Aerodynamics Inc., also known as ADI, was an American charter

airline An airline is a company that provides civil aviation, air transport services for traveling passengers or freight (cargo). Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or Airline alliance, alliances with other airlines ...

that began offering scheduled services subsidized by 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, maintain commercial service. Its aim is ...

program in 2016 under a codeshare agreement with Great Lakes Airlines. It was purchased in 2018 by California Pacific Airlines, when the airline officially shut down.

Corporate history

The airline was based in

Kennesaw, Georgia Kennesaw is a suburban city northwest of Atlanta in Cobb County, Georgia, United States, located within the greater Atlanta metropolitan area. Known from its original settlement in the 1830s until 1887 as Big Shanty, it became Kennesaw under i ...

and the airline's website claims it was founded in 1959. The airline 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, w ...

bankruptcy re-organization in August 2013. The company had also owned a large contract maintenance operation at Oakland County International Airport which was shut down in 2012. Business Aircraft Group, Inc.'s CEO M.L. (Mike) Hoyle provided the DIP financing along with establishing a new company who performed the "stalking horse" duties to bring ADI out of bankruptcy. Hoyle held the position of Chairman for 12 months following ADI's emergence from bankruptcy before divesting his interest in ADI. In 2015 the airline was purchased from its former owner Scott Beale by John and Janet Beardsley. The Beardsleys also owned

SeaPort Airlines SeaPort Airlines is an American airline with daily commuter flights between Portland, Oregon, and Seattle. The airline, which is a sister company of regional airline Alaska Seaplanes, is a division of Kalinin Holdings, Inc., a closely held famil ...

which filed for bankruptcy in February 2016. Seaport was later shut down and liquidated that September. At the end of 2017 Aerodynamics was purchased by California Pacific Airlines, a startup regional carrier based in

Carlsbad, California Carlsbad is a beach city in the North County area of San Diego County, California, United States. The city is north of downtown San Diego and south of downtown Los Angeles. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of ...

in North San Diego County. The purchase included Aerodynamics' fleet of four planes and its contract serving Pierre and Watertown.

Scheduled air service

The airline first applied and was selected to operate subsidized

flights to Kearney, Nebraska; Scottsbluff, Nebraska; and

Pierre, South Dakota Pierre ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of South Dakota and the county seat of Hughes County. As of the 2020 census, its population was 14,091. Pierre is the eleventh-most populous city of South Dakota, and the second-least populo ...

in 2015. Later 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 a ...

blocked its authority to operate those flights because of concerns over owner-operator Scott Beale's fitness to operate the airline and his history of defrauding suppliers. This ultimately triggered the purchase of the company by the Beardsleys and the DOT later restored the airline's operating authority. The airline operated its first scheduled flight between Youngstown–Warren Regional Airport in

Youngstown, Ohio Youngstown is a city in Mahoning County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Ohio, 11th-most populous city in Ohio with a population of 60,068 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Mahoning ...

and

O'Hare International Airport Chicago O'Hare International Airport is the primary international airport serving Chicago, Illinois, United States, located on the city's Northwest Side, approximately northwest of the Chicago Loop, Loop business district. The airport is ope ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

on July 1, 2016. The flights were operated under a codeshare with Great Lakes Airlines as Great Lakes Jet Express, with ADI expecting that this arrangement would allow them to take advantage of Great Lakes' interline agreement with

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois that operates an extensive domestic and international route network across the United States and six ...

for connections in Chicago. However, United refused to honor that agreement as Great Lakes did not at that time offer any flights of their own to Chicago. The service ceased abruptly on August 17 of the same year, less than two months after it started. The airline began Essential Air Service flights from

Denver International Airport Denver International Airport , often referred to by locals 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 , Effective Ju ...

to Pierre Regional Airport with onward continuing service to Watertown Regional Airport (in Watertown, South Dakota) on August 15, 2016. These flights were also operated under the Great Lakes Jet Express branding, but in this case the interline agreement was honored by United, as the flights were handled and dispatched like regular Great Lakes flights; Denver is Great Lakes' largest hub. In 2017 the airline bid for EAS flying under the name "SkyValue Airlines." On March 26, 2018, Great Lakes Airlines announced that operations would be suspended effective at midnight. However, certain segments of the company continue to operate, including Great Lakes Jet Express flights to Pierre and Watertown in South Dakota. Ground employees handling ADI's flights became employees of ADI, although Great Lakes continued handling ADI's ticketing for a time. On May 29, 2018, ADI was purchased by California Pacific Airlines. For a few months it did business as California Pacific on the Pierre/Watertown route, as well as California Pacific's intended markets out of McClellan–Palomar Airport. However, in December 2018 CPA suspended its West Coast operations, and in January 2019 its EAS operations were abruptly shut down as well, leaving Pierre (the capital of South Dakota) and Watertown without any scheduled commercial air service.

Fleet

Aerodynamics, Inc. operated a fleet of Embraer ERJ-145 regional jet aircraft with 50 seats.https://www.planelogger.com/Airline/Fleet/Aerodynamics_Inc_(ADI)/214232 AERODYNAMICS INC (ADI) - FLEET

Destinations

ADI operated scheduled flights to the following destinations :

References

External links