Southern Sky Air Tours, d/b/a Direct Air was an airline

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or buying and selling products (such as goods and services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for profit." Having a business name does not separ ...

based in

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Myrtle Beach is a resort city on the east coast of the United States in Horry County, South Carolina. It is located in the center of a long and continuous stretch of beach known as "The Grand Strand" in the northeastern part of the state. Its ...

, United States. Direct Air started in 2007 and leased aircraft with

charter airlines Air charter is the business of renting an entire aircraft (i.e., chartering) as opposed to individual aircraft seats (i.e., purchasing a ticket through a traditional airline). Regulation Charter – also called air taxi or ad hoc – flights ...

. Its main base was

Myrtle Beach International Airport Myrtle Beach International Airport is a county-owned public-use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) southwest of the central business district of Myrtle Beach, in Horry County, South Carolina, United States. It was formerly k ...

. Direct Air's flights were operated by Sky King, Inc.,

Xtra Airways Avelo Airlines () is an ultra low-cost U.S. carrier headquartered in Houston, Texas. It previously operated charter flights as ''Casino Express Airlines'' and ''Xtra Airways'', before transitioning to scheduled operations and rebranding as Av ...

, World Atlantic Airlines, and

USA Jet USA Jet Airlines is a small American cargo airline with its headquarters on the grounds of Willow Run Airport, and in Van Buren Township, Michigan. USA Jet operates on-demand air charter freight, and formerly passenger flights out of Willow Run A ...

. In March 2012 Direct Air ceased operations, stranding many of its passengers. The airline planned to resume operations on May 15, 2012, although this was contested by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

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 ...

Information for Consumers Regarding the Cessation of Operations by Southern Sky Air Tours d/b/a Myrtle Beach Direct Air and Tours
The charter carrier was subject to Chapter 7

liquidation Liquidation is the process in accounting by which a company is brought to an end in Canada, United Kingdom, United States, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, and many other countries. The assets and property of the company are redistrib ...

on April 12, 2012.

History

Boeing 737-400 (Xtra Airways) N43XA 02102007

On November 14, 2006, Direct Air announced nonstop service from Myrtle Beach to Newark, Niagara Falls, and Plattsburgh, New York. On March 7, 2007, Direct Air (Myrtle Beach Direct Air at the time) started flying. The flights were being operated by Sky King, Inc. on

Boeing 737-200 The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Renton Factory in Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the 707 fuselage width and six abreast seating with two u ...

aircraft until May 14, 2007, when Direct Air ended its relationship with Sky King, Inc. Direct Air's flights were then operated primarily by

and Sky King, Inc.

Boeing 737-400 The Boeing 737 Classic is a series of narrow-body airliners produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes, the second generation of the Boeing 737 series of aircraft. Development began in 1979 and the first variant, the 737-300, first flew in Februa ...

aircraft. Occasionally, especially during peak travel periods, additional other operating carriers and aircraft types are used. These have included jetBlue Airways,

Sun Country Airlines Sun Country Airlines is an American Low-cost carrier, ultra-low-cost passenger airline, passenger and cargo airline, and the List of largest airlines in North America, eleventh largest in the US by passengers carried. Based at Minneapolis–Sai ...

Virgin America Virgin America Inc. was a low-cost U.S. airline that operated from 2007 until 2018, when it was acquired by Alaska Airlines. The airline primarily focused on operating low-fare service between cities on the West Coast and other major metropol ...

Dynamic Airways Eastern Airlines, LLC is an American airline founded in 2010. Eastern operates Boeing 767s and Boeing 777s. It began as Dynamic Airways and later added "International" to its name to reflect its transition from a charter airline into scheduled i ...

Vision Airlines Vision Airlines, formerly Vision Air, was an airline that had its operations headquartered in North Las Vegas, Nevada. The airline also operated charter flights for their tour services in northern Arizona and Nevada including the Grand Canyon, M ...

, and Miami Air. On March 12, 2012, Direct Air cancelled all of their charter flights throughout the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

.Bomkamp, Samantha
Direct Air, South Carolina-Based Charter Airline, Cancels Flights
Associated Press, March 13, 2012 Passengers were initially not given reasons for the abrupt cancellations. On March 13, 2012, a statement issued by Marketing Manager, Ed Warnek, indicated that flights would resume on Wednesday, March 14. Flight cancellations were attributed to a missed fuel payment. Further news releases on March 13 indicate that flights will not resume until May 15 at the earliest. On March 15, the U.S. Department of Transportation issued a statement indicating that "The company has announced that it intends to restart operations as of May 15, 2012; however, the company currently does not have authority to do so." On March 16, 2012, Direct Air issued a press release stating that it filed for

Chapter 11 Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wheth ...

bankruptcy protection. The public address on its home page was also modified to remove any indication that they would resume operation on May 15, 2012. Chapter 7

commenced on April 12, 2012. On August 21, 2012, it was announced that Direct Air had racked up $9.6 million in federal rules violations during the spring when Direct Air abruptly canceled about 350 flights according to its fillings in bankruptcy court. Between March 15 and March 24 Direct Air canceled 144 flights and another 206 flights between March 25 and April 11 that violated federal rules that are aimed at protecting passengers according to a filing made by the U.S. Department of Transportation, who regulates charter operators such as Direct Air and tallied the civil penalties Direct Air according to federal rules isn't allowed to cancel flights less than 10 days before the scheduled departure unless it is physically impossible to fly as is what Direct Air did through March 24, according to the DOT. Direct Air should have also notified passengers that were scheduled to fly on 206 flights March 25 through April 11, when Direct Air's initial

chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, whe ...

case was converted to

Chapter 7 liquidation 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 ...

, that their flights had been canceled. Federal rules require that charter operators notify each passenger in writing within seven days after the cancellation but not less than 10 days before the scheduled flight. "No circumstances of physical impossibility existed during that 10-day period that would have prevented irect Airfrom performing the scheduled flights," the DOT said in its administrative claim to the fines accumulated prior to the case's conversion to Chapter 7. The civil penalty of $9,625,000 could be adjusted to a higher penalty after the DOT received flight information from Sky King, one of five carriers that flew flights for Direct Air, according to the court filing. The DOT is also looking into Direct Air's handling of a required escrow account that officials say is underfunded, which is also another violation of federal law. The maximum civil penalty is $27,500 per violation per day, but the total in Direct Air's case is still unknown, according to the DOT's court filings. On September 29, 2012, The Sun News wrote an article titled "Direct Air woes spread" and in the article that said that Sky King, Inc. which is a

Lakeland, Florida Lakeland is the most populous city in Polk County, Florida, part of the Tampa Bay area, Tampa Bay Area, located along Interstate 4 east of Tampa, Florida, Tampa. According to the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau release, the city had a population of 112,6 ...

based company who provided planes, pilots and crews to Direct Air, had filed

Chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, whe ...

reorganization. The company's president blamed Direct Air for the

filing and in that filing says that Direct Air owed Sky King $1 million all this according to a report in the

Lakeland Ledger ''The Ledger'' is a daily newspaper serving Lakeland, Florida, and the Polk County area. The paper was founded on August 22, 1924, as the ''Lakeland Evening Ledger''. In 1927, it bought its main competitor, the morning ''Lakeland Star-Telegram ...

. Sky King President Frank Visconti told the

that Direct Air owed then a significant amount of money when they the fuel company cut Sky King off. Sky King was one of eight carriers that flew Direct Air's routes for them. One of the other carriers who flew Direct Airs routes, World Atlantic Airlines, was fined by 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 and ...

$180,000 in July because it abruptly cancelled flights without the proper notice to passengers as the USDOT requires. The USDOT had said that is continuing to investigate Direct Air as well as its carriers. The bankruptcy court is currently sorting through Direct Air's

financial records Financial statements (or financial reports) are formal records of the financial activities and position of a business, person, or other entity. Relevant financial information is presented in a structured manner and in a form which is easy to un ...

. Investigators have already determined that there wasn't as much money in escrow accounts as there should have been or that was thought to be in the account, but they are still sorting through all the details. On October 2, 2012, it was announced Tuesday that a second carrier of the now defunct Direct Air was fined for abruptly canceling flights in March that left hundreds of vacationers and other travelers stranded.

was fined $300,000 by the U.S. Department of Transportation because

cancelled flights less than 10 days before departure and for not ensuring a return flight for round-trip passengers as required by the DOT of such public charter flights. Xtra also violated rules that required them to be paid before operating public charted flights. Xtra stopped flying charters for Direct Air on March 13 when Direct Air failed to pay the carrier all the money it was owed for operating flights that departed on or after March 3, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Xtra also had received late payments from Direct Air for several flights prior to March 3, that should have prompted Xtra to look and see whether Direct Air was following the federal rules, said a DOT Aviation Enforcement Office. The DOT also requires carriers to make a reasonable effort to ensure that the charter operators they fly for are obeying the federal rules. Xtra is the second of Direct Air's eight carriers to be fined by the DOT, with the first one being World Atlantic Airlines which was fined $180,000 in late July. Another one of Direct Air carriers Florida-based Sky King, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization, with the company's president telling

the bankruptcy filling was led by Direct Air's demise, as

Sky King ''Sky King'' was an American radio and television series. Its lead character was Arizona rancher and aircraft pilot Schuyler "Sky" King. The series had strong Western elements. King usually captured criminals and spies and found lost hikers, ...

was owed $1 million by the former carrier. The trustee that is in charge of the Direct Air case told WMBF News a local news station in Myrtle Beach said that there could even be criminal charges filed in relation to the investigation into Direct Air's bankruptcy On May 19, 2014, it was reported that the trustee in Direct Air's bankruptcy case has agreed to drop a racketeering lawsuit against Direct Air's former chief executive officer in exchange for a $10,000 payment or about 1.5 percent of the total amount that she owes, according to court documents. The trustee, Joseph Baldiga, says that he doubts that he will be able to collect the $657,252 that Judy Tull, Direct Air's former chief executive officer, owes to the bankruptcy estate, so instead of trying to collect the full amount the trustee as proposed the $10,000 settlement, which still needs to be approved by a bankruptcy judge, but no court date had been set. Baldiga is still suing the other Direct Air founders including Marshall and Kay Ellison, Robert Keilmann and Ed Warneck in order to recover nearly $2.6 million in payments that the founders received from the carrier before it abruptly stopped flying and filed for bankruptcy protection in March 2012. The trustee has also filed a racketeering complaint against Kay Ellison in which he claims that both Ellison and Tull fraudulently withdrew money from an escrow account that was supposed to help protect passengers’ fares in the event their flights did not occur. According to court documents the trustee said that the $10,000 payment from Tull is about the best the carrier's estate can expect.

Post-Bankruptcy Criminal Proceedings

Two of the five original principal Direct Air partners—Kay Ellison and Judy Tull—were indicted in the United States Court for the District of New Jersey on January 17, 2016, on multiple counts of bank fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy in connection with Direct Air's demise. A third partner, Robert Keilman, had previously pleaded guilty in September 2015 to one federal count of conspiracy in exchange for cooperation with prosecutors. Keilman, aged 72 as of 2018, faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine when he is scheduled for sentencing in July, 2018 (the two remaining partners, S. Marshall Ellison—spouse of Kay Ellison—and Edward Warneck were not charged with criminal offenses as of 2018). The government's case alleged that these three partners conspired to defraud Valley National Bank of New Jersey of ticketholder funds deposited into a Public Charter escrow account established for the purposes of consumer protection as mandated by United States Department of Transportation guidelines governing Public Charter air services, and as laid forth in the Public Charter Operator-Participant Contract. Upon examination it was alleged that this account which should have contained approximately US$30 million at the time of Direct Air's cessation of operations in March 2012 then contained only an approximate $1 million. Kay Ellison and Judy Tull maintained their innocence and mounted a defense. After lengthy procedural delays, their case went to trial before Judge Susan D. Wigendon of the United States Court of the District of New Jersey on March 22, 2018, in Newark. After a seven-day trial, a jury returned a verdict of guilty for Ellison and Tull for all indicted counts: each defendant was convicted of four substantive counts of bank fraud, three counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy. Ellison, now 57 as of 2018 and Tull, now 72, each face up to 450 years in prison and US$15 million in fines when they are scheduled for sentencing in July 2018 along with Keilman. According to the US Department of Justice's official statement post-trial, defendants Ellison and Tull: "...stole passengers' money to try and prop up their failing company,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General (John P.) Cronan. “Their brazen scheme created a multimillion dollar shortfall that left passengers stranded at airports, and banks and credit card companies scrambling to pick up the pieces." and: "According to evidence presented at trial, from October 2007 through March 2012, Tull and Ellison engaged in a scheme to steal passengers’ money for future travel from an escrow account by artificially inflating the amount of money the defendants claimed they were entitled to receive, and by sending this falsified amount in a letter to the escrow bank telling the escrow bank to release the money. The evidence further established that to cover up their fraud, the defendants falsified profit and loss statements to make the company look like it was making money rather than losing money, and sent these falsified documents to credit card companies and banks to trick them into continuing to do business with the company." On November 28, 2018, Kay Ellison was sentenced in New Jersey to 94 months in prison and has been ordered her to pay $19.6 million in restitution. DirectAir CEO Judy Tull, as well as chief financial officer Robert Keilman, both await sentencing.

Areas of operation

Direct Air opened a secondary hub in St. Petersburg, FL, but closed the station in 2008. In winter 2009 they started flying from Melbourne, FL to Niagara Falls and Punta Gorda. In the 2010-2011 winter season they began operating flights from Palm Beach International Airport to several of their northern origin airports, including Worcester, Kalamazoo, and Rockford. In 2011 they became the first airline to offer commercial air service from Florida's Lakeland Linder International Airport since the 1970s.

Former Destinations

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

* Lakeland ( Lakeland Linder International Airport)Chambliss, John
Direct Air Expects Lakeland Linder to Become a Hub of Tourism
theledger.com, March 30, 2011 *

Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures re ...

(

Orlando Sanford International Airport Orlando Sanford International Airport is in Sanford, Florida, United States, near Orlando. It was built as Naval Air Station Sanford, a Master Jet Base for carrier-based attack and reconnaissance aircraft, and was used by the U.S. Navy until ...

) * Fort Myers/Punta Gorda (

Charlotte County Airport Punta Gorda Airport is a public airport three miles east of Punta Gorda, in Charlotte County, Florida. It is owned by the Charlotte County Airport Authority and was formerly called Charlotte County Airport. The airport has mainly been used for g ...

) Focus City *

West Palm Beach West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...

( Palm Beach International Airport) Focus City

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rock ...

* Rockford (

Chicago Rockford International Airport Chicago Rockford International Airport , typically referred to as Rockford International Airport, Chicago Rockford, or by its IATA call letters, RFD, is a commercial airport in Rockford, Illinois, located northwest of Chicago., effective April 26 ...

) *

Springfield, Illinois Springfield is the capital of the U.S. state of Illinois and the county seat and largest city of Sangamon County. The city's population was 114,394 at the 2020 census, which makes it the state's seventh most-populous city, the second largest ...

(

Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport is a civil-military airport in Sangamon County, Illinois, United States, three miles (6 km) northwest of downtown Springfield. It is owned by the Springfield Airport Authority (SAA). The airport is includ ...

)

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

( Worcester Regional Airport)

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...

Kalamazoo Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in the southwest region of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Kalamazoo County. At the 2010 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 74,262. Kalamazoo is the major city of the Kalamazoo-Portage Metropo ...

(

Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport is a county-owned public airport in Kalamazoo, Kalamazoo County, Michigan, USA, southeast of Downtown Kalamazoo. The airport is located approximately west of the city of Battle Creek. It is incl ...

)

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

* Newark (

Newark Liberty International Airport Newark Liberty International Airport , originally Newark Metropolitan Airport and later Newark International Airport, is an international airport straddling the boundary between the cities of Newark in Essex County and Elizabeth in Union Cou ...

) easonal

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the Canada–United States border, border between the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario in Canada and the U.S. state, state ...

(

Niagara Falls International Airport Niagara Falls International Airport is located east of downtown Niagara Falls, in the Town of Niagara in Niagara County, New York, United States. Owned and operated by the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority, the airport is a joint civ ...

) * Plattsburgh (

Plattsburgh International Airport Plattsburgh International Airport is a county public-use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) south of the central business district of the city of Plattsburgh, within the Town of Plattsburgh in Clinton County, New York, Unit ...

)

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

(

Rickenbacker International Airport Rickenbacker International Airport is a civil-military public airport south of downtown Columbus, near Lockbourne in southern Franklin County, Ohio, United States. The south end of the airport extends into Pickaway County. The base was nam ...

) easonal* Toledo (

Toledo Express Airport Toledo Express Airport, officially Eugene F. Kranz Toledo Express Airport , is a civil-military airport in Swanton and Monclova townships west of Toledo in western Lucas County, Ohio, United States. It opened in 1954-55 as a replacement to t ...

)

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

Allentown Allentown may refer to several places in the United States and topics related to them: *Allentown, California, now called Toadtown, California *Allentown, Georgia, a town in Wilkinson County *Allentown, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Taze ...

(

Lehigh Valley International Airport Lehigh Valley International Airport (formerly Allentown–Bethlehem–Easton International Airport) is a domestic airport located in Hanover Township in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. Lehigh Valley International Airport is located in the center ...

) *

Pittsburgh 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 ...

(

Pittsburgh International Airport Pittsburgh International Airport , formerly Greater Pittsburgh International Airport, is a civil–military international airport in Findlay Township and Moon Township, Pennsylvania. Located about 10 miles (15 km) west of downtown Pitts ...

)

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

* Myrtle Beach (

) Hub

Former Destinations (prior to liquidation)

Hagerstown, Maryland Hagerstown is a city in Washington County, Maryland, United States and the county seat of Washington County. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2020 census was 43,527, and the population of the Hagerstown metropolitan area (exte ...

(

Hagerstown Regional Airport Hagerstown Regional Airport (Richard A. Henson Field) is in Washington County, Maryland, five miles north of Hagerstown, Maryland and a half mile (800 m) from the Maryland/Pennsylvania border. The airport is off Interstate 81 at exit 10 and ...

) * St. Petersburg-Clearwater (

St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...

) — Former focus city; closed in June 2008. * Washington, D.C. (

Dulles International Airport Washington Dulles International Airport , typically referred to as Dulles International Airport, Dulles Airport, Washington Dulles, or simply Dulles ( ), is an international airport in the Eastern United States, located in Loudoun County and F ...

) — Sales suspended indefinitely due to low demand. Service was scheduled to begin on February 4, 2010.

Fleet

As Direct Air was a business classed as a virtual airline (economics), it had no true aircraft fleet upon its own FAA / DOT operating certificate. Instead, the Direct Air business model used the services of the following airlines aircraft (as of March 14, 2010):

Incidents

On August 5, 2011, a Direct Air flight operated by

from Lakeland Linder International Airport to

in Illinois lost an engine over the Gulf of Mexico and flew back to

Tampa International Airport Tampa International Airport is an international airport west of Downtown Tampa, in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. The airport is publicly owned by Hillsborough County Aviation Authority (HCAA)., effective December 30, 2021. T ...

. Passengers were told another plane was on its way, but one never arrived. Passengers were bussed back to Lakeland.Chambliss, John
Direct Air Jet Makes Emergency Landing in Tampa
''The Lakeland Ledger'', August 5, 2011, Retrieved 2015-03-18 October 15, 2011: Direct Air flight from Lakeland Linder International Airport to

operated by Sky King, Inc. lost cabin pressure approximately one hour into the flight. Oxygen masks on board failed to deploy, and several passengers passed out, complained of chest pains, shortness of breath, or other issues related to the loss of pressure. The flight returned to Lakeland. After landing in Lakeland, mechanics attempted to fix the plane, and it took off again approximately 5 hours later. The second flight experienced the same air pressurization issues 20 minutes into the flight, again causing passengers to pass out as oxygen masks again failed to deploy. The flight returned, again, to Lakeland. There were no deaths, but at least one person was hospitalized with shortness of breath. Eventually, another plane was chartered to make the flight to Niagara Falls.

References

External links

Direct Air Official Website
(Ceased operation after declaring bankruptcy) {{Airlines of the United States, state=collapsed Defunct airlines of the United States Defunct charter airlines of the United States Airlines established in 2006 Airlines disestablished in 2012 Defunct companies based in South Carolina Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2012 Companies that have filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy 2006 establishments in South Carolina 2012 disestablishments in South Carolina Airlines based in South Carolina American companies established in 2006 American companies disestablished in 2012