Grand Canyon Scenic Airlines is an American

regional airline A regional airline is a general classification of airline which typically operates scheduled passenger air service, using regional aircraft, between communities lacking sufficient demand or infrastructure to attract mainline flights. In North ...

based in Paradise, Nevada, United States. It operates sightseeing flights from Boulder City Municipal Airport in Boulder City, Nevada. Flight International 12–18 April 2005 Scenic has been owned by

Grand Canyon Airlines Grand Canyon Airlines is a 14 CFR Part 135 air carrier headquartered on the grounds of Boulder City Municipal Airport in Boulder City, Nevada, United States. It also has bases at Grand Canyon National Park Airport and Page Municipal Airport, bot ...

since 2008.

History

Scenic Airlines was started by John and Elizabeth Seibold and their single engine Cessna airplane in North Las Vegas Airport in 1967. Between 1967 and 1993 Scenic Airlines grew to be one of the world's largest fixed-wing air tour operations. In 2000, John Seibold was recognized by the Las Vegas Review Journal as being one of the most influential businessmen in Las Vegas in the previous 100 years. In 1977, Scenic Airlines purchased the design and manufacturing rights to turboprop-powered conversions of the Cessna 402 and Cessna 414 from

American Jet Industries Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation is an American aircraft company and a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics. Gulfstream designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and services business jet aircraft. Gulfstream has produced more than 2,000 ...

.Taylor 1989, p.793Gunston 1993, p.270 In 1983, the airline co-developed modifications to the

de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter The de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter is a Canadian STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) utility aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada, which produced the aircraft from 1965 to 1988; Viking Air purchased the type certificate, then restarted ...

to make it more suitable for use as an air tour airplane. The airline eventually moved to Las Vegas's Harry Reid International Airport (LAS). DHC-6-300 N142SA Kayenta AZ 14

In the late 1960s, Scenic operated scheduled passenger flights on a route from Salt Lake City to Blanding, Utah, making stops at five other cities. During the mid-1970s, Scenic operated from a hub in Las Vegas providing service to Grand Canyon, Page, and Yuma in Arizona, to Long Beach, Palm Springs, Carlsbad, El Centro, and Death Valley in California, and to Ely, and Elko, Nevada. The carrier flew

and Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner aircraft. During the 1980s Scenic operated a vintage

Ford Trimotor The Ford Trimotor (also called the "Tri-Motor", and nicknamed the "Tin Goose") is an American three-engined transport aircraft. Production started in 1925 by the companies of Henry Ford and ended on June 7, 1933, after 199 had been made. It w ...

aircraft on its flight seeing tours. This was the type aircraft operated by the original Scenic Airways of the late 1920s that also operated flight seeing service across the Grand Canyon. In 1994 the Seibolds sold the airline to

SkyWest Airlines SkyWest Airlines is an American regional airline headquartered in St. George, Utah, United States. SkyWest is paid to staff, operate and maintain aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by a partner mainline airline. The ...

and it continued to see growth until it merged with Eagle Canyon Airlines in 1999. In 1999, Scenic was operating scheduled passenger service between Las Vegas (LAS) and

Grand Canyon National Park Airport Grand Canyon National Park Airport is a state-owned public-use airport located in Tusayan, CDP in unincorporated Coconino County, Arizona, United States.Fokker F27 turboprops. In the spring of 2006, citing rising fuel costs, the airline announced it would be ceasing scheduled passenger operations in order to focus on its sightseeing flights, thus abandoning its scheduled services using its fleet of three

Beechcraft 1900 The Beechcraft 1900 is a 19-passenger, pressurized twin-engine turboprop regional airliner manufactured by Beechcraft. It is also used as a freight aircraft and corporate transport, and by several governmental and military organizations. With c ...

turboprop aircraft. Almost all of the scheduled service flights, including those to Ely, Nevada, were Essential Air Service routes and were then picked up by

Air Midwest Air Midwest, Inc., was a Federal Aviation Administration Part 121 certificated air carrier that operated under air carrier certificate number AMWA510A issued on May 15, 1965. It was headquartered in Wichita, Kansas, United States, and was a sub ...

operating as

US Airways Express US Airways Express was the brand name for the regional affiliate of US Airways, under which a number of individually owned commuter air carriers and regional airlines operate short and medium haul routes. This code sharing service was previously ...

. On March 29, 2007, Scenic Airlines was sold to

and was subsequently renamed Grand Canyon Scenic Airlines. The airline continued to operate from the Boulder City airport providing services to

Grand Canyon West Grand Canyon West is a census-designated place (CDP) in Mohave County, Arizona, United States, located on the Hualapai Reservation. The population was reported as 0 at the 2020 census. Grand Canyon West is home to the tribe's Grand Canyon busin ...

, Grand Canyon,

Page, Arizona Page is a city in Coconino County, Arizona, United States, near the Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city was 7,247. History Unlike other cities in the area, Page was founded in 1957 as a housing com ...

Monument Valley, Utah A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, his ...

, and Rainbow Bridge, Utah. At that time, Grand Canyon Scenic Airlines continued to operate sightseeing flight services to the Grand Canyon every day of the year. On March 19, 2009, Grand Canyon Scenic Airlines moved its operations at the Boulder City airport into the company's new Boulder City Aerocenter, a terminal.

Destinations

Scheduled flight destinations

* Arizona ** Grand Canyon South **

** Page * Nevada ** Boulder City ** Elko **

Ely Ely or ELY may refer to: Places Ireland * Éile, a medieval kingdom commonly anglicised Ely * Ely Place, Dublin, a street United Kingdom * Ely, Cambridgeshire, a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England ** Ely Cathedral Ely Cathedral, formal ...

Scheduled sightseeing destinations

Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon (, yuf-x-yav, Wi:kaʼi:la, , Southern Paiute language: Paxa’uipi, ) is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States. The Grand Canyon is long, up to wide and attains a depth of over a m ...

Monument Valley Monument Valley ( nv, Tsé Biiʼ Ndzisgaii, , meaning ''valley of the rocks'') is a region of the Colorado Plateau characterized by a cluster of sandstone buttes, the largest reaching above the valley floor. It is located on the Utah-Arizona s ...

Accidents

Since it was founded in 1966, Scenic Airlines has experienced at least five fatal accidents. * On October 16, 1971 a Scenic Airlines Cessna 402 en route from North Las Vegas Airport to the

crashed while attempting to turn away from poor weather conditions on a sightseeing tour. The pilot and all nine passengers were killed. * On November 30, 1975 a flight from Ely, Nevada to

Elko, Nevada Elko (Shoshoni: Natakkoa, "Rocks Piled on One Another") is the largest city in and county seat of Elko County, Nevada, United States. With a 2020 population of 20,564, Elko is currently growing at a rate of 0.31% annually and its population has i ...

in a Scenic Cessna 402 crashed in poor weather due to improper IFR procedures. The pilot and the sole passenger were killed. * On July 21, 1980 a

Cessna 404 Titan The Cessna Model 404 Titan is an American twin-engined, light aircraft built by Cessna Aircraft. It was that company's largest twin piston-engined aircraft at the time of its development in the 1970s. Its US military designation is C-28, and ...

departing the Grand Canyon Airport for Phoenix, Arizona experienced an engine failure on take-off due to foreign material, improper maintenance, and improper procedures. All eight persons aboard (seven passengers and one crew member) were killed. * On September 20, 1996 a Cessna T207A operated by Scenic Airlines was being re-positioned at night from Grand Canyon, Arizona to St. George, Utah. For reasons undetermined, the airplane collided with the top of a bluff killing the sole occupant. * On October 8, 1997 a

Cessna 208B Grand Caravan The Cessna 208 Caravan is a utility aircraft produced by Cessna. The project was commenced on November 20, 1981, and the prototype first flew on December 9, 1982. The production model was certified by the FAA in October 1984 and its Cargoma ...

operated by Scenic Airlines departed Montrose, Colorado for a flight to Page, Arizona. While climbing at the normal rate of climb to , the airplane disappeared from radar. The wreckage was located among pine trees and exhibited evidence of a steep descent angle consistent with a stall or spin. All eight passengers and pilot were killed.Summary of NTSB report into the crash of Cessna 208B Caravan N12202
retrieved 22 January 2009. The wreckage of the

crash sits at the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Prescott Arizona, Robertson Crash Laboratory, where it is used by the students of the crash investigation class taught by Safety Science Professor William D. Waldock.

Notes

References

* *

External links

Scenic Airlines (English)

Scenic Airlines (Japanese)
{{Portal bar, United States, Companies, Aviation Regional airlines of the United States Regional Airline Association members Companies based in Paradise, Nevada Airlines established in 1967 Boulder City, Nevada Airlines based in Nevada 1967 establishments in Nevada