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All American Aviation was an
airline An airline is a company that provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for codeshare agreements, in wh ...
company founded by Lytle Schooler Adams in 1937. It evolved over the decades to become
Allegheny Airlines Allegheny Airlines was a regional airline that operated out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1952 to 1979 with routes primarily located in the eastern U.S. It was the forerunner of USAir that was subsequently renamed US Airways, which itself me ...
, then
USAir US Airways (formerly USAir) was a major United States airline that operated from 1937 until its merger with American Airlines in 2015. It was originally founded in Pittsburgh as a mail delivery airline called All American Aviation, which soon ...
and subsequently US Airways, with the latter's merger with
American Airlines American Airlines is a major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the largest airline in the world when measured by fleet size, scheduled passengers carried, and revenue passeng ...
in 2013 creating the largest airline in the world.


History

All American Aviation was founded in 1937 as a patent holding company. Its sister company, Tri-State Aviation, was founded on the same date, serving as the physical operating company. Founder Lytle Schooler Adams was the first president of both companies. Adams had started experimenting with an
airmail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be t ...
pick-up system in 1927, developing numerous patents on the system, which he rolled into All American Aviation in 1937. Initial flights of the airline pick-up service were made by a
Stinson Reliant The Stinson Reliant is a popular single-engine four- to five-seat high-wing monoplane manufactured by the Stinson Aircraft Division of the Aviation Manufacturing Corporation of Wayne, Michigan. Design and development The Reliant is a high-wi ...
single engine high-wing monoplane. Mail containers were suspended from ropes or cables suspended from two poles. The aircraft swooped down with a suspended hook hanging below and snagged the rope or cable. This was further developed in a system that could pick up personnel. The
du Pont family The du Pont family () or Du Pont family is a prominent American family descended from Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours (1739–1817). It has been one of the richest families in the United States since the mid-19th century, when it founded its f ...
brothers
Richard C. du Pont Richard Chichester du Pont (January 2, 1911 – September 11, 1943) was an American businessman and an aviation and glider pioneer who was a member of the prominent Du Pont family. He was the founder of the major US legacy carrier US Airways, ...
and
Alexis Felix du Pont, Jr. Alexis Felix du Pont Jr. (October 2, 1905 – December 30, 1996) was an American aviation pioneer, soldier, philanthropist, and a member of the prominent du Pont family. Biography Known as Felix, he was born in Wilmington, Delaware on Octobe ...
bought stock in the company in 1938—on the same date as a bill was passed in Congress to enable the U.S. Post Office to start large scale experimentation on the airmail pick-up system. Through some manipulations, the du Ponts were able to acquire majority stock and voted Richard du Pont as the new president. Actual service did not commence until 1939. The pioneering experimental airmail pickup service was built on routes radiating from a hub at
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
, from which the airline provided service throughout the
Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of ...
valley. All American received a certificate of public convenience and necessity from the
Civil Aeronautics Board The Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) was an agency of the federal government of the United States, formed in 1938 and abolished in 1985, that regulated aviation services including scheduled passenger airline serviceStringer, David H."Non-Skeds: T ...
for regular passenger, mail and express service. Concurrent with the introduction of passenger service, the company changed its name in 1949 to All American Airways. Through the years, the company grew and the name was again changed, becoming
Allegheny Airlines Allegheny Airlines was a regional airline that operated out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1952 to 1979 with routes primarily located in the eastern U.S. It was the forerunner of USAir that was subsequently renamed US Airways, which itself me ...
on January 1, 1953,
USAir US Airways (formerly USAir) was a major United States airline that operated from 1937 until its merger with American Airlines in 2015. It was originally founded in Pittsburgh as a mail delivery airline called All American Aviation, which soon ...
on October 28, 1979, and US Airways on November 12, 1996. Following its 2013 merger with
American Airlines American Airlines is a major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the largest airline in the world when measured by fleet size, scheduled passengers carried, and revenue passeng ...
, the US Airways brand was phased out by 2016 as planes, uniforms, and other assets were steadily rebranded to American Airlines.


Fleet

Pre World War II *Stinson SM-1D-300 *Stinson SR-10C (4) Post World War II *
Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper versi ...
* Convair 580


See also

*
List of defunct airlines of the United States A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...
*
Fulton surface-to-air recovery system The Fulton surface-to-air recovery system (STARS) is a system used by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), United States Air Force and United States Navy for retrieving persons on the ground using aircraft such as the MC-130E Combat Talo ...


References


External links

* Th
George J. Frebert collection on Delaware Aviation
at
Hagley Museum and Library The Hagley Museum and Library is a nonprofit educational institution in unincorporated New Castle County, Delaware, near Wilmington. Covering more than along the banks of the Brandywine Creek, the museum and grounds include the first du Po ...
includes material on All American Aviation and its air mail pick-up system. {{Navboxes , list = {{US Airways Group {{American Airlines {{Airlines of the United States, state=collapsed {{authority control Airlines established in 1937 Airlines disestablished in 1952 Companies based in Pittsburgh Defunct airlines of the United States Defunct companies based in Pennsylvania US Airways Group American companies established in 1937 Airlines based in Pennsylvania Aviation companies