Cal Sierra Airlines was a start-up airline based in
San Diego, California
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United Stat ...
. The airline was the brainchild of former
Pan Am
Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and commonly known as Pan Am, was an American airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States ...
Captain Ed Perry.
History
The airline started in 1980 with a route between San Diego and
South Lake Tahoe, California, operating
Convair 580
The Convair CV-240 is an American airliner that Convair manufactured from 1947 to 1954, initially as a possible replacement for the ubiquitous Douglas DC-3. Featuring a more modern design with cabin pressurization, the 240 series made some inroa ...
aircraft. The company slogan was ''Your Airlift to the Chairlift.''
The airline had plans for a large start-up with a route system covering the southwest United States. The initial start-up was a huge success with large load factors. Its claim to fame was superior in-flight service with
flight attendants
A flight attendant, also known as steward/stewardess or air host/air hostess, is a member of the aircrew aboard commercial flights, many business jets and some government aircraft. Collectively called cabin crew, flight attendants are prima ...
who wore ski outfits and
cowboy hat
The cowboy hat is a high-crowned, wide-brimmed hat best known as the defining piece of attire for the North American cowboy. Today it is worn by many people, and is particularly associated with ranch workers in the western and southern Unit ...
s. They were the first airline to serve
Starbucks coffee in-flight and offered a number of coffee selections in-flight.
The expansion was halted with the
PATCO strike in the United States. Because of the shortage of
air traffic controllers in the United States, airlines were not given the authority to add new routes. The new airline was short-lived without the chance to expand. It ceased operations after less than nine months of service in 1981.
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 ...
External links
Copy of a Cal Sierra Timetable
{{US-airline-stub
Defunct airlines of the United States
Airlines established in 1980
Airlines disestablished in 1981
1980 establishments in California
1981 disestablishments in California
Airlines based in California