PIA - A History: New Decade, New Issues (1970-1971)

Few if anyone knew it at the time, but Federal regulation of scheduled airline service in the United States began unraveling in the late 1960s.

Since 1938, when Congress created the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB), airline fare and route changes were subject to federal approval. In 1968, the Civil Aeronautics Board ruled that airline fare changes must be systemwide rather than on select routes. Subsequent price reductions were rare, leaving flight frequency and onboard service as the only tools available to attract passengers. Consequentially, these practices created overcapacity with many flights operating half-full. The trouble with CAB's inflexible regulations became apparent during an eleven-month recession which began in December 1969. 

The Greater Peoria Airport saw a slight dip in passenger traffic during 1970, but this was attributable less to recession than to a week-long Ozark Air Lines mechanics' strike in April 1970. About 275,000 passengers were handled that year. Although a record 285,000 passed through PIA in 1971, traffic growth had slowed even as terminal expansion had been finished.

EXPANDED TERMINAL

The new linear, four-gate concourse proved timely. With the introduction of New York and Washington flights, Ozark scheduled four DC-9s here simultaneously on mid-afternoon weekdays. East end gates opened December 8, 1969. The rest were completed and in service by September 1970. Around the same time, Ozark Air Lines commenced operations at its new second-floor Central Reservations Center with 245 employees. The baggage carousel in the new lower level opened June 19, 1970. Restaurant and ticket counter space increased.

During an open house on Sunday, November 8, 1970, Ozark Air Lines offered $6 half-hour DC-9 flights and Chicago & Southern Airlines offered $4 flights in a Hamilton Turboliner. Manufacturers' Air Transport Service (MATS) provided a C-47 for a parachute jump.

OZARK AIR LINES
Ozark Air Lines's Chicago (O'Hare)-Moline-Peoria-Kansas City jet service, introduced on April 28, 1968, apparently failed to meet expectations. Advertisements in the Peoria Journal Star for much of 1969 touted the Ozark connection to Continental Airlines' Kansas City-Los Angeles Boeing 707 service, but better connections to L. A. were offered through Chicago-O'Hare or St. Louis. By Spring 1971, service had been downgraded to an FH-227. 

Ozark's Chicago Midway-Peoria flights apparently ended for good in 1971. Although many carriers offered service out of Midway, connections were better at O'Hare. 

But East Coast service exceeded expectations. A third roundtrip on a Peoria-Champaign-Washington (Dulles)-New York (La Guardia)-Champaign-Peoria itinerary was added on May 1, 1970. The expansion had been set for April 26, but was delayed by the mechanics' strike. Within a year, however, service was back to just two roundtrips. 

Despite a slow economy, Ozark Air Lines was looking for expansion opportunities. In February 1970, it proposed Peoria-Champaign-Detroit-Cleveland flights as well as Peoria-Cleveland nonstops. Besides new destinations, the airline looked at increasing service to existing ones. Ozark already held authority to offer same-plane service to Denver out of Cedar Rapids, Champaign, Des Moines, Moline and Peoria via Sioux City but filed for nonstop authority in February 1971. 

OTHER AIRLINES

In January 1970, Commuter Airlines sought to resume flights to Chicago-Meigs using Beech C-99s, but withdrew its application two months later. On May 10, it was acquired by Chicago & Southern Airlines. 

Air Mid-America Airlines had been granted authority to begin service from Peoria to Chicago-Midway effective February 12, 1970. Consideration was given to using DC-3s, but then the airline  shifted its interest to larger Convair props or FH-227s. Flights were announced to start in November 1970 but this date came and went. Cargo restrictions caused the airline in April 1971 to request another hearing. Although the carrier began operations in late-1971 with 40-passenger Convair 600s, service to Peoria never started. 

At the start of 1970, Chicago & Southern Airlines offered two weekday roundtrips between Peoria and Chicago-Meigs. Through service to Grand Rapids, Michigan began on April 6 that year when the company acquired Miller Airmotive Inc. On May 10, a third roundtrip was added to Meigs. Five days later, some flights were extended to International Falls, Minnesota and Kenora Lake, Ontario for hunters. About this time, the carrier replaced its nine-passenger Beechcraft with a 15-passenger Hamilton Turboliner. C&S entered into interline connections with the trunk carriers at Chicago-O'Hare using Chicago Helicopter Airways as a link from Meigs Field.

During the week-long Ozark strike, C&S offered temporary hourly service to Chicago-Meigs (April 21) and four roundtrips to St. Louis (April 22). 

CHICAGO & SOUTHERN AIRLINES CRASH

On October 21, 1971 a Chicago & Southern Airlines Hamilton Turboliner (or ATECO Westwind II, actually a heavily-modified Beech D-18S) crashed during inclement weather two miles west of Runway 12, killing the two pilots, including airline president Frank Hansen, and 14 passengers. This crash, the investigation and aftermath will be analyzed in the next post of this series. 

RUNWAY STRENGTHENING

Since 1967, Ozark Air Lines had been filing for expanded route authority to the east and west coasts, Alaska, Canada and Mexico. The carrier desired to operate transcontinental services which would stop at either Des Moines or Omaha in each direction. Many of these routes extended beyond the range of its DC-9 fleet so Ozark studied acquiring a fleet of Boeing 727s. 

The Greater Peoria Airport Authority believed that if Ozark acquired 727s they'd be used at PIA as well, so plans were made to strengthen the pavement on Runway 12-30. Emergency repairs were a priority as frequent DC-9 operations already caused deterioration. Between January and September 1969, some 3,000 feet of pavement had failed and the runway was subject to restricted operations. Long-haul charters were banned. In 1971, a 9-inch bituminous concrete overlay project enabled 12-30 to handle heavier jets like Boeing 727s and Douglas DC-8s. 

AIR NATIONAL GUARD

The 182nd Tactical Fighter Group was formed in 1962 to assume control of the 169th Tactical Fighter Squadron. The 182nd continued operating F-84F Thunderstreaks until 1969. In May of that year, the 182nd became a Tactical Air Support Group and very briefly operated the U-3A Blue Canoe. In January 1970, the 182nd TASG received Cessna O-2A Skymasters, which it flew through the decade.

AIR CARGO

Peoria-based Manufacturers' Air Transport Service (MATS) flew Beechcraft and C-47s three times nightly to Chicago-O'Hare for connections with mainline freighters. While Caterpillar generated about two-thirds of the firm's business, Hyster Co., Maple City Manufacturing, Muirson Label Co., Rohn Industries and WABCO Mining & Construction were also counted as customers. MATS operated flights under contract with Emery Air Freight.

Although MATS provided dedicated air cargo service for PIA, Ozark Air Lines handled far more. That carrier's passenger flights generated about 5.1 million pounds here in 1970 while MATS could claim 3.8 million.

MATS also became a second fixed-based operator at PIA on February 1, 1971 offering aircraft maintenance, fuel sales, aircraft for charter, rent and sale (new and used). On June 28, 1971 it began operating for the United States Postal Service five nights a week between Chicago, Peoria, Quincy, Springfield and St. Louis. Regular MATS flights continued to link Chicago, Decatur, Galesburg and Peoria six nights a week.

MISCELLANEOUS

On September 2, 1970 Vice President Spiro Agnew flew in a United States Air Force T-29 (based on the Convair 240 propliner) to Bergstrom Air Force Base (near Austin) for a visit with former president Lyndon Johnson at his Texas Ranch. Twelve days later, that same T-29, on a flight from Peoria to Bergstrom, crash-landed near Georgetown, Texas.

About 11:15pm on November 28, 1971, a DC-9 operating as extra Ozark Air Lines flight 1971 from New York-LaGuardia Airport, with about 80 Bradley University students aboard, skidded off snow-covered Runway 30. The airport's main runway lacked grooves to prevent sliding, so this was budgeted for 1972.

SCHEDULES, ROUTE MAP
The route map and schedule below are based on data found in the Official Airline Guide (North American Edition) October 1971 edition. By this time, flights to New York stopped at both Champaign and Washington-Dulles (except for one westbound flight which skipped Champaign).

Although Ozark's headquarters city, St. Louis, possessed a large and busy airport, Chicago-O'Hare continued to serve as the airline's most important connecting point in October 1971. Ozark also offered nonstop or single-plane service in both directions from Peoria to three other major cities - Kansas City, Milwaukee and Minneapolis/St. Paul. It scheduled 25 weekday departures, 13 on Douglas DC-9 jets, the rest on FH-227 turboprops.

Added to Ozark's 25 weekday departures, Chicago & Southern Airlines' five weekday Chicago-Meigs and two Springfield roundtrips gave the Greater Peoria Airport a total of 32 weekday departures. 

- David P. Jordan