Multi-Aero, Inc., doing business as Air Choice One, a division of Southern Airways Corporation, was an American

commuter 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 North ...

with its headquarters in

Concord, Missouri Concord is a census-designated place (CDP) in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 16,421 at the 2010 census. It should not be confused with Concord Township or Concord Village; the CDP shares much land with both, but th ...

, within the Greater St. Louis area. It operated as 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 North ...

offering commuter flights from

St. Louis Lambert International Airport St. Louis Lambert International Airport is the primary commercial airport serving metropolitan St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Commonly referred to as Lambert Field or simply Lambert, it is the largest and busiest airport in the state o ...

to smaller regional airports, subsidized under the

Essential Air Service Essential Air Service (EAS) is a U.S. government program enacted to guarantee that small communities in the United States, which had been served by certificated airlines prior to deregulation in 1978, maintained commercial service. Its aim is t ...

program. Air Choice One's callsign, 'Weber', is in honor of Mike Weber, the airline's first Chief Pilot.

History

Multi-Aero was founded in 1979 under the name Multi-Aero Corporation. In October 2009, Air Choice One won the EAS contract to serve Decatur, Illinois, and Burlington, Iowa. Air Choice One was awarded its first EAS contract to replace

SeaPort Airlines SeaPort Airlines was a US-based regional airline with its headquarters at Portland International Airport in Portland, Oregon. It operated scheduled service from its bases at Portland International Airport (PDX) (Pacific Northwest region) and Me ...

Jonesboro, Arkansas Jonesboro is a city located on Crowley's Ridge in the northeastern corner of the U.S. State of Arkansas. Jonesboro is one of two county seats of Craighead County. According to the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 78,576 and is the ...

in December 2011. In January 2013, the DOT granted Air Choice One a three-year contract extension for both Decatur, Illinois,Voyles, Rya
Way cleared for Air Choice One to serve Decatur for three more years
''Herald Review'', January 8, 2013, Retrieved 2013-02-24 and Burlington, Iowa. As a stipulation for obtaining both extensions, Air Choice One implemented systems for electronic ticketing and baggage agreements via WorldSpan (a part of the global distribution system, or GDS) in December 2012. This allows passengers to book tickets with connections to and from other major airlines on popular travel websites in a "one-click" process, as opposed to buying tickets at one airline and then having to book tickets with another on two separate confirmations. On December 21, 2017, Air Choice One was granted a four-year contract extension in Burlington, Iowa, and was not selected for another term in Decatur, marking the end of Air Choice One's nearly eight years of service to Decatur Airport. On March 14, 2018, the airline passed the FAA mandated proving runs with its Beechcraft 1900C, meaning that the aircraft is now approved to be used in daily line operations. Air Choice One began operating the aircraft between Fort Dodge, Iowa and both

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origin ...

and

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

in May 2018 and continues to bid on other essential air service routes proposing to use the Beechcraft 1900. Effective February 1, 2019, the 3-letter ICAO prefix changed from WBR to ACO. In March 2019, the airline started utilizing InteliSys' reservation system. This system provides

Passenger Service System A passenger service system (PSS) is a series of critical systems used by airlines. The PSS usually comprises an airline reservations system, an airline inventory system and a departure control system (DCS). Modules Generally the PSS is made u ...

(PSS) and departure control systems (DCS), reservation management, codeshare, interline and real-time inventory control. Air Choice One began a new frequent flyer program in early 2020 named Choice Plus. Customers can earn points from flying and redeem them on future flights. The airline does not participate in any significant global

airline alliance An airline alliance is an aviation industry arrangement between two or more airlines agreeing to cooperate on a substantial level. Alliances may provide marketing branding to facilitate travelers making inter-airline codeshare connections within c ...

s, nor does it have any

codeshare agreement A codeshare agreement, also known simply as codeshare, is a business arrangement, common in the aviation industry, in which two or more airlines publish and market the same flight under their own airline designator and flight number (the "airli ...

s. Also, in early 2020, the airline added the ability for web check-in and mobile compatibility for passengers. Air Choice One has flown cargo seasonally during peak season for

United Parcel Service United Parcel Service (UPS, stylized as ups) is an American multinational shipping & receiving and supply chain management company founded in 1907. Originally known as the American Messenger Company specializing in telegraphs, UPS has grown t ...

from

Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport is a commercial airport west of downtown Wichita, Kansas, United States. It is the largest and busiest airport in the state of Kansas. Located south of US-54 in southwest Wichita, it covers 3,24 ...

, Raleigh–Durham International Airport and Manchester-Boston Regional Airport. In March 2021, Air Choice One fully integrated TSA PreCheck into their customer booking experience, allowing passengers to use a Known Traveler Number (KTN) for expedited and simplified security screening. In August 2021, the Burlington airport board voted to recommend

Cape Air Hyannis Air Service Inc., operating as Cape Air, is an airline headquartered at Barnstable Municipal Airport in Hyannis, Massachusetts, United States. It operates scheduled passenger services in the Northeast, the Caribbean, Midwest, and Eas ...

to take over the EAS contract for Burlington, IA. In September 2021 the Jonesboro airport board voted to recommend to keep Air Choice One in JBR with the possibility of two destinations,

as well as adding

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and th ...

service. In December 2021 the DOT granted a four year contract extension and approved the new Nashville service which started March 1, 2022. On March 28, 2022, it was announced that Air Choice One would be bought by the Southern Airways Corporation, the parent company of

Southern Airways Express Southern Airways Express is a commuter airline operating across the United States with headquarters in Palm Beach, Florida. Southern Airways acts as a local service airline for dozens of cities across all U.S. time zones, Approximately a third o ...

. It was initially planned that the two air operator certificates would be kept separate. On July 2, 2022, Southern Airways Corporation closed the Air Choice One website and decided to discontinue the Air Choice One service, bringing the company's aircraft and operations to the SAC operator certificate. All remaining flights were transferred to the Southern Airways Express brand.

Destinations

Former Destinations

Fleet

Prior to closure, Air Choice One operated the following aircraft:

Choice Plus

Air Choice One had a frequent flyer program called Choice Plus. Customers that sign up for the program could earn points on every Air Choice One flight when they enter their rewards number. Depending on the fare chosen, a different percentage of points would be applied. * Business Fare - 100% * Everyday - 60% For every dollar spent, one point is earned. These points would expire after two years.

References

External links

*
Multi-Aero, Inc.
{{Airlines of the United States, state=collapsed Airlines established in 1979 Airlines disestablished in 2022 Defunct regional airlines of the United States Companies based in St. Louis County, Missouri American companies established in 1979 American companies disestablished in 2022 1979 establishments in Missouri 2022 disestablishments in Missouri Airlines based in Missouri