Lynx Aviation, Inc. was a

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 Nort ...

based in

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the United ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

, United States. The airline began as a sister company to, and operated feeder service for,

Frontier Airlines Frontier Airlines is a major ultra-low-cost U.S. airline headquartered in Denver, Colorado. It operates flights to over 100 destinations throughout the United States and 31 international destinations, and employs more than 3,000 staff. The ca ...

. The Lynx name plays off of the tail pictures of its planes, specifically Larry the Lynx, and the fact that it "links" smaller airports to the main Denver hub of Frontier Airlines. All flights operated by Lynx Aviation were sold and marketed as "Frontier Airlines operated by Lynx Aviation." On August 13, 2009, Frontier Airlines and Lynx Aviation were purchased by Republic Airways Holdings of Indianapolis, Indiana through an auction held in the US Bankruptcy Court. In the agreement the remaining operation of Lynx

Q400 The De Havilland Canada DHC-8, commonly known as the Dash 8, is a series of turboprop-powered regional airliners, introduced by de Havilland Canada (DHC) in 1984. DHC was later bought by Boeing in 1988, then by Bombardier in 1992; then by ...

flights for 2011 will be following the

air operator's certificate An air operator's certificate (AOC) is the approval granted by a civil aviation authority (CAA) to an aircraft operator to allow it to use aircraft for commercial purposes. This requires the operator to have personnel, assets, and system in plac ...

of Frontier Airlines (F9/FFT) to further consolidate in the operation's final phase. In 2012, the Lynx Aviation operation was folded into Republic Airways Holdings subsidiary Republic Airways. The remaining Q400 aircraft were withdrawn from Frontier service and placed in service for

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

History

Lynx Aviation was formed by Frontier Airlines Holdings on September 6, 2006. It was formed to help reduce costs; Frontier hoped to cut costs on routes 650 miles or shorter by 30%, allowing entry into new markets. The plan was originally to begin service in May 2007. The carrier received a waiver from the

United States Department of Transportation The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT or DOT) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is headed by the secretary of transportation, who reports directly to the President of the United States an ...

to begin selling seats prior to receipt of their Airline Operating Certificate from the

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...

. Plans were delayed when Frontier announced on September 4, 2007 that FAA certification would not be met in time for the initial launch date of Lynx Aviation service. In the interim, these routes were flown with existing aircraft flown by Republic Airlines and

Horizon Air Horizon Air Industries, Inc., operating as Horizon Air, is an American regional airline based in SeaTac, Washington, United States. Horizon Air and its sister carrier Alaska Airlines are subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group, and all Horizon-ope ...

, and beginning in November 2007 aircraft flown by ExpressJet Airlines. On December 5, 2007, Lynx Aviation received its Airline Operating Certificate from the FAA. Lynx began passenger operations December 7, 2007. On April 11, 2008, Frontier Airlines Holdings announced that it and all of its subsidiaries had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection due to its credit card processor withholding payment from ticket sales. On April 23, 2008, Frontier terminated their service agreement with Republic Airlines. This left Lynx as the only regional providing feeder service for Frontier. In May 2011, Frontier Airlines got rid of the final 4 Q400s in the fleet that were converted into United Express planes that are still operated by Republic Airlines out of Denver to similar destinations that Lynx served.

Planned closure

On February 4, 2010, Republic Airways announced their intent to close Lynx by September 2010, and transitioning the routes operated by Lynx to Republic Embraer 170/190 regional jets, after determining the turboprop aircraft operated by Lynx placed the company at a competitive disadvantage carrying the same number of passengers. The closure would result in the loss of about 175 jobs, although those laid off would be offered new jobs at Republic or Frontier. To this end, Republic said that it would remove three aircraft from Lynx's fleet on April 6, with a further three scheduled to leave the fleet on April 19. Additionally, service to

Tulsa Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...

and

Fargo Fargo usually refers to: * Fargo, North Dakota, United States * ''Fargo'' (1996 film), a crime film by the Coen brothers * ''Fargo'' (TV series), an American black comedy–crime drama anthology television series Fargo may also refer to: Othe ...

would be terminated on April 5. On 19 August 2010, Frontier announced that Lynx would continue operations between Denver and three Colorado cities—

Aspen Aspen is a common name for certain tree species; some, but not all, are classified by botanists in the section ''Populus'', of the ''Populus'' genus. Species These species are called aspens: *'' Populus adenopoda'' – Chinese aspen (Chin ...

Durango Durango (), officially named Estado Libre y Soberano de Durango ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Durango; Tepehuán: ''Korian''; Nahuatl: ''Tepēhuahcān''), is one of the 31 states which make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico, situated i ...

and

Colorado Springs Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...

—using three Bombardier Q400 aircraft, though this service was expected to end in April 2011. In January 2011, it was announced that four Lynx Q400s would continue to operate indefinitely. Lynx Aviation was eventually merged into Republic Airways with 4 remaining Q400's. After Pinnacle holdings closed Colgan, Republic began to take on the ex-Colgan Q-400s and began operating for United. Competing against Republic Airways' own Frontier airlines.

Fly Smart

Former

Western Airlines Western Airlines was a major airline based in California, operating in the Western United States including Alaska and Hawaii, and western Canada, as well as to New York City, Boston, Washington, D.C., and Miami and to Mexico City, London and ...

pilot and

Chief Operating Officer A chief operating officer or chief operations officer, also called a COO, is one of the highest-ranking executive positions in an organization, composing part of the " C-suite". The COO is usually the second-in-command at the firm, especially if t ...

of ATA Airlines Inc., Bill Beal; former

Sun Country Airlines Sun Country Airlines is an American ultra-low-cost passenger and cargo airline, and the eleventh largest in the US by passengers carried. Based at Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport with headquarters on airport property, Sun Coun ...

and Great Lakes Airlines executive Nick Wangler, and, Steven Westberg, former chief financial officer of Midway Airlines and a former vice president of

Continental Airlines Continental Airlines, simply known as Continental, was a major United States airline founded in 1934 and eventually headquartered in Houston, Texas. It had ownership interests and brand partnerships with several carriers. Continental started ...

are trying to raise $40 million to buy Lynx Aviation and rename it Fly Smart. It would connect Sheridan, Cody, Riverton, Laramie, and Casper with Denver.

Destinations

Lynx Aviation operated to the following destinations within the United States: *

( Aspen-Pitkin County Airport) *

( Colorado Springs Airport) *

(

Denver International Airport Denver International Airport , locally known as DIA, is an international airport in the Western United States, primarily serving metropolitan Denver, Colorado, as well as the greater Front Range Urban Corridor. At , it is the largest airport in ...

) Hub *

( Durango-La Plata County Airport) * Kansas City, Missouri ( Kansas City International Airport) * Wichita Mid-Continent Airport,

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to ...

Eppley Airfield Eppley Airfield , also known as Omaha Airport, is an airport in the midwestern United States, located northeast of downtown Omaha, Nebraska. On the west bank of the Missouri River in Douglas County, it is the largest airport in Nebraska, with ...

, Omaha,

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the so ...

Albuquerque International Sunport Albuquerque International Sunport is the primary international airport serving the U.S. state of New Mexico, the Albuquerque metropolitan area, and the larger Albuquerque– Santa Fe–Las Vegas combined statistical area. It handles around ...

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe, New Mexico, Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Albuquerque metropolitan area, Tiguex , Offi ...

* Will Rogers World Airport,

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, an ...

, Oklahoma * Salt Lake City International Airport,

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...

* Yampa Valley Airport, Hayden,

Jackson Hole Airport Jackson Hole Airport is a United States public airport located seven miles (11 km) north of Jackson, in Teton County, Wyoming. In 2019, it was the busiest airport in Wyoming by passenger traffic with 455,000 passengers. During peak seasons ...

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the sou ...

Billings Logan International Airport Billings Logan International Airport is in the western United States, northwest of downtown Billings, in Yellowstone County, Montana. It is the second largest airport in Montana, having been surpassed in recent years by Bozeman in both ...

Montana Montana () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West List of regions of the United States#Census Bureau-designated regions and divisions, division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North ...

* Gallatin Field Airport, Bozeman,

* Hector International Airport,

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, S ...

* Tulsa International Airport, Oklahoma *

El Paso International Airport El Paso International Airport (EPIA, , es, Aeropuerto Internacional de El Paso) is four miles (6 km) northeast of downtown El Paso, in El Paso County, Texas, United States. It is the largest civil airport in West Texas. It handled 3,516,91 ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

* Grand Junction Regional Airport,

* Rapid City Regional Airport,

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

Fleet

The first Q400 was delivered on July 20, 2007, and featured a baby lynx named Luke on the tail. The remaining nine aircraft were delivered by year's end. 1 option was exercised. The remaining 9 options on the aircraft were then declined with the exception of one that was delivered in August 2009. During 2010, the fleet was reduced to four aircraft, and Republic committed to flying them through April 2011. The aircraft were then sold to

Air Canada Air Canada is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocea ...

for their Air Canada Express service (operated by Jazz Air).

References