Northwest Airlines: The First Eighty Years

167 Pages·2005·67.32 MB·English

by  Geoff Jones

Colonel Louis.H. Brittin (1877–1952) founded Northwest Airways in 1926. He
achieved his dream of seeing his airline establish air services from
Minneapolis/St. Paul to the Pacific Northwest (Seattle) on December 3, 1933.
He resigned from Northwest in 1934.
(cover) Speedway Field—later Wold Chamberlain Field and now
Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport—is seen in 1926 in front of
Northwest Airways’ first wooden hangar. In the white flying suit is Charles
“Speed” Holman, one of Northwest’s first pilots and its first operations manager.
Holman had already become a legend in Minnesota and other parts of the U.S. in
the 1920s for his air racing triumphs and aerobatic exhibitions. The aircraft is an
early Northwest Airways Laird LC-B “Commercial” (C240) and the two other
characters are T.K. Kelly, described as a “Twin Cities advertising mogul,” and
Kelly’s assistant.
Northwest Airlines:
The First Eighty Years
Geoff Jones
Copyright © 2005 by Geoff Jones
9781439631652
Published by Arcadia Publishing
Charleston SC, Chicago IL, Portsmouth NH, San Francisco CA
Printed in the United States of America
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2005922112
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A Northwest Airlines Airbus A320 departs runway 30 right at Minneapolis/St.
Paul in the late 1990s. Downtown Minneapolis provides the backdrop.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
INTRODUCTION
One - NORTHWEST AIRWAYS
Two - NORTHWEST DURING WORLD WAR II
Three - AIR SERVICES TO THE ORIENT AND THE 1950S
Four - NORTHWEST ORIENT FROM 1960 TO 1986
Five - SOUTHERN AIRWAYS, WISCONSIN CENTRAL, AND NORTH
CENTRAL
Six - HUGHES AIR WEST AND ITS PREDECESSORS
Seven - REPUBLIC AIRLINES
Eight - NORTHWEST AIRLINK, KLM, AND NORTHWEST CARGO
Nine - NORTHWEST IN THE 21ST CENTURY
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The pictorial material in this book has been obtained from many sources, notably
the NWA History Centre Inc. located in Bloomington, Minnesota, and from the
author’s own aviation photo library.
Many individuals, employees, and former employees of Northwest Airlines
have assisted in the assembly of material for this book; particularly Doug Killian
and his international corporate communications staff at Northwest’s Eagan
headquarters, prior to September 11, 2001. More recently H.V. “Pete” Patzke,
president of the NWA History Centre Inc., has provided a wealth of information.
Pete and his ever helpful band of voluntary enthusiasts (particularly Jerry
Nielsen and Bill Marchessault) run and are involved with the History Centre,
which was first opened in October 2002 as a non-profit corporation. The History
Centre is run by volunteers—retired and current employees of NWA, plus
several other interested individuals, all of whom are helping to preserve and
archive Northwest’s rich and colorful history, gleaned from related private
collections and donated gifts. The History Centre is not a part of NWA, nor in
any way sponsored by NWA. Also in the History Centre are material from other
“family” airlines related to Northwest: Republic Airlines, Hughes Air West,
Pacific, Empire, and many other antecedent airlines of the current Northwest
Airlines. To contact the History Centre, view their web site www.nwahistory.org
or call [phone], extension 6102.
Other contributors whose photos, material, and advice have formed an
important part of this book include: John Underwood (California), Jon Proctor
(Idaho), Chuck Stewart (California), Terry Love (Wisconsin), John A. Whittle
(Air Britain DC-4 specialist), Tony Carre, Rod Simpson, George Pennick (all in
the UK), Françoise Maenhaut (Airbus), Kristen Loughman (Pinnacle Airlines,
Inc), and Björn Larsson (www.timetableimages.com).
Several previously published books about Northwest and its predecessor
airlines have also provided helpful background information in the compilation of
this book and are recommended for anyone wanting a greater insight into the
history of Northwest Airlines:
Airlines of the United States since 1914 by R.E.G. Davies (1972, Putnam,
London)
Northwest Airlines by Geoff Jones (1998, Plymouth Press/Ian Allan)
Aircraft in NW Airlines History by Capt. David R. Lane
More than Meets the Sky by Stephen E. Mills (1972, Superior Publishing Co.,
Seattle)
Flight to the Top by Kenneth D. Ruble (1986, Viking Press)
Ceiling Unlimited “The Story of North Central” by Robert Serling (Walsworth
Publishing,
Marceline, Missouri)
Northwest Orient by Bill Yenne (1986, Bison Books Ltd.)
Geoffrey P. Jones,
Guernsey, Channel Islands, British Isles.
May, 2005
INTRODUCTION
Northwest Airlines is the operating name of NWA Inc., headquartered in Eagan,
Minnesota. It is one of the world’s top ten largest airlines and the fourth largest
U.S. airline. Now often referred to as a “legacy carrier”—a reference to both its
history and pedigree—it is also one of the United States’ oldest airlines, founded
in 1926 and operating its first scheduled air mail service on October 1st of that
year. It is the U.S.’s oldest carrier with continuous name identification, although
back in 1926 it was founded as Northwest Airways Inc.
With over 40,000 employees worldwide, Northwest currently provides
scheduled services to 113 domestic destinations along with 42 international
destinations, all accounting for about 1,500 daily flight departures. Its strong
links with the Pacific Rim, and particularly “the Orient,” began with its
pioneering trans-Pacific services. It is now the largest U.S. carrier between Japan
and the U.S., with Tokyo one of its major “hub” airports, along with
Minneapolis/St. Paul, Detroit, Memphis, and, through its long-standing alliance
with Dutch airline KLM, Amsterdam.
Like most large 21st-century airlines and certainly all “legacy carriers,”
Northwest has expanded through partnerships, alliances, and subsidiaries, which
combined embrace services to 900 cities worldwide in 160 countries and on six
continents. Northwest’s membership in the SkyTeam alliance was confirmed in
September 2004. Northwest, along with partner airlines Continental Airlines and
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, joined the prestigious global airline alliance, now
partnering Aeromexico, Air France, Alitalia, CSA Czech Airlines, Delta Air
Lines, and Korean Air.
Northwest’s domestic status, along with its “fortress hubs,” is complemented
by its subsidiary airlines, operating what are commonly called commuter
services and known as Northwest Airlink (also Northwest Jet Airlink). Mesaba
Airlines and Pinnacle Airlines (formerly Express Airlines 1) are major
subsidiaries to Northwest, providing passenger “feed” from another 100-plus
smaller cities and communities into Northwest’s three main U.S. mainland hub
airports at Minneapolis/St. Paul, Detroit, and Memphis. Northwest Airlines