on April 6 from Rome to Cayo Largo, Havana, and Santiago de Cuba and on April 22 from Milan to the same three destinations.
Arrangements are completed with AOM French Airlines, S. A. and one of its DC-10-30s is wet-leased to fly from Havana to Paris (CDG), beginning on June 5.
The failure of Ireland-based TransAer International Airlines, Ltd.
On October 20 deprives the company of its A320-200s. Consequently, beginning on October 23, Ilyushin Il-62s are placed back into service on flights to Montreal and Toronto.
CUMBERLAND AIRLINES: United States (1964-1990). Originally founded by Alfred Nicholson at Cumberland, Maryland, in 1964, this air taxi operator flies under the name of Nicholson Air Service. Nonsched-uled and charter services are provided throughout western Pennsylvania and Maryland with a Piper Colt and a Piper Comanche. A Piper PA-23 Aztec is purchased in 1967, allowing the initiation of scheduled flights to Baltimore.
This small regional enjoys a rather uneven success after joining the ranks of the nation’s commuter airlines in 1975, under the marketing name Cumberland Airlines.
Late in 1977, Nicholson Air Service purchases Lake Havasu City, Arizona-based Lake Havasu Airlines, which is also operated as a subsidiary, Havasu Airlines. With a fleet of 2 Piper PA-31-310 Navajos, regular flights are offered to Latrobe, Pennsylvania, and Baltimore. En-planements total 20,675.
In 1978, passenger boardings rise 4% to 21,559; 246,651 pounds of freight is hauled. Customer bookings rise 16% to 24,933 in 1979. The carrier’s 16 aircraft also haul 514,000 pounds of cargo, a 108.2% increase.
In 1980, Nicholson Air Services divides its operating subsidiaries into two divisions of the whole: an eastern division, Cumberland, and a western division, Havasu Airlines. These will have much in common, not the least of which are the statistics reported. The former provides scheduled services to Pittsburgh, Latrobe, Baltimore, and Ocean City. The latter provides the same to Phoenix, Bullhead City, and Las Vegas. The number of total employees is 37 and the fleet comprises 5 Navajos, 4 Piper Aztecs, 2 PA-31-350 Navajo Chieftains, and 1 Beech 99. Combined passenger traffic drops 30% on the year as 16,389 passengers are boarded on the year.
A total of 407,000 pounds of freight are transported in 1981, as en-planements dip by 3% to 14,562. Most of the downturn is due to the summer PATCO air traffic controllers’ strike and subsequent ATC restrictions. Destinations served by Cumberland now include Boston, Hartford, Springfield, Newark, Washington, Cumberland, Baltimore, Ocean City, Pittsburgh, Latrobe, Philadelphia, and Richmond.
This trend is reversed in 1982 as the enplanement rate grows by 61.4% to 23,509. Cargo also improves, rising 8.1% to 439,000 pounds.
A healthy traffic increase is also seen in 1983 as passenger boardings increase another 21.5% to 28,556. Freight increases 58.6% to 696,643 pounds.
These two years of progress are followed by a fatal accident and a slight traffic decline in 1984.
While on approach to the airport at Cumberland, Maryland, on March 5, a Piper PA-31 with 3 passengers, crashes into a 776-ft. hill, 8.5 mi. from the runway; there are no survivors.
Customer bookings fall off by 1.8% to 9,565 passengers flown.
Passenger boardings recover nicely in 1985, climbing 17.9% to 11,281. Cargo is now 328,000 pounds. In early July 1986, Cumberland becomes a code-sharing partner of World Airways, employing 3 Piper Navajos to feed the major at Baltimore (BWI). The arrangement is short-lived and terminated once World Airways withdraws from scheduled services in September.
Traffic is down again and customer bookings fall 37.4% to 7,060.
Cumberland enjoys a return to health in 1987 as passenger boardings jump 17.4% to 8,290. A total of 140,180 pounds of freight are also flown. Following a pilot walkout in December, western division partner Havasu Airlines ceases operations.
The fleet of the 38-employee carrier includes 7 Piper PA-31 Navajos in 1988. Customer bookings decline 5.7% to 7,816 and cargo plunges 62.5% to 53,000 pounds.
The financially troubled airline is purchased by Coastal Maine Holdings in early 1989. The new owners speak of employing the airline as the basis of a new commuter network, linking it up with Braniff, Inc. When this plan is not immediately implemented, creditors are able to force the regional’s closing in October. Its 7 Navajos are repossessed by lessors or sold. To this point, the carrier has flown a total of 4,863 passengers, a decline of 25.8% over the same period a year earlier.
Cumberland manages to get back into the air in January 1990, but when Coastal Maine Holdings fails to make a required $1-million payment to Braniff, Inc. in mid-March, the carrier is forced to shut down once more, ending scheduled service to Baltimore and small parcel flights to Pittsburgh. Additionally, the carrier’s certification is suspended and the company flying school at Cumberland is closed.
Embarrassed, Coastal Maine’s aviation consultant and former Continental Airlines President Martin Shugrue, now resigns. Airport officials at Baltimore serve notice of eviction because of overdue rent; company founder and first president Nicholson dies after a long illness. Meanwhile, the commuter ’ s 7 Piper Navajos and light training aircraft, 18 machines in all, are repossessed for public auction by a Baltimore bank.
As if this climax is not sad enough, it is reported in early April that Beech Aircraft in Wichita, Kansas, has been given a $250,000 down payment on a Super King Air 200 by Coastal Maine Holdings Chairman Anthony Steele. The check bounces and it takes the manufacturer a week to trace its aircraft to south Florida. Steele, who had earlier been convicted of loan-sharking in New York and was wanted in New Jersey for writing bad checks, is captured by Florida police, but released when New Jersey fails to pursue extradition.
Now unable to pursue its dream, Coastal Maine sells Cumberland to KPT Aviation, which makes plans to resume services. Despite strenuous efforts on the part of its owners to restart, Cumberland enters Chapter VII liquidation in November.
CUNARD-EAGLE AIRWAYS, LTD.: United Kingdom (19601963). On March 21, 1960, major shareholding in Eagle Airways, Ltd. is assumed by the Cunard Steamship Co., Ltd. Eagle founder Harold Bamberg receives a seat on the Cunard board and his former airline is transformed into Cunard-Eagle Airways, Ltd. On April 6, the new carrier takes delivery of a Bristol Britannia 318 on a 7-month lease from Cubana (Compania Cubana de Aviacion, S. A.); it is placed in service the same day flying servicemen to Christmas Island. Simultaneously, the carrier purchases 2 Vickers Viscount 707s from the Cuban airline to replace the Viscount 805s Enterprise and Good Fortune now sold; the new ships are not christened.
The company is now relocated from Blackbushe to London (LHR) and its Vikings resume scheduled fortnightly flights from Manchester to Ostend and Bergen. A British transatlantic route is awarded and when the Britannia 318 returns from the Pacific, low frequency, low-fare London (LHR)-Bermuda and Nassau “Skycoach” service is initiated on October 10.
Five days later, economy-class, every-two-weeks London to Bermuda, Nassau, and Miami flights begin. The Bermuda subsidiary flies 20,000 passengers on its New York route, gaining a 12% of its market. Three Vikings are sold during the year and the fleet is enhanced by the addition of 2 Viscount 755s, which are named City of Edinburgh and City of Belfast.
In March 1961, two additional Douglas DC-6As are acquired along with a Bristol Britannia 324 christened Good Fortune.
A DC-6A with 6 crew crashes while practicing touch-and-go landings at Shannon Airport on March 26; although the aircraft must be written off, there are no fatalities.
A second Britannia 324 arrives in May and is named Endeavor. In late spring, the carrier appeals to the Air Transport Licensing Board (ATLB) for a variety of domestic route licenses as well as a new North Atlantic permission; after much dispute with other carriers, almost all are eventually denied. An initial Cunard-Eagle London to New York route is overturned upon British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) appeal, but another ruling opens a number of European destinations on June 22.
During the summer holiday season, efforts by the Bermuda and Nassau-based subsidiaries are stepped up. The frequency to New York becomes twice daily while Nassau-Miami flights are advanced to four per day. The weekly London-Miami via Bermuda and Nassau Britannia flights continue. In August, a pool agreement is signed with Austrian Airlines, A. G. for operation of joint service to Innsbruck from London (LGW). Simultaneously, operations from Manchester reach the new destinations of Hamburg, Pisa, and Rimini.
While en route from London to Stavanger, a chartered Vickers 610 Viking 3B with 3 crew and 36 British schoolboys, crashes into Mt. Holteheia, Norway, on August 9; there are no survivors.
The Manchester to Hamburg and Copenhagen frequencies cease in October, the same month in which the leased Britannia 318 is returned to Cubana (Compania Cubana de Aviacion, S. A.). In December, the company announces forthcoming cutbacks. During the year 4 Vikings and 1 Heron are sold and 2 Boeing 707-465s are ordered before the company’s New York license is revoked.
In the spring of 1962, some of the remaining services out of Manchester are cancelled. Unable to find a buyer to take over its jetliner order, the carrier accepts its first B-707-465 on February 27. Operated under Bermuda registry, the new addition is placed on the New York route on March 27.
On May 5, the new Boeing begins twice-weekly London-Bermuda and Nassau service. On May 20, a DC-6A inaugurates a weekly Manchester-Newcastle-Bergen service that will continue until September 23.
On June 7, the Cunard Steamship Co. abruptly pulls many of its assets out of Cunard-Eagle Airways, Ltd. In an effort to control all British operations across the North Atlantic to the Caribbean and eastern U. S., it teams up with British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) to form the new joint BOAC-Cunard, with BOAC holding 70% of the shares and Cunard 30%.
The new partners triumph over Bamberg, who leads the opposition in a civil action, and take possession of the second B-707-465 in July. More importantly, they also gain the former Cunard-Eagle Airways subsidiaries in Bermuda and the Bahamas, both of which are absorbed into BOAC by fall. Meanwhile, what is left of Cunard-Eagle is reconfigured as a European regional scheduled and nonscheduled carrier.
On June 8, another DC-6A begins flying to Adelaide on a new longterm Air Ministry contract. A Viking 1B with 39 aboard crashes near Stavanger, Norway, on August 9; there are no survivors. During the year, two Vikings are sold.
Harold Bamberg purchases 60% majority shareholding in Cunard-Eagle Airways, Ltd. on February 14, 1963. Additional regional routes are added and the company is granted permission to begin serving Scotland’s two largest cities in competition with British European Airways Corporation (BEA)-the first independent to be so allowed. The 2 Viscount 707s purchased in 1960 are sold in July. In order to demonstrate his control and interest in regional achievement, on August 9 Bamberg renames the company British Eagle Airways, Ltd.
CURTIS-MADSEN AIRLINES (PTY.), LTD.: Australia (19491952). Curtis-Madsen is formed at Sydney in early 1949 to fly a variety of short-haul, smallplane routes from the New South Wales capital. Traffic eventually proves insufficient to justify continuation and the company is liquidated on February 29, 1952. Its equipment is sold to East West Airlines (Pty.), Ltd.
CURTISS FLYING SERVICE OF BOSTON (NEW ENGLAND): United States (1929-1932). Established at Boston in the early spring of 1929, CFS of B is an affiliate of the Paterson, New Jersey-based Wright Aeronautical Corporation. The air taxi inaugurates scheduled Curtiss Robin passenger service to Nantucket and Bar Harbor in July.
The Ford Tri-Motor 4-AT-50 is acquired from Curtiss Flying Service of New York on October 25. Flights with the large and small aircraft continue until the service goes out of business in December 1932.
CURTISS FLYING SERVICE OF CALIFORNIA: United States (1929). A component of the nationwide Curtiss flight empire controlled by the Wright Aeronautical Corporation of Paterson, New Jersey, CFS of C is set up at Alameda in the spring of 1929 to offer passenger and express services within the Golden State. Service begins with a Ford TriMotor 4-AT-32 and, in August, the carrier is renamed Curtiss-Wright Flying Service.
CURTISS FLYING SERVICE OF CHICAGO. See CURTISS FLYING SERVICE OF THE MIDDLE WEST
CURTISS FLYING SERVICE OF NEW YORK: United States (1929-1933). Another, although later, unit in a series of small flight operations maintained across the country by the Wright Aeronautical Corporation of Paterson, New Jersey, CFS of NY is founded in the spring of 1929 to undertake a Metropolitan Air Ferry Service (MAFS) around New York. The route is inaugurated on May 14-15 by the new Ford TriMotors 4-AT-50 and 4-AT-53. It is expanded on May 22 by the Ford
4-AT-51 and on June 4 by the 4-AT-52. To gain publicity, the company’s Ford 4-ATs all sport solid-colored fuselages, one red, one orange, one blue, and one green. On November 1, the 4-AT-53 is passed to Curtiss Flying Service of the Middle West.
A new division is established at Miami on January 13, 1930, to which the Ford 4-AT-52 is assigned. Following the winter vacation season, the Tri-Motor is moved north to New York on May 9. On September 26, it is decided to offer a transcontinental aerial hearse service. A company branch is set up at Pittsburgh and 4-AT-52 is sent west to this Pennsylvania city.
The MAFS is again upgraded on August 31, 1931, when the 4-AT-49 joins the fleet. On May 25, 1932, the 4-AT-49 is sold to Detroit-based Transamerican Airlines. The 4-AT-52 is purchased by Dallas-based Fakes and Company on December 3 and the Ford 4-AT-51 is passed to Carolina Air Transport on April 7, 1933. The corporation now shuts down its flight operations nationwide.
CURTISS FLYING SERVICE OF THE MIDDLE WEST: United States (1929-1932). Employing a Sikorsky S-36 amphibian, this affiliate of the Paterson, New Jersey-based Wright Aeronautical Corporation begins passenger flights in June 1929 between the Chicago Loop and the city’s Municipal Airport. The Ford 4-AT-2 also enters service, acquired from National Air Transport. On November 1, the Ford 4-AT-53 arrives from Long Island, having been sent west by the Curtiss Flying Service of New York.
The organization is reformed on October 10, 1930 and renamed Curtiss Flying Service of Chicago. Flights continue until October 21, 1932.
CURTISS-WRIGHT FLYING SERVICE: United States (19291930). Curtiss Flying Service of California, based at Alameda, is reformed and renamed in August 1929. Although tied down, the company’s sole aircraft, the Ford 4-AT-32, is blown upside down and destroyed during a windstorm at Burbank’s Grand Central Air Terminal on November 21, 1930. Loss of the plane brings an end to the service.
CUSTOM AIR TRANSPORT: United States (1995-1998). With headquarters in Denison, Texas, CAT is established in 1995 to conduct scheduled and charter cargo services from a hub at Detroit. CEO Roger Taylor launches operations in September with a single Boeing 727-224F, flying to Cleveland and Kansas City.
The hub is shifted to Florida in 1996 and services are enhanced with the addition of a B-727-225F and an Aviation Traders ATL-98 Carvair. A contract is signed with Emery Air Freight to transport packages on its behalf.
In September, Custom contracts with Hinduja Cargo Services, Ltd. of New Delhi, India, to provide services to Sharjah, U. A.E., from six cities on the subcontinent. The Indian operation is 40% owned by Lufthansa Cargo Airlines, A. G., which supplies the 3 B-727-243Fs that will connect with its Douglas DC-8-73F operation from the U. A.E.
The Custom-flown Boeing freighters duly inaugurate scheduled services to Hyderabad, as well as New Delhi, Bombay, Madras, Bangalore, and Kathmandu. Flights are also made to Colombo, Sri Lanka. The route network is increased in October with stops added at Ahmadabad, Varanasi, and Coinbatore. In mid-October, the company inaugurates weekly service into Indonesia’s new Hang Nadim Airport, which is located just 20 miles from Singapore.
Financial figures are released for the second half of the year. These show revenues of $$6.69 million, expenses of $6.56 million, and small profits: $128,000 (operating) and $122,000 (net).
Early in 1997, the 90-employee company applies to the DOT for U. S. charter passenger service authority. Meanwhile, the Hinduja cargo fleet is increased by the addition of 4 more B-727Fs. Bangalore, Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras join the route network.
An Aviation Traders ATL-98 Carvair, with two crew, fails its takeoff from Griffin-Spalding County Airport at Griffin, Georgia on April 4, overruns the runway by 3,701 feet, crosses Zebulon Road, and crashes into a vacant Piggly Wiggly grocery store near the Spalding Square parking lot before catching fire. There are no survivors.
At the end of the year, plans are in place to begin nonscheduled charter and inclusive-tour flights in the spring to Las Vegas and the Caribbean from the Midwest and Northeast. The services would be flown under the name Tropic Aire.
Although traffic figures are not released, financial reports are filed with the government. These show operating revenues up 15.5% to $7.83 million, with expenses rising 35.1% to $8.45 million. The previous year’s operating gain becomes a $614,000 operating loss, while the net profit becomes a $614,000 net loss.
The company is visited by an FAA inspection team in the spring of 1998, which finds “discrepancies in airworthiness and pilot training.” Rather than contest the findings, the carrier voluntarily grounds itself, pending an attempted resolution of its problems.
CUSTOM HELICOPTERS, LTD.: St. Andrews Airport, P. O. Box 66130, Winnipeg, Manitoba R3K 2E7, Canada; Phone (204) 3387953; Fax (204) 663-5037; Http://www. customheli. com; Year Founded 1977. Custom Helicopters is established at Winnipeg in 1977 to provide rotary-wing charter service. The company also serves as a Bell Helicopter customer service facility and flight school.
Over the next 22 years, the company expands and branches out to provide a host of aerial work. Services include aerial inspection, diamond drill support, corporate transportation, support of mineral exploration, power line maintenance, wildlife surveys and live animal capture, forest fire fighting, and aerial photography in support of the motion picture industry.
By 2000, Custom is owned by its senior management group. Emphasis continues to be placed on maintenance and President J. Hawes also serves as director of maintenance; Vice President D. McDougall is director of flight operations. Services are maintained with a fleet that now numbers 12 Bell 206B JetRangers and 8 additional units, including Bell 205 A1s, Bell 206L LongRangers, and Hughes 300Cs.
CUTTER AVIATION: 2802 Old Tower Road, Phoenix, Arizona 85034, United States; Phone (602) 267-4080; Fax (602) 275-9749; Year Founded 1928. One of the nation’s oldest FBOs, Cutter is established at Phoenix in 1928. Over the next 50 years, the company also undertakes a wide variety of charter operations, both passenger and cargo. By 2000, Cutter employs nine full-time pilots and operates its non-scheduled services from two airports.
From Sky Harbor International Airport in Arizona, it operates 1 each Cessna 560 Citation V, Beech 2000 Starship, Super King Air 300, Super
King Air 200, King Air 90, Beech 58 Baron, Beech A36 Bonanza, and Bell 230 helicopter.
Two Barons and 2 Bonanzas are based at Albuquerque, New Mexico, along with 1 each Starship, Super King Air 200, King Air 100, Cessna 421, and Piper PA-31C Cheyenne II.
CUTTER-CARR FLYING SERVICE: United States (19481963). When Congress requires the Atomic Energy Commission to provide certain services to its closed “atomic cities,” a government contract for air service between Albuquerque and Los Alamos, New Mexico, is let in 1948. William P. Cutter and Clark Carr found Cutter-Carr Flying Service, win the appointment, and undertake scheduled flights with Beech Bonanzas.
In 1953, the company’s mission is enlarged to include transportation of classified cargo throughout the U. S. These operations will remain secret. Within a decade of its start-up, CCFS is offering seven flights per day between Albuquerque and Los Alamos.
Cutter and Carr elect to go their separate ways during 1963. Clark Carr founds Carco Air Service and wins the renewed government contract.
CYPRESS AIRLINES, LTD.: Canada (1987-1997). President Stephen Hynes establishes CA at Richmond in 1987 to provide local air taxi, air ambulance, and executive-jet charters throughout western Canada. These activities occupy the company for most of the next decade.
In 1996, the company expands into the scheduled airline arena by employing its 3 executive-appointed Convair CV-580s to serve Vancouver and other British Columbia communities on a regular basis.
Airline employment in 1997-1998 stands at 25. The scheduled service initiative proves a fiscal disaster and, as a result, the company is forced to shut its doors during the latter year.
CYPRUS AIRWAYS, LTD.: P. O. Box 1903, 21 Aikeou Street, Nicosia, Cyprus; Phone 357 (2) 44 3054; Fax 357 (2) 44 3167; http:// Www. cyprusair. com; Code CY; Year Founded 1947. Capitalized at ?125,000, this carrier is incorporated at Nicosia on September 24, 1947. Shareholding is divided three ways: 44.90% is held by British European Airways Corporation (BEA); 22.45% by the Cypriot government; and 36.65% by local Cypriot interests. The British airline assumes responsibility for long-haul service, in cooperation with the local carrier. London-Nicosia service is inaugurated on October 6 with Cyprus de Havilland DH 89As Dragon Rapides taking the Athens-Nicosia segment.
In March 1948, British European Airways Corporation (BEA) delivers 3 DC-3s, which are christened Salamis, Amathus, and Citium. These Douglas-made transports open service on April 18 from Nicosia to Athens, Ankara, Istanbul, Beirut, Lydda, Alexandria, and Cairo.
Service is started to Rome in the spring of 1949. On June 30, the carrier takes over the Athens-Cyprus-Lydda service of CSA Czechoslovak Airlines.
In 1950, DC-3 flights are inaugurated to Waddi Halfa and Khartoum as well as to Kuwait, Bahrain, and Baghdad. The shareholding arrangement is modified. The Cypriot government now holds 31%, Cypriot interests, British European Airways Corporation (BEA), and British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) now hold 23% each. British European Airways Corporation (BEA) Elizabethans are put on the London-Nicosia service on June 7, 1952; Cyprus Airways DC-3s continue to fly the Athens-Nicosia leg.
The world’s first turboprop proving flight is flown on April 2, 1953 as the British European Airways Corporation (BEA) Vickers Viscount 701 Robert Falcon Scott makes a proving flight London-Rome-Athens-Nicosia. On behalf of Cyprus Airways, Ltd., British European Airways Corporation (BEA), on April 18, begins the world’s first sustained turboprop passenger service as the Viscount 701, christened Sir Robert Shackleton, flies London-Nicosia. As during the proving flight, a Cyprus
DC-3 makes the Athens-Nicosia connection. Regular Nicosia-Benghazi and Tripoli DC-3 flights commence on April 25.
Again operating on behalf of Cyprus Airways, Ltd., British European Airways Corporation (BEA) begins Nicosia-Beirut Viscount 701 services on April 13, 1954, as an extension of the London-Nicosia route. The Libyan service is suspended in 1956 as the British regional begins direct Tripoli and Benghazi flights from London.
Under a charter arrangement with Cyprus Airways, Ltd., BEA’s London-Nicosia route is extend to Tel Aviv on October 7.
As the result of a five year agreement signed on January 28, 1958, British European Airways Corporation (BEA) assumes full responsibility for the carrier’s operations in February. British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) sells its 23% shareholding to the Cypriot government in June, but BEA, its sister corporation, retains a quarter interest. Cyprus becomes an independent nation on August 16, 1960.
In 1961, Cyprus joins the British Commonwealth and a new five-year pact is signed with BEA on January 26. On behalf of the island carrier, British European Airways Corporation (BEA)-crewed de Havilland DH-106 Comet 4Bs open services in 1962 to Doha, Kuwait, Bahrain, and other Persian Gulf states.
In 1963-1964, contracted Comet 4Bs begin Athens, Rome, and London services. Vickers Viscount 806s are, during 1965, introduced on the Cairo, Jordan, Jerusalem, and Rhodes frequencies. British European Airways Corporation (BEA) Comet 4Bs continue to operate the carrier’s services between Nicosia, Athens, Rome, and London. A total of 51,438 passengers are flown on the year.
Airline employment stands at 140 in 1966 and the fleet is made up of 2 owned Viscount 806s. Bookings climb to 69,133.
The airline’s owned fleet in 1967 still consists of just 2 Viscount 806s; 200 workers are employed. Passenger boardings accelerate 17% to 85,569, while freight traffic is up 46%.
In 1968-1969, the involvement of British European Airways Corporation (BEA) lessens until the operational agreement ends in November of the latter year; the carrier begins to increase its own fleet and to fly on its own. The first Hawker Siddeley Trident 2E is received in September.
The Nicosia to London routes previously flown by the British shareholder’s Comet 4Bs are taken over in 1970 and operated by the company’s Trident 2E. Cyprair Tours, Ltd. is formed as a subsidiary and 2 Trident 1Es, formerly operated by Kuwait Airways, Ltd., are acquired under lease from British European Airways Corporation (BEA) , which had purchased them.
A second Trident 2E is acquired in 1971, during which year bookings reach 132,861. Airline employment stands at 443.
Another Trident, a 1E, is added to the fleet in 1972 and the unduplicated mileage is 2,500. Passenger boardings climb 33.9% to 201,000 while freight traffic jumps 20.3%.
The delivery of 2 additional Trident 2Es in 1973 allows routes to be opened to Paris, Brussels, and Manchester. An office is opened in Athens. Freight soars 22% and passenger bookings advance by 15.8% to 233,000.
A BAC 1-11-518 is leased from Court Line Aviation, Ltd. in May 1974. Turkish troops invade the island in July and occupy Nicosia International Airport; the entire fleet is caught on the ground. One Trident 2E is lost during the combat at the airport and the other 3 are captured (and will not be released until after years of negotiation); the leased Trident 1E and 2E are both destroyed at Nicosia on July 22, forcing the airline to suspend operations.
Although the head office remains in Nicosia after the conflict, corporate operations are moved to Larnaca on the island’s southern end, and a new fleet is assembled comprising 1 Boeing 720B, 1 Douglas DC-852, and 1 BAC 1-11-537GF.
Revenue services are resumed on February 8, 1975 between Larnaca and Athens.
World History
