(1961-1970). John de la Haye and Adam Thomson, together with their travel club and travel agency backers, form the inclusive-tour carrier Caledonian Airways, Ltd. at Prestwick, Scotland, on April 27, 1961. In August, an application is placed with the U. S. CAB for the operation of an 1,800-hour charter program under terms of the Civil Aeronautics Act (Section 402).
With the Douglas DC-7C Star O' Robbie Burns, leased from Sabena Belgian World Airlines, S. A., the first charter flight is made from Barbados to London on November 29. Thomson himself on December 3 undertakes a charter from Luxembourg to Lourenco Marques (Maputo) via Khartoum, returning via Lagos and Lisbon. The first group charter is undertaken to New York on December 21.
On March 4, 1962, the original DC-7C with 10 crew and 101 passengers, in the worst single-plane crash in aviation history to date, crashes during takeoff from Douala, Cameroon, on a Mozambique-Luxembourg charter flight; there are no survivors.
Another DC-7C is leased from Sabena Belgian World Airlines, S. A. in April. The American CAB hears Caledonian’s Section 402 case. Additional holiday destinations in Europe and the Mediterranean are opened during the remainder of the year and into the next as 4 additional DC-7Cs and 3 Bristol Britannia 312s join the fleet.
In August 1963, Caledonian’s Foreign Air Carrier closed group charter permit is granted by the CAB and ratified by President Kennedy. En-planements reach 81,000.
Managing Director Thomson replaces Chairman de la Haye in 1964.
A chartered DC-7C with 8 crew and 89 passengers crashes short of the runway at Istanbul on September 28; there are no fatalities.
A total of 110,730 passengers are flown and revenues skyrocket 139% to $6,449 million; a net profit of $253,000 is earned.
As many as 28 weekly transatlantic Britannia 312/DC-7C flights are offered during summer 1965. Long-haul flights to Africa and aerial participation in the Hadj retreat to Jeddah are also undertaken. The company’s headquarters are moved to Crawley, West Sussex, and 3 of the 4 DC-7Cs are replaced by 3 Britannia 314s. Two Boeing 707-320Cs, the company’s first jetliners, are ordered in November. At year’s end, several Britannias are employed on the Zambian airlift.
Passenger boardings jump 39% to 132,948 and revenues climb 48.7% to $6.5 million.
Additional frequencies are added in 1966 as plans are laid for the introduction of the carrier’s first jetliners. Airline employment is now 240 and the fleet comprises 3 Britannia 312s, 3 Britannia 313s, and 1 DC-7C.
The Britannias return to Britain from the Zambian airlift in March. The last DC-7C is sold in the spring of 1967. The first Boeing 707-339C is accepted on July 13; christened Flagship Bonnie Scotland, it remains in the U. S. for a year’s charter to The Flying Tiger Line. The second B-707-399C is delivered in December and christened County of Ayr. Airline employment is 306 and enplanements rise to 189,672.
The County of Ayr inaugurates the carrier’s jetliner service on January 16, 1968 with a charter flight to North America. Two Britannia 312s are retired during the year as 2 more B-707-349Cs join the fleet. The B-707-339C leased to The Flying Tiger Line is returned in July. In flying 430,000 passengers on the year, the carrier becomes Britain’s No. 1 charter airline.
During 1969, transatlantic and Mediterranean frequencies are increased as plans are made and negotiations conducted for expansion.
Three BAC 1-11-509s and the B-707-355 County ofCaithness are delivered as 3 Britannias, which have briefly flown charters for the Swiss carrier Tellair, Ltd., are retired.
On April 1, the British government’s civil aviation industry study, chaired by Sir Ronald Edwards, is published. The Edwards Report calls for the creation of a Second Force carrier (large enough to offer various services but not large enough to challenge either British Overseas Airways Corporation or British European Airways Corporation), which many interpret to be Caledonian, now Britain’s largest independent.
In March 1970, another BAC 1-11-509 is added and in the spring, the carrier begins another successful season of inclusive-tour flying. In June, 2 additional B-707s are purchased. Following parliamentary debate and various negotiations, the larger British United Airways, Ltd. is acquired for ?6.9 million by Caledonian Airways on November 30, the amalgamated carrier being known as Caledonian/BUA.
CALEDONIAN AIRWAYS, LTD. (2): United Kingdom (19952000). Although originally established in 1988 as its charter subsidiary, British Airways, Ltd. (2) announces Caledonian’s sale on December 14, 1994, effective March 31. Included in the sale are a lease on BA’s L-1011-1 Loch Iver and 4 L-1011-100s, Loch Earn, Loch Fyne, Loch Avon, and Loch Rannoch, to the travel concern Inspirations, plc, for $7.65 million in cash and $18.27 million in debt assumption.
Clare Hollingsworth is named managing director early in 1995 and his chartered fleet initially comprises the 5 TriStars. During the summer, he will charter 3 Airbus Industrie A320-231s from Kawasaki. The aircraft are all named after Scottish lochs and are painted in a blue and white livery that prominently displays the historic golden lion symbol on each plane’s tail. One has yellow titles instead of the dark blue given the other two.
Replacement scheduled flights on behalf of BA commence on March 1 between London (LGW) and Nassau, San Juan, Tampa, and Grand Cayman. International charter flights under the new owner commence on April 1 to destinations in North America, the Caribbean, Africa, Europe, and the Far East. During the summer, 2 DC-10-30s and 2 B-757-236ERs are leased from the pioneer U. K. flag carrier; however, the DC-10 Loch Torridon, is returned at the end of the year, along with the 3 A320-231s.
With the beginning of the winter schedule, charters are flown to Munich, Geneva, Salzburg, and Zurich.
Enplanements for the year are 2,037,400, a 6.6% increase over the carrier’s last 12 months with British Airways.
Airline employment stands at 900 in 1996. Caledonian is now the only British carrier flying the Lockheed TriStar. In February, the L-1011-100 Loch Fyne is withdrawn from service and repainted; given Aer Lingus Irish Airlines, Ltd. tail livery, it is leased to the Dublin-based national carrier for the summer season.
During the fall, arrangements are completed with London-based Premier Magazines for the production of an entertaining holiday magazine to be distributed to customers during the following year.
Business is not as good this year and passenger boardings decline to 1,869,000. Additionally, a total of 5.76 million FTKs are operated.
The workforce is cut in 1997 to 817. During March, the Loch Fyne is again repainted and chartered to Aer Lingus Irish Airlines, Ltd. for the summer. The first issue of Caledonian magazine appears in April; a second edition will be distributed in November.
In the spring, the carrier joins with Goldcrest Aviation to form the subsidiary Peach Air, Ltd. at London (LGW). The new company is equipped with 2 used Boeing 737-204s and 2 Lockheed L-1011-385 TriStar 1s formerly operated by Air Atlanta Icelandic, H. F.
Charter and inclusive-tour flights to holiday destinations in Europe and the Mediterranean commence in May and continue. Destinations visited also include the U. S., Canada, Bangkok, and Kenya.
At the same time, Caledonian subleases a Douglas DC-10-30 from the Belgian operator ChallengeAir, S. A. Arrangements are completed with the International Lease Finance Corporation (IFLC) for the five-year lease of two A320-231s, beginning in the spring of 1998.
In October, the Loch Fyne is returned from Aer Lingus Irish Airlines, Ltd. Knowing that the aircraft will be reassigned to the Irish carrier the following spring, it is not repainted in full Caledonian colors but rather, wears the line’s titles and tail logo over the Aer Lingus green when it returns to service in November.
For the year, passenger bookings swell to 2,256,000 while freight doubles to 10.02 million FTKs.
A Lockheed L-1011-385 TriStar 1 with 377 passengers makes a precautionary landing at Athens on January 6, 1998 with engine problems.
While on approach to London (LGW) on August 13, a B-737-200 experiences a rapid decompression. The little Boeing makes an emergency landing and no injuries are reported. The CAA undertakes an investigation.
In September, an L-1011 strikes its tail while landing on the Greek island of Kos; the aircraft is not as badly damaged as first feared and only minor repairs are required.
Arrangements are concluded with Air Atlanta Icelandic, H. F. in late October under which Caledonian will wet-lease 4 of Air Atlanta’s L-1011s for the upcoming 1999 summer season (May 1-October 31).
Also in late October, Thomas Cook Group, which has recently purchased and begun to merge Sunworld and its house carrier Airworld Aviation, Ltd., as well as Flying Colours Airlines, Ltd., acquires Carlson LeisureGroup and its airlines Caledonian and Peach Air. By November 1, the U. K. charter airline business is rapidly approaching consolidation.
Through the move, Thomas Cook gains Caledonian’s slots at London (LGW) and Manchester and, with 32 aircraft, now owns the second largest fleet among the nation’s charter carriers. Plans are announced for an increase of service from London (STN), Bristol, Cardiff, Birmingham, and Glasgow. The fleet will also be rationalized, with only the TriStars seen as certain for retention.
As the year ends, Thomas Cook Group, which has assigned its own name to the enlarged travel group, is conducting marketing surveys to determine which airline brand name has the best public image and should be retained for the larger carrier. Early betting is that the names Caledonian (with its memory of delays and incidents) and Peach Air will disappear in addition to that of Airworld, with the romantic Flying Colours winning the label. A final decision is promised before the start of the 1999 summer holiday season.
Meanwhile, there are flights to be operated. One of these, on December 6, nearly ends in tragedy. As the result of ATC confusion, Flight 5199, an L-1011, must quickly climb following a TCAS alarm to avoid Flight 66, a Delta Air Lines B-767-332, which has received a similar prompt to descend. The two airplanes pass each other with 1.5-mi. horizontal and 900-ft. vertical separation.
During the 12 months, passenger boardings accelerate 30.3% to 2.24 million.
Although Flying Colours is, indeed, the surviving airline, the Caledonian brand does not immediately disappear. The two companies, with their enlarged fleet of 34 aircraft, begin the new summer holiday season at the end of March 1999. The amalgamation of travel concerns comes as the European Commission grants permission for Thomas Cook to merge with the Carlson Leisure Group’s U. K. travel interests.
Caledonian, for its part, launches direct weekly return charter flights from London (LGW) to St. Thomas, U. S. Virgin Islands. Plans are announced in early August for biweekly service between the two points during September.
Plans for amalgamation with Flying Colours Airlines, Ltd. at the conclusion of the summer holiday season in November proceed; it is anticipated that the two carriers will officially become one by the end of March 2000. Caledonian Operations Director David Newall and Operations Manager Barry Fitzgerald resign in July, as Robert Willis becomes operations general manager for the combined operation.
The engineering facilities of the two companies are also combined at Manchester, with some job loss, while fleet rationalization and repainting continues. Arrangements are also made under a new fleet rationalization plan to replace 4 L-1011s with 3 B-757-200s and to return 3 wet-leased TriStars to Air Atlanta Icelandic, H. F.
On September 1, Thomas Cook Group establishes a new holiday travel concern to replace its Sunworld, Sunset, and Inspiration holiday subsidiaries, as well as both Caledonian and Flying Colours Airlines, Ltd. Under the direction of Managing Director Simon Vincent, the new travel brand, to be known as JMC after the son of Thomas Cook (John Mason Cook), will complete this changeover within five years, assisted in the process by a ?200-million ($320-million) investment program. As aircraft are repainted and other vestiges of corporate image are altered, the names of the tour operating division, JCM Holidays, Ltd., and inhouse airline, JCM Airlines, Ltd., will be gradually introduced during the next six months. Terry Soult is named managing director of the new JCM Airlines, Ltd.
This is the last year in which traffic figures are maintained. During these 12 months, customer bookings fall 6.4% to 2,621,000 and cargo traffic has plunged 71.2% to 2,656,000 FTKs.
Caledonian disappears completely on March 26, 2000 when JMC Airlines, Ltd. becomes operational under a single air operator’s certificate.
CALEDONIAN/BUA, LTD.: United Kingdom (1970-1971). Following parliamentary debate and various negotiations, the larger British United Airways, Ltd. is acquired for ?6.9 million by Caledonian Airways, Ltd. on November 30, 1970, the amalgamated carrier now taking the name Caledonian/BUA, Ltd. Just as Caledonian Airways had operated domestic and international scheduled flights, so, too, is the new company able to provide the same service. The employee population reaches 4,635 and the fleet is increased to 34 aircraft. Together, the two carriers fly 2,243,000 travelers on the year.
On March 31, 1971, the airline is awarded the old British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) West African scheduled routes from London to Accra, Lagos, and Kano, with Tripoli being added in July. Meanwhile, in June a Boeing 707-323C is leased for three months from American Airlines, and while with the British it is named County of Renfrew. With the assimilation of BUA fully completed, the name British Caledonian Airways, Ltd. and a new livery are adopted in September. London (LGW)-Paris (LBG) flights commence on November 1. Enplanements are 2,558,000.
World History
