Command Airways
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Command Airways was a United States
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 ...
based at the Dutchess County Airport in Wappinger, New York, just outside
Poughkeepsie Poughkeepsie ( ) is a city within the Town of Poughkeepsie, New York. It is the county seat of Dutchess County, with a 2020 census population of 31,577. Poughkeepsie is in the Hudson River Valley region, midway between the core of the New ...
, which was operational from 1966 to 1988.


History

The airline was founded by Kingsley G. Morse (1931–1993), who was the airline's sole CEO during its entire existence. The company was established as Mid-Hudson Airlines in 1951. At its peak in 1988, Command Airways had 538 employees and 15 aircraft serving 13 airports. In 1984 it began transitioning into operating in affiliation with American Airlines, much like
AmericanConnection AmericanConnection was an American flight connection service brand name for the spoke-hub of U.S. mainline carrier American Airlines, under which regional airline operator Chautauqua Airlines operated feeder flights for American Airlines at ...
did. By maintaining independent management and separate ownership, it continued to do business in its own
colors Color (or colour in Commonwealth English; see spelling differences) is the visual perception based on the electromagnetic spectrum. Though color is not an inherent property of matter, color perception is related to an object's light absorpt ...
as Command Airways, although its fleet was primarily dedicated for American Airlines operations. This permitted Command to gain marketing presence associated only usually with much larger airline carriers. Command was one of the first regional airlines to carry the American Eagle brand when it became a part of the American Eagle system which included repainting their entire fleet under the American Eagle banner. This rebranding process of regional airlines commenced circa 1985 and accelerated when American Airlines
parent company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the Security (finance), securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own Share ...
began purchasing a number of smaller regional carriers after the bankruptcy (December 1987) of one of its affiliate partners named AVAir, which was operating similarly to Command Airways.
AMR Corporation AMR Corporation was an airline holding company based in Fort Worth, Texas, which was the parent company of American Airlines, American Eagle Airlines, AmericanConnection and Executive Airlines. AMR filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy prot ...
the parent company of American Airlines, purchased Command Airways in 1988 and renamed it AMR Eagle/Command Airways. This and other AMR affiliate and subsidiary airlines and
Flagship Airlines Flagship Airlines was an American regional airline headquartered on the grounds of Nashville International Airport in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. History Flagship Airlines traced its origins to Air Virginia, a commuter and regional feede ...
flew under the American Eagle banner before all parties began being referred to more simply as American Eagle in 1991. AMR Eagle/Command Airways was operated separately until all AMR subsidiary regional carriers excluding
Executive Airlines Executive Airlines, Inc. was a Puerto Rican-based regional airline headquartered at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in Carolina, Puerto Rico, the main airport for the United States territory, near the capital of San Juan. The airline w ...
were merged into AMR Simmons Airlines, in late 1998. The new company formed from Simmons Airlines was called
American Eagle Airlines Envoy Air Inc. is an American regional airline headquartered in Irving, Texas, in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of the American Airlines Group and it is paid by fellow group member American Airlines to st ...
(utilizing the former Simmons Airlines two letter
IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA ) is an airline trade association founded in 1945. IATA has been described as a cartel since, in addition to setting technical standards for airlines, IATA also organized tariff conferences tha ...
Code "MQ"). During its existence, Command Airways operated the Beech 99,
de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter The de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter is a Canadian STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) utility aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada in the mid-1960s and still in production today. Built by De Havilland Canada from 1965 to 1988, Viking ...
,
Short 330 The Short 330 (also SD3-30) is a small turboprop transport aircraft produced by Short Brothers. It seats up to 30 people and was relatively inexpensive and had low maintenance costs at the time of its introduction in 1976. The 330 was based on ...
,
Short 360 The Short 360 (also SD3-60; also Shorts 360)Mondey, David. ''Encyclopedia of the World's Commercial and Private Aircraft''. New York: Crescent Books, 1981. , p. 228. is a commuter aircraft that was built by UK manufacturer Short Brothers durin ...
-300 and
ATR-42 The ATR 42 is a regional airliner produced by Franco-Italian manufacturer ATR, with final assembly in Toulouse, France. On 4 November 1981, the aircraft was launched with ATR, as a joint venture between French Aérospatiale (now part of Airbu ...
turboprop
airliner An airliner is a type of airplane for transporting passengers and air cargo. Such aircraft are most often operated by airlines. The modern and most common variant of the airliner is a long, tube shaped, and jet powered aircraft. The largest ...
s. Command was the first U.S. airline to operate both the Short 33

starting in 1976 and the ATR-42 beginning in 1986. Its hub was at the Dutchess County Airport near Poughkeepsie, which CEO Kingsley Morse strongly supported in the 1970s, in preference to Stewart International Airport, Stewart Airport west of Newburgh."Dutchess Airport Boosted in Barnstorming"
''Evening News'', Aug. 30, 1975
Dutchess County Airport no longer has scheduled commercial airline service.


Destinations

*
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
**
Poughkeepsie Poughkeepsie ( ) is a city within the Town of Poughkeepsie, New York. It is the county seat of Dutchess County, with a 2020 census population of 31,577. Poughkeepsie is in the Hudson River Valley region, midway between the core of the New ...
( Dutchess County Airport)* Hub ** Albany (
Albany International Airport Albany International Airport is northwest of Albany, in Albany County, New York, United States. It is owned by the Albany County Airport Authority. ALB covers of land. It is an airport of entry in the town of Colonie. It was built on the ...
) **
Binghamton Binghamton ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier region near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the con ...
( Broome County Airport) **
Ithaca Ithaca most commonly refers to: *Homer's Ithaca, an island featured in Homer's ''Odyssey'' *Ithaca (island), an island in Greece, possibly Homer's Ithaca *Ithaca, New York, a city, and home of Cornell University and Ithaca College Ithaca, Ithaka ...
( Tompkins County Airport) **
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
(
John F. Kennedy International Airport John F. Kennedy International Airport is a major international airport serving New York City and its metropolitan area. JFK Airport is located on the southwestern shore of Long Island, in Queens, New York City, bordering Jamaica Bay. It is ...
) **
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(
LaGuardia Airport LaGuardia Airport ( ) – colloquially known as LaGuardia or simply LGA – is a civil airport in East Elmhurst, Queens, East Elmhurst, Queens, New York City, situated on the North Shore (Long Island), northwestern shore of Long Island, bord ...
) ** White Plains (
Westchester County Airport Westchester County Airport is a county-owned airport in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States, northeast of downtown White Plains, New York, White Plains, with territory in the Town (New Y ...
) *
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**
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
(
Logan International Airport General Edward Lawrence Logan International Airport — also known as Boston Logan International Airport — is an international airport located mostly in East Boston and partially in Winthrop, Massachusetts, United States. Covering , it has ...
) ** Pittsfield ( Pittsfield Municipal Airport)* *
New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
**
Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...
( Lebanon Municipal Airport) *
Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...
** Burlington (
Burlington International Airport Patrick Leahy Burlington International Airport is a joint-use civil-military airport serving Burlington, Vermont's most populous city, and its metropolitan area. Owned by the City of Burlington, the airport itself is located in neighboring ...
) *
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**
Manassas Manassas (), formerly Manassas Junction, is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. The population was 42,772 at the 2020 Census. It is the county seat of Prince William County, although the two are separate jurisdi ...
(
Manassas Regional Airport Manassas Regional Airport , known as Harry P. Davis Field, is southwest of the center of Manassas. Manassas Regional Airport is the largest regional airport in the U.S. state of Virginia. It is located from Washington, D.C. History An airpo ...
)* * ''Those articles marked with an asterisk (*) are no longer served by commercial airline service.''


See also

*
List of defunct airlines of the United States The following is a list of defunct airlines of the United States. However, some of these airlines have ceased operations completely, changed identities and/or FAA certificates and are still operating under a different name (e.g. America West Ai ...


References

* {{US-airline-stub Airlines based in New York (state) Defunct airlines of the United States Defunct companies based in New York (state) Dutchess County, New York Airlines established in 1966 Airlines disestablished in 1988 1966 establishments in New York (state)