MISR OVERSEAS AIRWAYS, LTD.: Egypt (1985-1989). Originally established at Cairo in 1985 as Air Lease Egypt, Ltd., this privately owned carrier undertakes passenger and cargo charters and contract service flights to destinations throughout the Arab world, North Africa, and southern Europe. Operations are conducted until 1989 with 3 leased Boeing 707-366Cs previously operated by EgyptAir, S. A.E.
MISRAIR, S. A.E. (1): Egypt (1949-1958). Although the government of Egypt had taken majority control at the beginning of World War II, the entire capital of the Airwork, Ltd. subsidiary Misr-Airwork, Ltd. is acquired by the Egyptian government in 1949 and is renamed.
Vickers Viking Mk. 1Bs, together with such smaller aircraft as Beech C-45s, and de Havilland DH 89 Dragon Rapides, are also acquired from the U. K. operator and maintained to continue the previous services. Jerusalem to Cairo flights commence on November 25, 1950.
In March 1951, orders are placed for three Vickers Viscount 700s. In October, five Sud-Est SE-161 Languedocs are purchased from Air France. These take over the Viking routes from Cairo to Geneva, Tehran, and Khartoum. While approaching Tehran Airport on December 22, a Languedoc with 22 aboard crashes; there are no survivors and among the victims is U. S. Technical Cooperation Administrator Henry G. Bennett.
The Egyptian-Italian joint venture airline SAIDE (Services Aeriens Internationaux d’Egypte, S. A.O.) is taken over on December 1, 1952. A number of Douglas DC-3s are received and these replace the Beechcraft and de Havillands on domestic services.
Several regional routes are now started to neighboring Arab states with Vickers 634 Viking Mk. 1Bs. One of these fails its takeoff from Cairo and crashes near Almaza Airport on December 15, 1953 (six dead).
Flights continue apace, but another accident occurs in 1954. A Vickers 634 Viking 1B and three of its four-person crew are lost in an accident at Cairo’s Almaza Airport on September 15.
The first two Viscount 700s are received in December 1955 and enter service on March 16, 1956. Part of the carrier’s fleet is lost during the Suez Crisis and a Vickers Viking 739 is lost in a ground accident at Al-maza Airport, Cairo, on October 1.
In February 1958, following the political merger of Egypt and Syria, Misrair is renamed United Arab Airlines.
MISRAIR, S. A.E. (2): Egypt (1964-1968). In late 1964, United Arab Airlines (UAA) executives begin planning for the establishment of a second Misrair at Cairo in the summer of 1965. Misrair, S. A.E. (2) will take over and operate domestic and regional services. The General Arab Air Transport Organization, which owns UAA (as well as the Karnak Travel and Tourist Corporation and the airline’s hotel division, General Aviation Services), seconds over many UAA personnel and places the new entrant under the command of Air Marshal Gamal Afifi.
Afifi and his top officials are at first uncertain as to which flight equipment Misrair-2 will employ. The four Vickers Viscount 739s available from UAA are considered to be too large and the available Douglas DC-3s and DC-6Bs are too antiquated. A turboprop comparison is made between the Fokker F.27, Handley Page Herald, the Hawker Siddeley HS-748, and the Antonov An-24. Although the HS-748 is most desirable, it is very expensive and must be paid for in hard currency.
The Soviet Union, quite friendly with Egypt and Syria at this point, now steps forward with a good price and easy payment terms (including payment in Egyptian funds) and late in the year an order is placed for seven An-24s.
In order to familiarize crews with the Antonov, a unit is leased from Aeroflot Soviet Airlines during the spring of 1965. The first owned An-24 arrives at the beginning of June, followed by three more during the next two months. During this period, Chairman Afifi is succeeded by Gen. Mohammad N. Hashad. Daily service begins on August 1 from Cairo to Luxor, continuing on to Aswan as necessary.
The Aeroflot An-24 is returned later in the year as the last three owned An-24s arrive. The Cairo to Luxor route is increased to four-times-a-day frequency, with three services continuing on to Aswan. Additionally, roundtrips are inaugurated from Cairo to Nicosia, Alexandria, Port Said, and El’Arish, as well as from Alexandria to Athens.
Misrair-2 is an expensive operation in both equipment and operating costs. Two An-24s are lost in accidents. The first is written off after a bad landing at Aswan on February 2, 1966. On March 19, a second Russian turboprop with 30 passengers crashes near Cairo; there are no survivors.
During its entire life, this carrier does not generate sufficient income to cover its expenses. The financial drain continues throughout the remainder of 1967 and into 1968. On January 1 of the latter year, it is announced that Misrair-2 will be shut down on June 1. Its personnel and aircraft are amalgamated into United Arab Airlines (UAA).
MISSION AIRLINES: United States (1981-1982). Established at El Cajon, California, in the spring of 1981, Mission begins regularly scheduled third-level passenger flights to San Diego and Los Angeles with a fleet of Piper PA-31-350 Navajo Chieftains, PA-31-310 Navajos, and PA-34 Senecas. ATC problems caused the by summer PATCO air traffic controllers’ strike make it impossible for the new entrant to earn sufficient income to continue. As a result, operations cease in early 1982.
MISSISSIPPI VALLEY AIRLINES (MVA): United States (19691985). Gateway Aviation of La Crosse, Wisconsin, is reformed in September 1969 to fly commuter service in the central Midwest. Revenue operations, initially under the name Mississippi Valley Airways, are inaugurated on October 30 over a Minneapolis-Chicago via Winona and La Crosse route formerly flown by North Central Airlines. The initial fleet is all de Havilland DHC-6-100 Twin Otter.
A DHC-6-200 with two crew and four passengers is destroyed as the result of a bad landing at La Crosse on November 9, 1970; there are no fatalities.
Operations continue apace in 1971-1973 and by 1974 enplanements are 39,786. During the latter year, the routes of Air Iowa are purchased and merged and the company receives its final moniker.
Airline employment in 1975 stands at 45. During the year, the carrier trades in its Twin Otters for a fleet of 3 Beech 99s and 1 Swearingen Metro II. The higher speeds of these aircraft allow frequencies to be increased. Late in the year, CAB-approved replacement service is started to Clinton, Iowa, on behalf of Ozark Air Lines.
Still, passenger boardings decline 4.7%, to 37,914.
Freight traffic accelerates 34.4% in 1976 while customer bookings jump 39.5% to 52,890.
Enplanements in 1977 are level at 52,658, although growth is anticipated and an order is placed for six Shorts 330s. Chairman/CEO John J. Louis Jr.’s “Mud Valley,” as pilots sometimes call the airline, begins a period of rapid growth following the signing of the Airline Deregulation Act in October 1978. Routes are stretched to Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, Omaha, Moline, and Milwaukee. Passenger boardings jump 32.1% to 79,025.
Enplanements skyrocket during 1979 to 152,000, a 92.6% improvement; freight does even better, rising a spectacular 217.9% to 1.28 million FTKs.
The employee population grows by a whopping 62.5% in 1980 to 325 and the fleet includes 6 Shorts 330s and 7 Beech 99s. Orders are placed for four Fokker F.27-500 Friendships. At Chicago (ORD), the company is able to move into the Eastern Air Lines terminal.
Destinations visited now include Burlington, Ottumwa, Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Des Moines, Dubuque, Kansas City, Minneapolis (MSP), Omaha, Moline, and the Quad Cities, Illinois.
The Moline, Illinois-based carrier records a 69.1% increase in passenger boardings to 257,180 and a 7.5% improvement in freight traffic.
Arthur G. Hailand Jr. becomes board chairman/CEO in January 1981 , succeeding John J. Louis Jr., who becomes U. S. ambassador to England. Also in January, the first Fokker F.27-500 enters service and the company receives the 1980 “Regional Airline of the Year” award from Air Transport World magazine.
During the spring, flights begin to Madison, Wisconsin; Burl W. McLaughlin becomes president in May. A new group of investors infuses the carrier with needed equity capital. A new relationship is entered into with United Airlines, whereby MVA leases space at the major’s Chicago terminal and cohosts its Apollo reservations system.
The fleet is upgraded as four 99s are retired in favor of three additional Shorts 330s and the first Fokker F.27-500. Orders are placed for two additional 330s and a 360 for 1983 delivery.
Despite the severe impact of the August PATCO air traffic controllers’ strike and subsequent ATC restrictions upon its operations, the airline is able to achieve a 37.2% booking rise to 352,784. Freight, on the other hand, is a disaster, having plunged 60% to 297,151 pounds. The year’s net financial loss is $2.34 million.
The company base is transferred to Moline, Illinois, in 1982. As the three remaining Dutch-built turboprops come on line, passenger boardings rise again, up by 43.9% to 507,656. Despite the recession, net profits recover and climb to $1.16 million.
In 1983, the company goes public, selling its stock for the first time and thus placing its financial picture out in the open. The Shorts aircraft requested in 1981 are delivered.
This year, passenger traffic accelerates by 15.9% as 588,373 passengers are carried. Cargo recovers, bounding upward by 42.8% to 775,529 pounds. Operating revenues of $35.7 million (up 19.4%) are earned and expenses are held to a 20% gain at $31.8 million. The operating profit is $3.9 million and net gain is $2.8 million, a profit that comes largely from the sale of tax benefits.
MVA, which has been flying routes into Illinois, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska, and Missouri, enjoys a significant jump in en-planements during 1984, up 27.7% to 751,346. Freight, on the other hand, falls 43.3% to 439,000 pounds. Revenues, meanwhile, climb 28.9% to $45.98 million and costs accelerate 32.7% to 42.19 million. Although the operating profit declines slightly to $3.79 million, net profit, not aided by a repeat of 1983’s benefit tax, shrinks 81% to $535,000.
After a study of the toughening competitive aspects of the industry, company officials join those from Air Wisconsin on January 28, 1985 to announce that the two companies will merge under the latter’s banner on May 17. To accomplish the merger, each share of MVA common stock will be converted into 0.4621 share of Air Wisconsin common stock.
Prior to the marriage, MVA, the nation’s eighth largest regional, transports a total of 214,677 passengers, a 7.1% boost over the same period a year earlier.
MISTRAL AIR, S. p.A.: Palazzina 131, Aeroporto Ciampino, Ciampino, Rome, I-00040, Italy; Phone 39 (6) 793 40614; Fax 39 (6) 793 40517; Code MS; Year Founded 1989. Mistral is established at Rome in 1989 to offer both executive passenger and all-cargo services, the latter on behalf of large corporations and other freight operators such as TNT Worldwide Express. Revenue operations commence with 1 TNT-dedicated British Aerospace BAe 146-200QT, 2 Grumman G-159 Gulfstream Is, and 1 each Cessna 500 Citation I and 550 Citation II. Traffic and financial data for the privately owned carrier are not released.
The Gulfstreams are removed in 1990 and a BAe 146-300QT is acquired for the TNT service in 1992.
In 1993, Chairman/President Carlo Pedersoli and Managing Director Werner Romanello oversee a workforce of 35. The Citation I is removed and destinations served from Rome in the TNT service include Nuremberg, Cologne, and Genoa.
During 1994, airline employment is increased to 50. A BAe 146-300 configured for passengers is leased from Asset Management Organization in the spring and is employed to inaugurate charter flights for travelers from Rome’s Ciampino Airport to destinations in the Mediterranean and Central Europe.
The passenger charter operation is not a success and the BAe 146-300 is returned to AMO in 1995. Thereafter, the company operates primarily freight services for TNT Worldwide Express with the two BAes acquired at the beginning of the decade. Destinations visited include Bari, Basel, Bologna, Cagliari, Cologne, Forti, Genoa, Nuremberg, and Palermo.
On March 1, 1999, new four-times-a-week BAe 146-200QT return cargo service is inaugurated from Turin to Frankfurt, Lieges, and Hanover.
By 2000, Managing Director Romanello has become chairman/presi-dent, with Guiseppi Napoli as managing director. The fleet has also been enhanced through the addition of 1 Fokker F.27-600F.
Beginning in late October, the carrier restructures its business around a new freight hub at Bologna. From that point, all-cargo return services are operated to Palermo via Naples and Cagliari and to Reggio Calabria via Bari and Catania.
MISTRI AIRWAYS, LTD.: India (1946-1947). Mistri is established at Bombay in the spring of 1946 to provide passenger and cargo services with a fleet of 17 Noorduyn Norsemen built in Canada. In addition to charters, the company opens a scheduled route to Calcutta via Nagpur on September 29. The company undergoes a complete corporate upgrade in January 1947, becoming Indian Overseas Airlines, Ltd.
MK AIRLINES, LTD.: Landhurst, Hartfield, East Sussex, England, TN7 4DL, United Kingdom; Phone 44 (1892) 770 011; Fax 44 (1892) 770 022; Http://www. dircon. co. uk/cfalon/mk. html; Code 7G; Year Founded 1990. This all-cargo operation is formed at London (LGW) in April 1990, taking over Ghana-based Cargo d’Or, Ltd, which is operated as a subsidiary, and Nigeria’s Flash Airlines, Ltd. Privately owned and registered in Ghana, the company employs J. G. Davenport as chairman and Capt. Michael C. Kruger as managing director. During the next 10 months, preparations are undertaken for the beginning of scheduled services to Central and West Africa.
A DC-8-55F Jet Trader is leased in the winter of 1991 and employed to inaugurate flights in February to Kano, Lagos, Nigeria, Accra, Ghana, and Zimbabwe. European exports to Africa on behalf of the Swiss freight forwarder Panalpina and fruit exports into the U. K. are the major cargos.
A DC-8-54F is chartered in early 1992. The new aircraft, with five crew, is destroyed in a crash near Kano on February 15; there are no fatalities. The aircraft is replaced by a DC-8-55F.
In 1993, airline employment is 25 and the fleet comprises 2 owned and 1 leased DC-8-55Fs. Ad hoc charters to Iceland as well as European destinations are now flown and marketing alliances are put into place with Air Malawi, Ltd., Air Namibia, Ltd., Flugfelag Island/ Icelandair H. F., and British Airways, Ltd. (2).
The Cargo d’Or, Ltd. subsidiary is renamed MK Airlines Ghana, Ltd. in 1994. Other affiliates now formed are MK Airlines (Pty.), Ltd. in Zimbabwe and MK Flugfelagid, H. F. in Iceland. Units of the DC-8F cargo fleet will be distributed amount the flying operations, under the administration of the central office maintained in London (LGW), which also handles technical, operational, financial, and leasing services. Despite these different ownership structures, the entities are combined in their financial reports and are operated out of the London head office in an arrangement not unlike that of DAS Air Cargo, Ltd. of Uganda.
A fourth DC-8-55F joins the fleet in 1995. African destinations now visited include Congo, Egypt, Kenya, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.
Flights continue in 1996-1997, during which years two DC-8-62Fs are dedicated for use by the Icelandic subsidiary; the main line fleet is enhanced by the addition of another DC-8-62F and a DC-8-54F. Worldwide services are now offered from hubs at Luxembourg, Ostend, Nairobi, Harare, Accra, and London (STN). The Accra hub now supports a growing number of services on behalf of Panalpina, as well as various African exporters.
While landing at Port Harcourt on December 17 of the former year after an all-cargo service from Luxembourg, a DC-8-55F with four crew touches down 250 m. short of the runway. The plane hits approach lights, climbs up onto the runway, and then runs off its left side, suffering the collapse of its nose landing gear. Although the Douglas is badly damaged, there are no fatalities.
Flights continue in 1998. In October, an ex-Arrow Air DC-8-63F is chartered from International Air Leases to operate on behalf of the Philippine concern CLA Air Transport. The narrow-body, with an allwhite fuselage decorated with CLA’s logo and titles (the logo is repeated on the all-white tail), begins daily revenue flights around the Far East on November 1. In December, a three-year ACMI contract is signed with Atlas Air.
The combined companies, for the year as a whole, have assets of $24.4 million, including $14.3 million in current assets. On revenues of $60,607.6777, a net gain of $1,174,221 is realized.
The fleet at the start of 1999 includes 4 DC-8-55Fs and 2 DC-8-62Fs, the latter 2 registered to MK Flugfelagid, H. F. During the spring, an application is filed with the DOT for a Foreign Air Carrier certificate to operate weekly all-cargo return service between Ghana and the U. S., with Fifth Freedom rights to load and unload cargo in Europe. The authority is opposed by several U. S. forwarders and cargo airlines. After negotiations are completed, the carrier, in June, refuses to complete the sale of its MK Flugfelagid, H. F. subsidiary to Atlas Air, claiming that it will not accept the restrictions on its Ghana-U. S. business that Atlas and others have proposed.
Wearing the company’s new color scheme, a chartered B-747-246F, previously flown by Southern Air Transport, enters service at the end of July, flying between Africa and Europe.
Nine months into its three-year ACMI lease with Atlas Air, MK, in August, terminates the contract, formally turning the two onetime partners into adversaries. The differences between the two concerns are picked up by the media, which relays the Atlas claim that ownership of MK is murky at best and that it is, in fact, a European airline posing as an African carrier. Atlas, meanwhile, files papers with the DOT seeking to block the Ghana-U. S. authority MK has requested, pointing out that MK’s claim to be an African carrier is a facade designed hide its English origins.
Despite these and other objections from several parties, a Foreign Air Carrier permit to operate all-cargo service between Ghana and the U. S. is approved for MK by the DOT, albeit with a restriction that MK must secure permission each time it desires to pick up cargo at “technical” stops between Ghana and the U. S.
A total of 105 workers are employed at the beginning of 2000. The fleet now includes 4 DC-8-55Fs, 1 DC-8-54F, and 3 DC-8-62Fs. A leased B-747-244BF enters service at the beginning of the year; it will be regularly contracted to operate cargo service northward on behalf of South African Airways (Pty.), Ltd. The company continues to rent its entire capacity from Western Europe to Africa to forwarder Panalpina.
A new division of the inactive MK Flugfelagid, H. F. subsidiary is now formed at Keflavik in February. Icelandic MD Airlines, H. F. will be based at Stockholm and operate passenger charters on behalf of the Swish tour operator Traffic Europa, A. B.
An emergency service begins with Martinair Cargo, N. V. on March 20 in a collaborative effort to get badly needed relief supplies from Europe to flood-ravaged Mozambique. Supplies arrive at Nairobi aboard one of the Dutch line’s MD-11Fs, where they are put aboard MK Airlines DC-8-55F services for Beira and Maputo.
Following the signing of an “open skies” aviation agreement between the governments of the U. S. and Ghana, MK Airlines is given blanket authority to operate to the U. S. It does not, however, have Seventh Freedom authority to operate over the Atlantic without first originating in Ghana.
World History
