PIA - A History: Jets and Air Taxis, 1966-1967
In the last post in this series, we looked at Ozark Air Lines' growth at Peoria and the prospect for jet service.
In December 1965, DeWitt Collins announced his retirement as airport director, a position in which he had served since 1948. His successor, Thomas Schepke, serving as assistant director since 1950, assumed the director's job in March 1966. Ron Burling was hired in May to assist Schepke.
Among Schepke's duties was to prepare for the inauguration of PIA's first turbojet service on Ozark Air Lines' DC-9s and help manage airport expansion. Extension of Runway 4-22 by 1,000 feet to the northeast required closure of Airport Road north of its intersection with Harmon Highway. A 525 foot southwest extension was planned, giving the runway 5,202 feet. Eventually, this was increased to 5,700 feet by adding 600 feet to the northeast extension, and cutting the southwest extension to 500 feet. Initial GPAA approval for the project came in late-December 1966. Land aquisition was completed in April 1967 and the FAA nodded its approval the next month. The project was scheduled for completion in the spring of 1968.
PEORIA ENTERS THE JET AGE
Ozark Air Lines received its first DC-9 at St. Louis on May 28, 1966. Training flights were made at Peoria a few days later. Scheduled service between Chicago-O'Hare, Peoria and St. Louis began July 15 with two flights in each direction on weekdays, fewer on weekends.
Unfortunately, just one week before Ozark jet service began, the International Association of Machinists (IAM) struck five of the nation's Trunk Airlines - Eastern, National, Northwest, TWA and United. All but National were important interline connections for Ozark at Chicago-O'Hare while Eastern and TWA were important connections at St. Louis. Loads were light for the duration of the strike, which lasted until August 19.
The first of 21 Fairchild-Hiller FH-227Bs ordered in November 1965 entered service with Ozark Air Lines on December 19, 1966. By February 1, 1967 three weekday roundtrips between Peoria and Chicago-O'Hare were flown with the new planes. The 48-seat turboprops were intended to replace 40-seat F-27s and 44-seat Martin 404s, which were phased out of the fleet on October 29 and August 14, 1967, respectively.
Another notable occurrence came August 24, 1966 when Ozark Air Lines dropped Douglas DC-3 service to Peoria. Service with the venerable aircraft lingered elesewhere on Ozark's system until 1968.
AIR TAXIS COME TO PEORIA
Commuter Airlines Inc. of Chicago began operations in 1965, offering scheduled service out of Chicago-O'Hare to Sheboygan, Wis., Ames and Marshalltown, Iowa, and from Chicago's Merrill C. Meigs Field to Detroit. In November 1966, the carrier sought permission to fly out of Meigs Field to Peoria, Rockford and Springfield and from Chicago-O'Hare to Rockford. Peoria would get three weekday roundtrips.
Merrill C. Meigs Field opened in December 1948 on an artificial peninsula on Lake Michigan. A passenger airline terminal opened in 1961. Proximity to Chicago's Loop offered much potential for commuter carriers. Commuter Airlines' Peoria-Chicago (Meigs) service began July 25, 1967 using nine-passenger Beechcraft Queen Airs.
A second air taxi began service here less than a month later. ONG Airlines applied to the Illinois Commerce Commission in May 1967 for service between Chicago (Meigs) and downstate Illinois. Service was approved in June that year. ONG began flying Chicago (Meigs)-Peoria-E. St. Louis service on August 21 using a nine-passenger Cessna 402 on two weekday roundtrips. A Springfield stop and extension to Carbondale began November 15. However, a schedule card issued by Central Illinois Light Co. effective December 1, 1967 as well as a story printed in the Peoria Journal Star on December 14 shows ONG operating just one weekday roundtrip between Peoria and Chicago (Meigs).
EAST COAST EXTENSION
In the 1960s, Local Service Airlines like Ozark were looking for expansion opportunities which reduced dependence on federal subsidies. Acquisition of jetliners made such expansion feasible. On October 30, 1966 the airline inaugurated two daily roundtrips between Sioux City and Denver with DC-9s. Service actually originated at Chicago-O'Hare, and also provided Sioux Falls and Waterloo same-plane service to the Colorado capital. Peoria was about to get something even better.
In early 1964, then-director DeWitt Collins told the airport authority that flights to New York City and Washington, DC were possible. Three years later, in May 1967, Ozark Air Lines made public its plans to offer service to those two points from Peoria (and other cities) as part of a systemwide route re-alignment. Although Chicago-O'Hare was Ozark's biggest station, congestion prompted the airline to seek service to additional major cities, thus bypassing that congestion. Interestingly, in December 1967, the City of Chicago opposed Ozark's bid because Midway Airport was about to reopen following rehabilitation and terminal re-arrangement. American Airlines and United Air Lines also voiced their opposition to Ozark's plans as they expected to lose interline traffic.
TERMINAL EXPANSION
By the late-1960s, Ozark Air Lines expansion required more terminal space for its flights as well as the reservations center. In February 1967, a consultant told the Greater Peoria Airport Authority that the local facility could handle between 500,000 and 600,000 passengers by 1980.
One proposal presented to the authority in February 1967 included a new, four-gate linear concourse built in front of the existing main terminal. Another unveiled three months later included a "satellite" with seven gates and a new concourse with eight. Additional planning continued through 1967.
DEDICATED AIR FREIGHT
Manufacturer's Air Transport Service (M.A.T.S.) inaugurated Peoria service on November 1, 1967. Douglas C-47s (military DC-3s) provided dedicated cargo flights for local firms such as Hyster, Maple City Manufacturing, Muirson Label Co., Rohn Industries and WABCO.
The first of 21 Fairchild-Hiller FH-227Bs ordered in November 1965 entered service with Ozark Air Lines on December 19, 1966. By February 1, 1967 three weekday roundtrips between Peoria and Chicago-O'Hare were flown with the new planes. The 48-seat turboprops were intended to replace 40-seat F-27s and 44-seat Martin 404s, which were phased out of the fleet on October 29 and August 14, 1967, respectively.
Another notable occurrence came August 24, 1966 when Ozark Air Lines dropped Douglas DC-3 service to Peoria. Service with the venerable aircraft lingered elesewhere on Ozark's system until 1968.
AIR TAXIS COME TO PEORIA
Commuter Airlines Inc. of Chicago began operations in 1965, offering scheduled service out of Chicago-O'Hare to Sheboygan, Wis., Ames and Marshalltown, Iowa, and from Chicago's Merrill C. Meigs Field to Detroit. In November 1966, the carrier sought permission to fly out of Meigs Field to Peoria, Rockford and Springfield and from Chicago-O'Hare to Rockford. Peoria would get three weekday roundtrips.
Merrill C. Meigs Field opened in December 1948 on an artificial peninsula on Lake Michigan. A passenger airline terminal opened in 1961. Proximity to Chicago's Loop offered much potential for commuter carriers. Commuter Airlines' Peoria-Chicago (Meigs) service began July 25, 1967 using nine-passenger Beechcraft Queen Airs.
A second air taxi began service here less than a month later. ONG Airlines applied to the Illinois Commerce Commission in May 1967 for service between Chicago (Meigs) and downstate Illinois. Service was approved in June that year. ONG began flying Chicago (Meigs)-Peoria-E. St. Louis service on August 21 using a nine-passenger Cessna 402 on two weekday roundtrips. A Springfield stop and extension to Carbondale began November 15. However, a schedule card issued by Central Illinois Light Co. effective December 1, 1967 as well as a story printed in the Peoria Journal Star on December 14 shows ONG operating just one weekday roundtrip between Peoria and Chicago (Meigs).
EAST COAST EXTENSION
In the 1960s, Local Service Airlines like Ozark were looking for expansion opportunities which reduced dependence on federal subsidies. Acquisition of jetliners made such expansion feasible. On October 30, 1966 the airline inaugurated two daily roundtrips between Sioux City and Denver with DC-9s. Service actually originated at Chicago-O'Hare, and also provided Sioux Falls and Waterloo same-plane service to the Colorado capital. Peoria was about to get something even better.
In early 1964, then-director DeWitt Collins told the airport authority that flights to New York City and Washington, DC were possible. Three years later, in May 1967, Ozark Air Lines made public its plans to offer service to those two points from Peoria (and other cities) as part of a systemwide route re-alignment. Although Chicago-O'Hare was Ozark's biggest station, congestion prompted the airline to seek service to additional major cities, thus bypassing that congestion. Interestingly, in December 1967, the City of Chicago opposed Ozark's bid because Midway Airport was about to reopen following rehabilitation and terminal re-arrangement. American Airlines and United Air Lines also voiced their opposition to Ozark's plans as they expected to lose interline traffic.
TERMINAL EXPANSION
By the late-1960s, Ozark Air Lines expansion required more terminal space for its flights as well as the reservations center. In February 1967, a consultant told the Greater Peoria Airport Authority that the local facility could handle between 500,000 and 600,000 passengers by 1980.
One proposal presented to the authority in February 1967 included a new, four-gate linear concourse built in front of the existing main terminal. Another unveiled three months later included a "satellite" with seven gates and a new concourse with eight. Additional planning continued through 1967.
DEDICATED AIR FREIGHT
Manufacturer's Air Transport Service (M.A.T.S.) inaugurated Peoria service on November 1, 1967. Douglas C-47s (military DC-3s) provided dedicated cargo flights for local firms such as Hyster, Maple City Manufacturing, Muirson Label Co., Rohn Industries and WABCO.
SCHEDULED AIRLINE PASSENGER SERVICE, DECEMBER 1967
In 1966, PIA handled 199,816 passengers, nearly double 1962 traffic! The next year, it handled 232,324 passengers. Schedules for December 1967 were compiled from an Ozark Air Lines timetable and a schedule card issued by Central Illinois Light Company for the same period. Changes since November 1965 include the complete replacement of three aircraft types (Martin 404, Fairchild F-27 and Douglas DC-3) with two (Douglas DC-9, Fairchild-Hiller FH-227B) and reduction in Milwaukee service to southbound-only.
In 1966, PIA handled 199,816 passengers, nearly double 1962 traffic! The next year, it handled 232,324 passengers. Schedules for December 1967 were compiled from an Ozark Air Lines timetable and a schedule card issued by Central Illinois Light Company for the same period. Changes since November 1965 include the complete replacement of three aircraft types (Martin 404, Fairchild F-27 and Douglas DC-3) with two (Douglas DC-9, Fairchild-Hiller FH-227B) and reduction in Milwaukee service to southbound-only.
- David P. Jordan
Hello: thank you again for this.
ReplyDeleteI had read that ozark's DC9 service to PIA was delayed due to the IAM strike and that OZ applied for temporary nonstop authority between ORD and STL. Do you know if this is true? Also the consultant who predicted 500-600k passengers by 1980 was spot on.
Ozark announced a few days before the 1966 strike that service would start July 15 so IAM action apparently had no affect. Prior to the start of service, however, Ozark did use its DC-9 to accommate stranded passengers between ORD and OMA and ORD and STL. Actual scheduled ORD-STL nonstops began in 1968.
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