Western Isles Airways, Ltd. is formed as a holding company on July 19, 1937. On October 21, 1938, in accordance with the Air Navigation Order of September 16, the new ATLB grants the carrier route certification from Glasgow to Islay and North Uist.
Operating as part of the Scottish Airways, Ltd. group, the company is absorbed by British European Airways Corporation (BEA) on February 1, 1947.
WESTERN KENYA AIR CHARTERS, LTD.: P. O. Box 190, El-doret, Kenya; Year Founded 1966. Western Kenya is established by the East African Tanning Extract Co., Ltd. at Eldoret in 1966 to provide passenger transport with a Piper PA-32 Cherokee Six on behalf of the concern. Public charters are also offered.
By the mid-1980s, the Cherokee Six has been replaced with a PA-23 Aztec and a PA-31-310 Navajo.
Flights continue into the late 1990s. In 1998, Hofo von Kaufmann’s five-person company operates a single Cessna 404 Titan.
WESTERN NSW (WESTERN NEW SOUTH WALES AIRLINES [PTY.], LTD.): Australia (1981-1993). This small regional is established by Chairman Rod Kendall at Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, in 1981 to provide nonscheduled passenger and cargo charter services to Sydney, Griffith, Canberra, Albury, Deniliquin, Hay, and Narrandera. Max Cochrane becomes managing director and revenue flights are initiated with 2 Piper PA-31-350 Navajo Chieftains, 1 PA-31-310 Navajo, and 1 Cessna 310. Operations continue apace for the remainder of the decade with little change in either routes or fleet.
Airline employment in 1990 stands at 42 and enplanements, now reported, total 350. Revenues, made mostly from freight, reach $A2.7 million and a net A$300,000 is generated.
The little carrier takes over Macknight Airlines (Pty.), Ltd. and earns A$4 million in 1991 with profits moving to A$500. The year’s en-planements are 32,184.
In 1992, the fleet is increased by three Cessna 310s and an order is made for a Beech 1900. Passenger boardings jump 10.6% to 36,000 as revenues ascend 44.4% to A$3.9 million. The operating surplus is A$584,000, but net gain slides to A$251,000.
Flights cease in 1993.
WESTERN PACIFIC AIR SERVICES, LTD.: P. O. Box 411, Honiara, Solomon Islands; Phone 677 36 533; Fax 677 36 476; Code WPA; Year Founded 1990. Established at Honiara’s Henderson Airport in 1990, Western Pacific begins scheduled interisland services. General Manager Gary Clifford’s initial fleet comprises 1 Pilatus-Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander and 2 Piper PA-23 Aztecs. Leroy Keim becomes general manager in 1991 and the fleet is enlarged by the addition of an Aero Commander 500B.
Operations continue apace in 1992-1994. Declining traffic during a time of recession forces Keim to remove all aircraft except his Islander and one Aztec.
Flights continue in 1995-1999 and a Piper PA-31-310 Navajo is placed into service as business improves.
WESTERN PACIFIC AIRLINES (WESTPAC): United States (1994-1998). WPA is set up at Colorado Springs, Colorado, in July 1994 by Edward R. Beauvais, former chairman of America West Airlines, to offer deep-discount scheduled passenger flights with emphasis on the new Denver International Airport. Beauvais will model his operation on that of Southwest Airlines (2), but will also fly a medium-haul route network and employ ticketless travel from the outset. Capitalization from private investors totals $25 million; Beauvais, Edward L. Gaylord, and Hunt Petroleum will control 65% of the shareholding.
The remainder of the year is occupied in preparations for service start-up. A $3-million stock offering is made in October and a new air terminal is simultaneously opened at Colorado Springs; orders are also placed for the acquisition of three B-707-301s and three B-737-3B7s from USAir. Although the company name is briefly changed to Commercial Air, WPA is quickly restored.
Vice President-Management Tom DeNardin now proposes the concept of an “air logo” program (sometimes called “flying billboards”), whereby Westpac will paint its little Boeings as flying advertisements for corporate and other sponsors. The first company to have its name and logo displayed is The Broadmoor, a Colorado Springs resort hotel owned by Edward L. Gaylord, a Westpac investor. The paint jobs are performed by BF Goodrich Aerospace (TRAMCO), another investor, at its facility at Paine Field, Everett, Washington.
The second company to participate in the “air logo” program is the Fox Television Network, for which a B-737-301 is painted in a memorable yellow scheme that features its cartoon series The Simpsons—he plane is also nicknamed the “Electric Banana.” The third B-737-301 wears a basic green and burgundy Western Pacific livery with a “WP” on its tail.
The workforce stands at 1,200 at the end of 1995’s first quarter. The company turns on its own Unix-based, client-server reservations system during the first week of April. Sales with a Windows interface program are now started by 50 reservations agents and, during the first two days alone, over 24,000 calls are received seeking seats on the company’s $129 walk-on or $69 21-day advance, off-peak, one-way flights from Colorado Springs to Los Angeles.
On April 28, the same day it receives its FAA air carrier certificate, Western Pacific inaugurates Part 121 services with a flight to Oklahoma City. During the next 10 days, additional frequencies are laid on from Colorado Springs to Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Kansas City.
With the addition of a third “flying billboard” jetliner on May 8, painted in a basic red and silver livery with the fuselage markings “Future Logo jet” with a large question mark painted on its blue tail, San Francisco joins the route network. On May 19, USA Today profiles The Simpsons aircraft and reports that Fox has spent over $1 million to advertise this cartoon television series on the side of the West-pac jet.
Also in May, the company orders 100 new computers and announces plans to add 150 new operators by June 1 to improve the performance of its reservations center.
On June 1, nonstop frequencies commence from Colorado Springs to Dallas (DFW), Seattle/Tacoma, and Chicago (MDW).
Fleet strength reaches five aircraft in June. Also during the month, CEO Beauvais is profiled by Wendy Oden in her “Local Boy Makes Good,” Colorado Business Magazine 22 (June 1995): 88-94.
The “Future Logo jet” is repainted in July and rolled out on July 24 to honor the City ofColorado Springs; featuring a huge painting of Pikes Peak, the paint job, paid for by private and public subscription, costs $90,000.
The Colorado Springs is followed by a fourth, a newly acquired B-737-3B7 painted for Colorado Technical College with a huge golden eagle along the side of its fuselage and a tall “T” on its yellow tail.
Frequencies and destinations are increased throughout the summer. Nonstop service is initiated on August 1 from Colorado Springs to Houston, San Diego, Indianapolis, and Wichita. The new entrant’s best month comes in August when it transports 121,000 passengers. Heavy advance bookings will continue and in later months will exceed this initial surge.
In early October, the company begins to offer limited-time $59 roundtrip “mystery tours” between Colorado Springs and any of its other markets. There is a catch. Although the overnight, two-day trips may be booked in advance, passengers are only advised as to hot or cold climate and will not know until they board which destination will be visited. Instead of hundreds of takers, thousands of passengers sign up for the seats and the program is expanded.
A B-737-3L9 is leased from Boullioun Aircraft on October 25; painted for the upcoming holidays, the Winter Wonder Plane portrays Santa Claus on its tail and has a red nose, in the manner of Rudolph the RedNosed Reindeer. Service to Tulsa and Newark begins on November 15.
On December 7, a B-737-3B7 not yet committed to the logo jet program has the symbol of the airline’s ProntoPAC package service painted on the forward end of its fuselage above the windowline; the symbol, in the shape of a smiling jetliner, is nicknamed “Westpac Willie.” An exAir Europa, S. A. B-737-3L9 “Corporate Logo jet” joins the fleet on December 13 wearing huge red and blue Western Pacific markings on the side of its wide fuselage.
Washington, D. C. (lAD) joins the network on December 15. On the latter day, two new “logo jets” are rolled out at Colorado Springs. Aki, a model affiliated with the Stardust Resort Casino, is featured in a stretched-out pose on the tail of a B-737-301 while Thrifty Car Rental is the theme for another B-737-301, complete with the automobile firm’s caveman-on-a-unicycle mascot painted on the plane’s tail.
Enplanements for the seven months of service total 731,000 and 845,000 FTKs are also operated. Revenues for the operational portion of the start-up year are $4.7 million; however, costs bring $3.4 million in losses on both the operating and net lines. The loss figures are later deepened to $6.85 million (operating) and $6.21 million (net).
There are no changes in the employee population during 1996; however, the fleet grows to 12 leased B-737-300s, including a B-737-3S3 chartered from El Salvador’s TACA International Airlines, S. A.
Daily roundtrip service to Atlanta commences on January 6. To accommodate the new route, one of the airline’s two daily flights to Dallas is dropped.
Destinations visited now also include Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Chicago (MDW), Dallas (DFW), Houston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Newark, Oklahoma City, Phoenix, Tulsa, and Wichita.
Poor bookings force cancellation of service to the last-named point on January 31. It is the first destination dropped by the airline.
Using the B-737 freed up by dropping the largest city in Kansas, Westpac is more easily able to inaugurate daily flights to San Antonio, San Jose, and Nashville next day.
During February and early March, the company conducts negotiations with Boeing; plans are made to sign a $740-million order for 20 new B-737-300s/700s to be delivered over the next 2 years.
The seventh logo jet Bronco Buster is delivered in mid-March. The B-737-3S3 is painted on one side with titles reflecting the Professional Rodeo Cowboy’s Association and has a portrait of six-time, all-round world champion Ty Murray riding the bucking bull Playboy Skoal. The other side features titles honoring the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame with a likeness of the late Casey Tibbs and the bronco Necktie on the tail. The plane enters service on March 26 from Colorado Springs to Las Vegas.
The 1-millionth passenger is boarded during the third week in March and the first anniversary is celebrated on April 28. The B-737-3L9 formerly painted as the Winter Wonder Plane is now recolored to become the Spring Fling Jet to promote spring and summer fares and vacations. Daily roundtrips commence on May 6 from Colorado Springs to Portland, Oregon. On May 29, Boyd Gaming Corporation underwrites the introduction of the first of two SAM’S Town “logo jets.”
Two more Logjets are delivered in early June. The first is a B-737-3K9 that wears billboard-sized Western Pacific corporate titles on a solid red fuselage and blue tail and engine nacelle on its right side and blue fuselage and red tail and engine nacelle on its left. The second aircraft is the third of the original B-737-301s leased from USAir, which is now given a livery that honors its sponsor, the Security Service Federal Credit Union of San Antonio.
Also at this time, one each B-727-221A and B-727-277A are acquired under lease from Express One International and wear dual Westpac and Express One titles. Between June 15 and September 5, they will provide scheduled service on behalf of Westpac from Colorado Springs to Newark and Washington, D. C. (IAD).
Under a March agreement with the City of Colorado Springs, a $3-million expansion of a new permanent passenger facility and five-gate temporary concourse is opened at Colorado Springs Airport in late June. The Boyd Gaming Corporation Sam’s Town “logo jet” Boeing is unveiled at Las Vegas on July 3. Stretched across the tail are the images of local models Lisa McCutcheon on one side and Corina Harney on the other, both wearing cowgirl apparel featured at the Sam’s Town Western Emporium.
The company’s Atlanta reservations center receives a telephone call on August 7 indicating that a bomb is aboard Flight 383, which had departed minutes earlier. The aircraft is directed to return and is sealed off in a “bomb disposal” area. Although the Boeing 737, its passengers and cargo are thoroughly searched by law enforcement personnel, no bomb is discovered.
With Westpac Chairman/CEO Beauvais holding the same post, the feeder subsidiary Mountain Air Express is established to fly holiday traffic to six Colorado ski resorts beginning in December. The company orders 12 Fairchild-Dornier 328-120 turboprops on behalf of its new child.
Simultaneously, Westpac teams up with Boulder-based Warren Miller Entertainment on a new 3-year partnership to promote the new air service. Under terms of the contract, the carrier becomes the official airline of Warren Miller, which has offices in Canada, Australia, and the U. K.
It will be promoted in an October motion picture release, Snowriders, in Miller’s popular magazine Ski World and will be given a 30-second ad in a weekly television show to be shown for 13 weeks during the winter on Prime Sports Network.
As the result of increased public concern over the May Valujet Airlines disaster, higher fuel bills, and reinstatement of a federal ticket tax, the company suffers a $910,000 loss during the third quarter. Meanwhile, on September 15, the two Express One International Boeings are returned.
On October 1, the second Boyd Gaming Corporation Sam’s Town is rolled out at Memphis in connection with the opening of a new casino at Tunica, Mississippi. Wearing cowgirl clothing similar to that shown on the first Sam’s Town “logo jet,” the image of Memphis model Traci Adell adorns one side of the tail and Kansas City model Kori Bailey the other.
The company unveils the ski industry’s first flying billboard at Durango-La Plata County Airport on October 17; the B-737 The Spirit of Durango has the mountains and markings of Purgatory Ski Resort painted on one side of its fuselage and the nearby Anasazi ruins on the other. Skier Sven Brunso is featured on one side of the tail and the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad on the other.
Another “logo jet” is unveiled at month’s end; it is sponsored by the Crested Butte Ski Resort and features images of ski champion Kim Re-ichhelm on the tail and the fishing opportunities of Gunnison, Colorado, on the fuselage.
Also during the month, a new 23,100-sq.-ft. maintenance hangar is opened at Colorado Springs and orders are placed with Flight Dynamics for its Head-Up Guidance System, which will be placed aboard the aircraft of the Westpac fleet.
Finances dominate a boardroom debate during which Senior Vice President/Chief Operating Officer Trevor Van Horn is ousted. In late November, founder Beauvais is succeeded as president/CEO by Robert A. Peiser, who, by his work as chief financial officer, is noted for his success in delivering Trans World Airlines (TWA) from bankruptcy. Beauvais does, however, remain as board chairman. “Logo jet” creator and Vice President-Management DeNardin is succeeded by another TWA veteran, Mark Coleman.
Plans are made to increase frequencies, adjusting departure times to meet the needs of the business traveler, seek additional business traffic, and to challenge United Airlines dominance and competing Frontier Airlines (2) at Denver.
Unprofitable service to San Jose, California, ends on December 4. Simultaneously, service from Colorado Springs to San Diego is reduced to daily from twice daily. The same day, The Spirit of Durango begins daily roundtrip service to Miami on behalf of Floridians on ski vacations and Coloradans seeking warmer weather.
To assist in the Denver invasion, the new regional subsidiary Mountain Air Express, formed during the fall, launches scheduled feeder services to six ski destinations on December 15 with two Fairchild Dornier 328-120s. Within 3 days, the commuter is providing 25 daily roundtrips from Colorado Springs.
At the end of the month, the Spring Fling Jet, a B-737-3L9, reappears in the red and yellow colors of Century Casinos’ Womacks Cripple Creek property, which is located near Colorado Springs. Gaming house employee Lisa Patton poses next to a slot machine on the jetliner’s tail. The aircraft is the 13th and last in the “logo jet” series, as the new management team cancels the colorful program in favor of a new business-class emphasis and market realignment designed to return the airline to profitability.
Passenger boardings accelerate to 1,768,139. Operating income reaches $155.33 million, but expenses are $176.13 million. The operating loss deepens to $20.79 million while a large $21.83-million net loss is suffered.
Yield management strategies are put into practice early in 1997 and improved in-flight amenities are offered to passengers. Daily service to San Antonio, Nashville, and Ontario, California, ends on February 2;
Las Vegas also leaves the route network this day. Simultaneously, daily flights are added to 15 cities already visited.
As part of its planned implementation of the SABRE reservations system, Westpac, on February 28, begins to close its flight stores. The facilities, in the Citadel Mall, the Pueblo Mall, and the Park Meadows store were designed to sell tickets, along with other souvenirs bearing the airline’s logo. Unable to stand on their own without ticket sales, the three outlets are shut down by March 31.
Service to Miami ends on April 6. The next day, the 1,300-employee Westpac completes a switch to the SABRE reservations system and the taking of reservations becomes much easier than with its previous inhouse operation. The “Baby Boeing” fleet totals 16 in May following delivery of another B-737-300. During the month, $10 million in new capitalization is received to help with a transfer to Denver and the decision is made to change the company image by abandoning the widely known “logo jet” program.
Service is increased by 50.7% on June 29, when new frequencies are inaugurated from Denver; a total of 45 daily departures will be offered by the company, along with 24 more by its Mountain Air Express affiliate. Simultaneously, 13 daily departures are cut out of the Colorado Springs schedule. Concern is expressed in aviation circles over what type of response will be made by the airport’s largest client, United Airlines and, to a far lesser extent, by competing Frontier Airlines (2).
In a surprise initiative designed to neutralize any adverse traffic or fiscal impact from the latter and to assist in the upcoming battle with the Chicago-based major, Westpac on July 1 begins the process required to takeover its rival. Officials from both companies agree that Westpac, with Peiser as president/CEO, will eventually be the surviving partner after stockholders from Frontier Airlines (2) hopefully accept 0.75 shares of Westpac stock for every one of their own. The no-cash arrangement, valued at $45 million, is to be accomplished in stages, beginning with joint code-sharing on August 1 and total merger in October.
Toward the end of the month, officials of the two carriers suggest that, upon merger, the Frontier name survive for the united entity, as the name is associated with Frontier Airlines (1), widely recognized and still remembered as one of the nation’s safest carriers. The proposal is noted in the July 28 issue of Aviation Week & Space Technology.
A total of 70 weekday departures are offered by Westpac from Denver International Airport on August 1 by Westpac and Mountain Air Express combined to 26 markets. The Colorado Springs hub has been pared down to just 23 daily departures by the airlines, 12, later 10, of which are flown to Denver.
Guaranteed by the Gaylord and Hunt families, Westpac receives a $10-million short-term loan from Bank One on September 19. Half of the loan is due seven days after the merger with Frontier Airlines (2), with the remainder due six months after that.
Despite the introduction of code-sharing operations on the appointed date, the two companies find it difficult to coordinate their schedules and integrate their cabin and cockpit crews. With both carriers suffering financially, merger plans falter.
On October 3, Westpac President Peiser releases a statement to the media. Due to “cultural differences and the contrast in our scheduling difficulties,” the merger with Frontier is dead. Even the dual-designator compact will end, on November 16.
Industry insiders suggest that the union has failed because Frontier Airlines (2), with only $7 million on hand, is unwilling to join in a situation where $15 million is debt is due and payable shortly after the merger.
The Frontier Airlines (2) divorce and weak finances bring boardroom battles. Four of the company’s seven board members resign, including representatives of key backers Edward L. Gaylord and Margaret Hunt Hill, who own one-third of the stock. It is they who have provided $30 million in capital during the past 12 months and guaranteed the Bank One loan in September.
Three days later, Westpac files for Chapter XI bankruptcy protection, noting assets of $133 million and liabilities of $98.8 million. The U. S.
Bankruptcy Court for the District of Colorado at Denver allows the airline to withdraw $2.8 million from its accounts receivable to pay for fuel, salaries, and various other operational costs needed to keep the company afloat as it seeks a rescue package. It is also allowed to sell tickets for future flights.
It is also announced that all jet service will be eliminated from the former Colorado Springs hub on November 16 and centered on Denver International Airport; flights to Indianapolis and Houston are also ended as of October 20. The November 16 schedule change will provide additional nonstops from Denver to Chicago (MDW), Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington, D. C. (IAD). Elimination of jet service at Colorado Springs will result in the relocation of 90 Westpac employees; however, the company’s reservations center and headquarters will remain at that city.
On November 17, the airline begins to allow college students to fly one way between any city pairs on the network for just $79; the offer is good through May.
Having made a controlling investment in Hawaiian Airlines (HAL) the previous year, Smith Management Co. (SMC) of New York City steps forward early in the third week of November to rescue Westpac. That firm joins with company officials to ask the U. S. Bankruptcy Court in Denver to allow it to inject $10 million into the destitute carrier before December 4 in order to allow the airline to make its aircraft lease payments.
Thereafter, on December 20, another $20 million in debtor-inpossession financing would become available as working capital, with another possible $20 million to follow that would assure emergence from Chapter XI. In exchange for this aid, SMC would receive nearly all equity in Westpac. Associated company Mountain Air Express (MAX) is also impacted as it, too, files for creditor protection.
On November 21, former partner Frontier Airlines (2), backed by Greenwich, Connecticut-based Wexford Management LLC, submits a surprise bid of its own. The new plan is similar to SMC’s in that $15 million would be put forward by December 4 for Westpac’s aircraft lease payments, followed by additional debtor-in-possession financing. Bankruptcy Judge Sidney Brooks orders a preliminary hearing on the two plans for November 28, with a decision on December 3 in time for the lease disbursement.
After Brooks decides in favor of SMC, Westpac files a company reorganization plan with the Denver court that stipulates $8 million in payments to unsecured creditors and emergence from bankruptcy in March. Under an exit-financing arrangement, SMC President John W. Adams and Sundance Venture Partners general partner Gregory S. Anderson are appointed to the Westpac board.
Westpac, meanwhile, proceeds with its plans to change its image, but also offers a large number of special ticket incentives, both in a traditional format and via the World Wide Web. These have no significant impact upon the carrier’s economic situation.
On December 19, the company announces that its fares for travel on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day will start at $39 one way, with no advance purchase required.
Passenger boardings increase 25.4% to 2,217,110, while freight grows 10.2% to 4.85 million FTKs. Operating revenues for the year advance 17.3% to $182.26 million, but expenses surge 44.4% to $254.45. Consequently, the operating loss deepens to $72.18 million, while the net loss deepens to $81.95 million.
During January 1998, SMC invests another $13 million into Westpac in an effort to keep it aloft. For weeks, daily readers of the “Message Board” on the World Wide Web’s Yahoo financial pages are able to track the continuing downturn as income falls short of projections.
On January 30, in an effort to clarify what it considers to be inaccurate and misleading statements, the airline feels itself compelled to issue a communique: “Western Pacific Airlines continues to receive funding from Smith Management Company as part of Smith’s original credit agreement with the airline dated December 3, 1997. All operations at the airline are normal. At today’s board meeting, where two Smith Management representatives hold seats and fully participated in the normal course of Company business, no discussions took place regarding discontinuation or modification of the airline’s funding arrangement. In addition, during the past week, Western Pacific has realized the highest level of passenger reservations for a one week period since filing for Chapter 11 protection on October 5, 1997.”
Just how dire the situation really has become is revealed on February 2, as lawyers for SMC, Westpac, Westpac’s creditors, and Denver-based Frontier Airlines (2) argue in U. S. Bankruptcy Court. At the end of the two-hour ordeal, SMC shuts off its cash flow to Westpac, having provided $23 million since December 3.
Without resources and deeply in debt, officials of the once-innovative Western Pacific reach a liquidation agreement with SMC on February 4, which is reported to U. S. Bankruptcy Judge Sidney Brooks. SMC agrees to pay all employees through Wednesday and to allow completion of a few final flights, which depart Denver during the afternoon, even as the airline terminates all other operations. By February 5, all aircraft are grounded and employees laid off.
Several other airlines now step in to assist those who hold Westpac tickets. Frontier Airlines (2) offers to accommodate passengers on a space-available basis, while Reno Air, United Airlines, and Vanguard Airlines make available special cut-rate tickets. Mountain Air Express (MAX) , which continues flying, also assist former Westpac customers, who wish to fly turboprops on the routes it operates. MAX itself will be sold to Air Wisconsin on February 23.
WESTERN PACIFIC AVIATION (PTY.), LTD.: Australia (19911993). Formed at Runaway Bay, Queensland, in 1991, Western Pacific is operated by joint Managing Directors W. S. Childs and Warren Thomas. Flights to coastal destinations are undertaken with a Cessna 441 and two Beech Super King Air 200s. Flights continue for several years.
WESTERN PACIFIC AVIATION CORPORATION: United States (1931). WPAC is established at San Francisco during the first week of January 1931 to offer scheduled passenger services to Oakland and Sacramento. The Ford Tri-Motor 4-AT-16 is purchased and employed to inaugurate revenue flights on January 28.
With the Great Depression deepening, the new entrant cannot attract sufficient traffic to gain viability and is forced to shut its doors on April 24. The aircraft is sold to a Seattle firm.
WESTERN PACIFIC EXPRESS (WESTPAC): United States (1982-1989). Westpac is established at Van Nuys, California, in 1982 to provide scheduled passenger and cargo services with a fleet of Beech 99s. Revenue flights commence over a route from Los Angeles to Palmdale via Lancaster, Edwards AFB, and Ontario, but cannot be maintained beyond 1983.
The assets and certificate are purchased by new owners in 1984 and the company, reformed into an all-cargo operation, resumes and continues operations in 1985. Flights cease at decade’s end.
WESTERN YUKON AIR: United States (1979-1982). WYA is established at St. Mary’s in 1979 to fly passenger and cargo charter services. President Lawrence L. Ledlow acquires a fleet of 1 Piper PA-31350 Navajo Chieftains, 4 Cessna 207s, and 2 Cessna 185s. These are employed to inaugurate revenue flights to Mountain Village, Pilot Station, Marshall, Russian Mission, Bethel, Aniak, Unalakleet, St. Michael, Stebbins, Kotlik, Emmonak, Alakanuk, Sheldon’s Point, Scammon Bay, Hooper Bay, Chevak, Dillingham, and Nome. Operations continue apace in 1980.
The decision is taken early in 1981 to initiate regularly scheduled commuter flights. These begin in July and during the next six months a total of 6,000 passengers are transported, together with 5,000 pounds of cargo.
In 1982, three additional Navajo Chieftains are acquired. Recession, however, takes a steady financial toll and only 2,000 passengers are flown in the year’s first half. As a result, the carrier is forced to stop flying on June 30.
WESTFLIGHT AVIATION: United States (1984-1985). Charter, scheduled, and scenic tour flights in southeastern Alaska are inaugurated by Westflight following its August 1984 start-up at Ketchikan. Destinations visited by the company’s Grumman G-21 Goose and 2 de Havil-land Canada DHC-2 Beavers include Coffman Cove, Craig, Hydaburg, Kassan, Klawock, Long Island, and Thorne Bay.
The fleet is expanded in 1985 through the addition of a DHC-6 Twin Otter and a DHC-3 Otter. The company’s last flight is made on September 30 as, the next day, it is taken over by local competitor Temsco Airlines.
WESTJET, LTD.: 35 McTavish Place, NE, Calgary, Alberta T2E 7J7, Canada; Phone (403) 735-2600; Fax (403) 571-4649; http:// Www. westjet. com; Code M3; Year Founded 1994. In 1994, Calgary real estate developer Clive Beddoe, president of the Hanover Group, obtains an aircraft to travel back and forth between his business interests in Alberta and Vancouver. When not in use, the aircraft was available for charter from Timothy Morgan’s Morgan Air. These supplemental offerings are so successful that Beddoe and Morgan and local businessmen Donald Bell and Mark Hill come to believe that a new Western Canada airline, especially if it is low cost, might be viable.
After reviewing the operations of several North American carriers, including Southwest Airlines (2) and Morris Air, to obtain insights into the operations of successful low cost airlines, David Needleman, president of Morris Air, is sought out as a consultant. Neeleman visits Calgary and together with Beddoe, Morgan, Hill, and Bell, works out a comprehensive business plan and financial prospectus. The final plan is unveiled at the beginning of 1995 and calls for a three-plane, low-cost, deep-discount carrier that will serve short-haul markets in Western Canada from a base at Calgary. Modeling itself on Southwest Airlines (2), Beddoe’s airline will fly without tickets, shun the use of computerized reservations systems, avoid interlining, and serve no in-flight meals.
A number of individuals and concerns are approached and, within a month or so, C$8.6 million in capital has been raised. Shareholding is divided between between Morris Air founder Needleman, Ronald Greene of Renaissance Energy, Ltd., Beddoe, and retired Nesbitt Burns, Inc. official William Mathews.
Chairman/CEO Beddoe begins to recruit a nonunionized workforce of 340, including former Canadian Regional Airlines, Ltd. executive Donald Clark as chief financial officer. The first workers move into the company’s premier downtown Calgary offices in July. Two Boeing B-737-275As are leased in November. The aircraft are painted in a white, blue, and teal livery. A B-737-265C is acquired in January 1996 and, later in the month, Westjet completes another offering to retail and institutional investors, including the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board, through Canada Trust Company, Ltd. Directors and senior company officials also obtain equity.
Revenue flights commence on February 29 and, through the year, a total of 96 weekly flights are mounted linking the carrier’s base with Victoria, Vancouver, Kelowna, Edmonton, and Winnipeg. With more demand from Regina than traffic from Winnipeg, the company halts service to the Manitoba capital on June 1 and begins flying to Regina and Saskatoon. During the month, another B-737 joins the fleet, a Dash-2A3. During the summer, a two-story headquarters office building is occupied at Calgary’s airport industrial park.
On September 30, the company voluntarily grounds its aircraft when Transport Canada questions the carrier’s maintenance procedures. Chairman Beddoe threatens to sue the regulatory body to halt its safety audit; however, by October 14, the company’s fleet has been cleared and normal operations, accompanied by slashed fares, are resumed. During the 17 days of idleness, the company has lost C$5 million. Long-term debt stands at just C$219,000.
While en route from Victoria to Edmonton on October 25, an engine warning light comes on aboard a B-737-275A; the engine is shut down and the plane returns to its point of origin. After a safe emergency landing and two hours spent in repair, the flight takes off again and is completed without further incident.
Company spokesman Siobhan Vinish announces on November 11 that the carrier’s quest for an injunction against Transport Canada has been dropped. Service to Fort McMurray begins on November 19.
By December 31,601,149 passengers have been flown and generated income of C$37 million.
Airline employment remains at 340 in 1997. A rights offering in January raises an additional C$8.3 million, making Westjet the most heavily capitalized start-up airline in North America during the past 15 years. The funding is employed to purchase a fifth “Baby Boeing” and to restore the cash reserve depleted by the September shutdown.
On March 1, the company’s first anniversary, it is announced that 760,000 passengers have been transported during the first year. The new Boeing is employed to inaugurate revenue flights to Grande Prairie and Prince George, British Columbia, and joins with the earlier units to increase monthly departures to 1,250.
On June 18, frequencies are initiated from Vancouver to Abbots-ford/Fraser Valley, British Columbia; Westjet becomes the first scheduled airline to service the Abbotsford Airport.
Both of the nation’s other long-haul discount airlines, Greyhound Air, Ltd. and Vistajet, Ltd., fail during September; Westjet is the only survivor of the three started with such high hopes a few months earlier.
On December 5, the carrier licenses Open Skies’ Revenue Management System to help it identify sales opportunities and to maximize system revenues. The computerized program is an important forecasting tool.
Operating revenues of C$77.3 million are generated, as are costs of C$66.79 million. Operating profit reaches C$10.54 million and a net profit of C$6.16 million is announced.
Service continues in 1998. The fleet is increased to include 10 B-737s that visit 9 cities throughout Western Canada.
On March 30, daily B-737 roundtrips are started between Winnipeg and Calgary, with connecting service to Edmonton, Vancouver, Kelowna, Victoria, and Abbotsford/Fraser Valley.
On November 13, a C$27-million fixed-rate term loan facility is finalized with Newcourt Capital, Inc. Under its terms, the carrier may employ these new funds to pay for both planned and previous aircraft acquisitions through September 1999. The facility is set to mature in October 2005.
Operating revenues this year climb to C$125.9 million, while expenses reach C$111.75 million. The operating profit is C$14.23 million, while a net gain of C$6.51 million is turned in.
With the airline having successfully grown and demands having kept pace, the decision is taken on February 11, 1999 to appoint Stephen C. Smith, former president/CEO of Air Ontario, Inc., as Westjet presi-dent/CEO. He will concentrate on day-to-day activities, while Chairman Beddoe will continue to emphasize development.
It is confirmed in mid-month that the company is in discussion with Air Canada, Ltd. concerning a nonequity strategic commercial agreement.
On March 11, Westjet launches two new routes. Daily roundtrip service is inaugurated from Calgary to Thunder Bay, becoming the only airline to operate a nonstop flight between the two communities. Simultaneously, twice-daily nonstop roundtrips are initiated from Calgary to Prince George.
At the conclusion of the airline’s annual meeting on May 5, Air Canada, Ltd. CEO Durrett informs reporters that talks will shortly be resumed with Westjet concerning a cost-cutting, code-sharing, strategic alliance. The Edmonton Journal reports on May 6 that the major is “keen to ink” a deal in order to help it begin to make money on short-haul routes in the western part of the nation, money previously lost to Westjet’s low-cost service.
On May 7, it is noted that the company’s first-quarter revenues are C$37 million, while pretax profits have increased 350% to C$4.5 million.
A spokesman announces on May 27 that shares valued at approximately C$25 million will be made available in an initial public offering.
Although no exact percentage of the airline to be offered or date of the offering is given, a preliminary prospectus is filed with the security commissions in all Canadian provinces. Investment dealer CIBC World Markets is retained to lead the forthcoming transaction.
The initial public offering occurs in July and is extremely successful; the oversubscribed sale of 2.5 million shares, or approximately 10% of the company, generates proceeds of C$25 million. Certain of the funds are employed to purchase a pair of B-737-200As, the first of which joins the fleet on August 18. Daily service from Calgary to Grande Prairie in Alberta begins on September 9.
Although traffic figures are not reported, financial data is. Revenues increase 62.3% to $138.43 million, while costs surge 54.1% to $117.71 million. The operating profit accelerates to $20.71 million, while net gain jumps to $10.76 million. The company’s profit-sharing plan permits the distribution of C6.5 million to Westjet employees.
Airline employment stands at 1,500 at the beginning of 2000. It is announced on January 20, that the carrier has placed orders for four more B-737s and that it will establish a hub at Hamilton, Ontario, in order to expand its operation into eastern Canada. By summer, the carrier will be offering 11 daily departures from Hamilton to such destinations as Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, Thunder Bay, Winnipeg, and Calgary.
In February, the carrier tentatively agrees to a major upgrade in fleet equipment, including an order for 6 Next Generation B-737-700s, with 17 options. Simultaneously, a contract is signed with GECAS for the charter of 10 more Next Generation B-737-700s, with lease options on another 10.
The first step in the company move into eastern Canada is launched on March 9 when, employing the first of four newly delivered B-737s, it begins a new route from Hamilton to Winnipeg and another from Hamilton to Thunder Bay, continuing on to Calgary. Additionally, another daily flight is added on the Calgary to Abbotsford route.
On April 19, six-times-a-week B-737 return service is inaugurated from Moncton, New Brunswick, via Hamilton, to Winnipeg. Previously operated by LADECO Chilean Airlines Linea Aerea del Cobre, S. A., a B-737-205A arrives on May 23 under a five-year lease from Pegasus Aviation.
Twice-daily B-737-200 roundtrips begin on June 8 between Hamilton and Ottawa. Orders for five B-737-200s are confirmed on July 18; the first will arrive before the end of the month, with another delivered in September, followed by two in December and one in February.
The February reequipment decision is confirmed on August 22 with the six Next Generation B-737-700 orders made firm. The long-term package will now include 20 of the advanced planes, with options taken on another 30. An agreement is also finalized for the lease of 10 Dash-700s from GECAS, with the first arriving before the end of the second quarter of 2001.
On September 18, Westjet reveals the resignation of President/CEO Stephen Smith seven days earlier. A press release indicates that Smith had left due to “management philosophy differences” with the carrier’s other directors. Chairman Beddoe once more becomes president/CEO, posts that he had surrendered upon Smith’s appointment, and indicates that his move is “not an interim move.” The management shakeup has no impact on the airline’s business plan or operations.
It is announced on November 9 that the carrier will inaugurate twice-daily roundtrips from Fort McMurray to Calgary and daily return flights from the same point to Edmonton, beginning on January 8.
Preliminary loan approval is received from the U. S. Export-Import Bank on November 23 covering the financing of 26 new Next Generation B-737-700s.
At the end of 2000, a new five-year contract is ratified by 90% of the 165 members of the company’s in-house pilots’ association. The fleet of “classic” B-737s now includes 6 Dash-281As, 1 each Dash-217, 2M8A, Dash-2Q8A, Dash-2A3, Dash-297A, and Dash-2T4A, Dash-2E3A, 4 2H4As, and 2 each Dash-275As and Dash-204As.
Revenues during the 12 months increase 63% to C$332.5 million, while expenses rise 61.2% to C$279 million. The operating profit climbs 75.5% to C$53.5 million while net gain skyrockets 91% to C$30.3 million. Load factor averages a pleasing 76.2%.
WESTKUSTENFLUG HELLINGER, GmbH. (WKF): Germany (1955-1985). Originally established as a flying school in 1955, WKF undertakes scheduled commuter services in summer 1965 in association with Hadag Air. Wyk-auf-Fohr, Westerland (Sylt), St. Peter-Ording, Heide, and Hamburg are linked by Cessna equipment.
Services continue over the new two decades, during which the fleet is increased to comprise 3 Cessna 172s, 1 Cessna 207, and 1 Partenavia P-68. Operations cease in 1985.
World History
