Ameriflight
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| Ameriflight | ||
|---|---|---|
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| IATA - |
ICAO AMF |
Callsign AMFLIGHT |
| Founded | 1968 | |
| Hubs | BUR, ONT, SJU, DFW, BIL, PHX, PDX, SLC, BFI, OAK, CVG | |
| Fleet size | 173 | |
| Destinations | ||
| Headquarters | Burbank, California, USA | |
| Key people | ||
| Website: http://www.ameriflight.com/ | ||
Ameriflight is an American cargo airline based in Burbank, California, USA. It is the largest United States FAA Part 135 cargo carrier, operating scheduled and contract cargo services to destinations in 30 US states, Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean. Ameriflight serves major financial institutions, freight forwarders, laboratories and overnight couriers in the western USA and provides feeder services for overnight express carriers nationwide.[1]
The majority of Ameriflight's flying consists of "air feeder" service for major package express integrators such as UPS and FedEx. On schedules set by the customers, cargo is received in the early morning from large jet freighters at hub airports and distributed by Ameriflight airplanes to smaller communities whose traffic (or airports) wouldn't support the big airplanes. In the evening, the Ameriflight aircraft fly inbound to the hubs with cargo to be transferred to the big jet freighters, which carry it onward to the integrators' distribution centers for sorting and redistribution to the ultimate destinations.
Although demand is decreasing as use of digital imaging and electronic data transfer increases, the company also transports high priority intercity financial documents. Pharmaceuticals, film for development, medical laboratory samples, and other miscellaneous cargo are also carried.
The Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) base is unique to Ameriflight as a large part of their business is last-minute on-demand auto parts and other time critical parts needed to keep assembly lines moving. CVG has also been growing Ameriflight's time-critical radioactive medical raw materials business.[citation needed]
The Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) base is unique in that it has both scheduled/contracted flights and on-demand cargo charter service. With spare Metroliner aircraft and crew based at DFW, the base chiefly serves requests for transportation originating from Texas customers destined for all parts of US and Mexico. The DFW base also ships time-critical radioactive medical material.[citation needed]
In addition, the company conducts on-demand passenger charter operations using three Learjet 35As and a Beechcraft King Air 200.[citation needed]
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[edit] History
The airline was established in 1968 and started operations as California Air Charter. It merged in 1971 with United Couriers (UCI), a wholly owned subsidiary of ATI Systems International (ATIS). In April 1993 the fixed-wing division of Wings Express of Van Nuys was purchased and the outstanding shares of Sports Air Travel were purchased in mid-1997. In March 2007, When Canadian company Garda Security bought ATIS, Ameriflight was sold to a group of investors including the company's president, Gary Richards. Ameriflight has about 600 employees.
[edit] Main Bases and Hubs
As of March 2007,[1] Ameriflight's headquarters is Burbank Bob Hope Airport, with hubs at:
- Burbank Bob Hope Airport (BUR)
- Ontario International Airport (ONT)
- San Juan, Puerto Rico Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU)
- Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW)
- Billings Logan International Airport (BIL)
- Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX)
- Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC)
- Seattle Boeing Field (BFI)
- Oakland International Airport (OAK)
- Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG)
- Portland International Airport (PDX)
Early in 2008, Ameriflight announced the closure of BIL as a crew domicile -- although the BIL base facilities remain active for aircraft maintenance pending further business developments.
[edit] Fleet
The Ameriflight fleet includes the following aircraft (as of March 2007):[2]
- 7 Embraer EMB 120ER Brasilia
- (All EMB-120s in the fleet that were built as 120RTs have been modified to 120ER status)
- 20 Fairchild Merlin IV-C
- (Merlin IVCs include 18 "Expediter" factory-built freighters)
- 25 Fairchild Metro III
- 20 Raytheon Beechcraft 1900C Airliner
- 12 Raytheon Beech B99
- 45 Raytheon Beech C99
- ("B99" aircraft include 3 built as B99s; others are 99 and 99A aircraft modified to B99 status by incorporation of Beech Kit 99-5014)
- (All pre-C99 aircraft incorporate SuperSpar wing mod and Beech hydro landing gear)
- 5 Bombardier Learjet 35A
- 1 Raytheon Beech King Air 200
- 41 Piper Chieftain/Navajo
All aircraft are "straight freighters" except for the King Air 200, and three Learjet 35As, which are passenger-configured.[2]
Previously operated:[2]
- Cessna 402 (phased out)
- Piper Lance (phased out)
[edit] Accidents and Incidents
- November 16, 1994: A Beechcraft Model 99 flying between Burbank, CA-Oakland, CA crashed near Avenal, CA during an uncontrolled descent. The pilot, who was the only person onboard, was killed.[1]
- February 12, 1999: A Beechcraft Model 99 operating between Tonopah, NV-Bishop, CA crashed about 18.1 miles NE of the Bishop Airport in the vicinity of the Inyo National Forest. The plane was found the next day along a valley close to White Mountain inside the forest. The pilot was killed. The cause of the crash was determined to be the failure of the pilot to follow proper procedures. [2]
- November 29, 2003: Flight 1966, a Fairchild Merlin IV-C was flying Boeing Field-Spokane when it impacted trees about 3.4 miles from Felts Field where it was to land. The pilot, who was the lone person onboard was killed. The cause of the crash was determined to be the pilot's failure to maintain proper glidepath alignment during an ILS approach in poor weather. [3]
- January 21, 2004: Flight 132, a Piper PA32R was flying the route between Inyokern, CA and Bishop, CA when the aircraft impacted terrain just south of Big Pine, CA. The pilot, who was the lone person aboard, was killed. The cause of the accident is believed to be the pilot falling asleep during the flight. [4]
- March 18, 2006: Flight 2591, a Beechcraft Model 99 was flying the route Helena, MT-Butte, MT when it crashed about 8.1 miles SW of Butte. The plane impacted trees and then mountainous terrain, during heavy snow and icing. The wreckage was not located until March 20. Both pilots were killed. The cause of the crash was determined to be the pilot's failure to follow the proper instrument approach procedure. [5]
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Directory: World Airlines", Flight International, 2007-03-27, p. 75.
- ^ a b c Airline Pilot Central
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