Florida Airlines was a commuter airline based in Florida that operated from 1960 to 1982. It is said to have had the largest

Douglas DC3 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 version ...

fleet in the world in 1976. Airline deregulation eventually resulted in the demise of the airline. The company slogan was ''The Florida Connection.''

Fleet

During the 1960s, Florida Airlines operated a fleet of aircraft described in the below table. Florida Airlines also operated

Martin 4-0-4 The Martin 4-0-4 was an American pressurized passenger airliner built by the Glenn L. Martin Company. In addition to airline use initially in the United States, it was used by the United States Coast Guard and United States Navy as the RM-1G ( ...

propliner aircraft during its existence.http://www.airliners.net, photo of Florida Airlines Martin 4-0-4

History

Florida Airlines was incorporated on February 8, 1960, as Florida Air Taxi, Inc. in

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

with William Taylor as owner. Taylor had purchased the company in the early 1950s from L. A. Stevens. The name was changed to Florida Airlines, Inc. on October 17, 1969. In 1969, the airline was sold to Lee H. Hill, Sr. and Lee H. Hill, Jr., owners of Hill-Donnelly Publishing company. In late 1973, it was sold by Hills to Arthur C. Allyn. Allyn had previously owned the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

and

Executive Airlines Executive Airlines, Inc. was a Puerto Rican regional airline headquartered at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in Carolina, Puerto Rico, the main airport for the United States territory, near the capitol of San Juan. The airline was a w ...

. He was also the owner of Sarasota Jungle Gardens and a significant philanthropist in the Sarasota area. In 1975, the airline was purchased by Air South and Shawnee Airlines. The airline filed for

Chapter 7 bankruptcy Chapter 7 of Title 11 of the United States Code (Bankruptcy Code) governs the process of liquidation under the bankruptcy laws of the United States, in contrast to Chapters 11 and 13, which govern the process of ''reorganization'' of a debto ...

protection and suspended services in January 1980. The airline re-commenced operations as Southern International Airlines (SIA), based at Sarasota in early 1980 (operating under the 'Air Florida Commuter' banner). On December 2, 1981, Southern International Airlines (SIA) operations were suspended. The corporation was dissolved on December 14, 1982

Destinations

The cities that Florida Airlines served in the 1970s: *

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

Fort Myers Fort Myers (or Ft. Myers) is a city in southwestern Florida and the county seat and commercial center of Lee County, Florida, United States. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 92,245 in 20 ...

Sarasota Sarasota () is a city in Sarasota County on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The area is renowned for its cultural and environmental amenities, beaches, resorts, and the Sarasota School of Architecture. The city is located in the sou ...

* Tampa * Gainesville *

Tallahassee Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2020, the population ...

Jacksonville Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...

Ocala Ocala ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Marion County within the northern region of Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city's population was 63,591, making it the 54th most populated city in Florida. Home to ...

* Punta Gorda * Port Charlotte *

Fort Lauderdale A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

* Rock Sound, Bahamas *

Georgetown, Bahamas Exuma is a district of The Bahamas, consisting of over 365 islands, also called cays. The largest of the cays is Great Exuma, which is 37 mi (60 km) in length and joined to another island, Little Exuma, by a small bridge. The capital ...

In addition, Shawnee Airlines DeHavilland DHC-6 Twin Otter aircraft were operated on special commuter connection services from Orlando and Tampa to the former STOLPORT at Walt Disney World until 1982.

References

External links

* * * {{US-airline-stub Airlines based in Florida Airlines established in 1960 Airlines disestablished in 1982 Companies based in Tampa, Florida Defunct airlines of the United States Defunct companies based in Florida 1960 establishments in Florida 1982 disestablishments in Florida Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1980

Fleet

History

Destinations

See also

References

External links