US Airways Shuttle was the
brand name
A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's goods or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create and ...
for
US Airways
US Airways was a major airline in the United States. It was originally founded in History of aviation in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh as a mail delivery airline called All American Aviation, which soon became a commercial passenger airline. In 1953, it ...
' hourly
air shuttle
An air shuttle is a scheduled airline service on short routes with a simplified fare and class structure. No exact definition exists, but the frequency is usually an hour or less and travel time is typically an hour or less. Network airlines may ...
service operating in the
Northeastern United States
The Northeastern United States (also referred to as the Northeast, the East Coast, or the American Northeast) is List of regions of the United States, census regions United States Census Bureau. Located on the East Coast of the United States, ...
. It served
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 ...
in
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 ...
,
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 ...
in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
, and
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is a public airport in Arlington County, Virginia, United States, from Washington, D.C. The closest airport to the nation's capital, it is one of two airports owned by the federal government and ope ...
in
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
The shuttle had various food and beverage offerings that included:
*
Breakfast
Breakfast is the first meal of the day usually eaten in the morning. The word in English refers to breaking the fasting period of the previous night. Various "typical" or "traditional" breakfast menus exist, with food choices varying by regi ...
snack
A snack is a small portion of Human food, food generally Eating, eaten between meals. Snacks come in a variety of forms including Food packaging, packaged snack foods and other processed foods, as well as items made from fresh ingredients at ho ...
served on morning flights before 9 a.m. on
business day
A business day normally means any day except a legal holiday. It may also mean a business day of operation, any of the days an organization operates. It depends on the local workweek which is dictated by local customs, religions, and business ...
s
* Complimentary
soft drink
A soft drink (see #Terminology, § Terminology for other names) is a class of non-alcoholic drink, usually (but not necessarily) Carbonated water, carbonated, and typically including added Sweetness, sweetener. Flavors used to be Natural flav ...
s,
juice
Juice is a drink made from the extraction or Cold-pressed juice, pressing of the natural liquid contained in fruit and vegetables. It can also refer to liquids that are flavored with concentrate or other biological food sources, such as meat ...
s,
coffee
Coffee is a beverage brewed from roasted, ground coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content, but decaffeinated coffee is also commercially a ...
and
tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of south-western China and nor ...
* Complimentary
beer
Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the ...
and
wine
Wine is an alcoholic drink made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented fruit. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made f ...
after 10 a.m.
First class service was available on all Shuttle flights. Complimentary
spirits
Spirit(s) commonly refers to:
* Liquor, a distilled alcoholic drink
* Spirit (animating force), the non-corporeal essence of living things
* Spirit (supernatural entity), an incorporeal or immaterial being
Spirit(s) may also refer to:
Liquids ...
were offered in addition to the economy offerings.
On October 17, 2015, the shuttle service became known as
American Airlines Shuttle.
History
The US Airways Shuttle was the descendant of the
Eastern Air Lines Shuttle
Eastern Air Lines Shuttle (or Eastern Air Shuttle) was the brand name of Eastern's air shuttle that began on April 30, 1961. The shuttle originally flew between New York City, Boston, Washington, and Newark. The shuttle became part of the fab ...
, which established service on the route in 1961. Real estate mogul and future (later 45th and 47th) US President
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
purchased the shuttle from
Eastern Air Lines
Eastern Air Lines (also colloquially known as Eastern) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1926 to 1991. Before its dissolution, it was headquartered at Miami International Airport in an unincorporated area of Miami-Dade ...
in 1989, during a time when Eastern was being dismantled by
Texas Air Corporation
Texas Air Corporation, also known as Texas Air, was an airline holding company in the United States, incorporated in June 1980 by airline investor Frank Lorenzo to hold and invest in airlines. The company had its headquarters in the America T ...
. The service was briefly operated as the
Trump Shuttle
Trump Shuttle, Inc. was an airline owned by Donald Trump from 1989 to 1992. The landing rights and some of the physical assets necessary to operate the shuttle flights were originally part of Eastern Air Lines and known as the Eastern Air Line ...
from June 7, 1989, until the company defaulted on loans in September 1990. After the Trump venture failed, ownership passed to a syndicate of 22 lenders to the venture, led by
Citigroup
Citigroup Inc. or Citi (Style (visual arts), stylized as citi) is an American multinational investment banking, investment bank and financial services company based in New York City. The company was formed in 1998 by the merger of Citicorp, t ...
.
Unable to sell the operation outright to
Northwest Airlines
Northwest Airlines (often abbreviated as NWA) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1926 until it Delta Air Lines–Northwest Airlines merger, merged with Delta Air Lines in 2010. The merger made Delta the largest airline ...
,
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is a major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, and is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the ...
, or
USAir Group, the banks negotiated a complex marketing arrangement in which USAir Group would assume 40% ownership of Shuttle, Inc. and would manage the operation for ten years, including selling tickets, keeping financial records, advertising and marketing, aircraft maintenance, and labor relations. On April 7, 1992, Trump Shuttle ceased to exist when it was merged into a new corporation, Shuttle, Inc., which began operating as the USAir Shuttle on April 12.
The Shuttle, Inc. agreement gave USAir an option to purchase the entire shuttle operation on or after October 10, 1996, with an exclusive right to do so until April 10, 1997. USAir Group subsequently announced its intent to exercise its right to purchase the remaining 60% of Shuttle, Inc. on November 19, 1997, but "continued to operate the US Airways Shuttle separately from the rest of the airline. Employees of the Shuttle also operated on a separate seniority list, since the company operated as a wholly-owned subsidiary of US Airways Group".
Shuttle Inc. remained as a subsidiary of
US Airways Group
US Airways Group Inc. was an airline holding company based in Tempe, Arizona. US Airways Group operated US Airways, along with its subsidiaries PSA Airlines, Inc. and Piedmont Airlines, Inc., which are wholly owned but marketed under the bran ...
until July 1, 2000, when "the US Airways Shuttle merged into the
mainline operation of US Airways."
US Airways Group
US Airways Group Inc. was an airline holding company based in Tempe, Arizona. US Airways Group operated US Airways, along with its subsidiaries PSA Airlines, Inc. and Piedmont Airlines, Inc., which are wholly owned but marketed under the bran ...
, as the USAir Group is now known due to the merger with
America West Airlines
America West Airlines was an airline in the United States that operated from 1981 until it merged with US Airways in 2007. It was headquartered in Tempe, Arizona. Its main hub was at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, with secondary hubs ...
, repainted their aircraft to remove the "Shuttle" part from the name. As an "airline with an airline," and a subsidiary and operating division of the USAir Group, the US Airways Shuttle no longer exists.
However, the Northeast service of frequent shuttle flights and strategic marketing by way of the New "merged" US Airways under the US Airways Group, did continue to operate without being considered a separate division or subsidiary airline. During this time, US Airways Shuttle briefly expanded service to
Dulles International Airport
Washington Dulles International Airport ( ) – commonly known by its former name of Dulles International Airport, by its airport code of IAD, or simply as Dulles Airport – is an international airport in the Eastern United States, located w ...
, near Washington DC, in addition to service to Washington's Reagan Airport. This service ended soon after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
All planes on the shuttle routes had a single-class configuration until 2004 when first-class seats were added.
Fleet
Passenger
The US Airways Shuttle was operated by American Airlines utilizing its
Airbus A319
The Airbus A319 is a member of the Airbus A320 family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger twin-engine jet airliners manufactured by Airbus. The A319 carries 124 to 156 passengers and has a maximum range of . Final ass ...
and
Embraer 190
The Embraer E-Jet family is a series of four-abreast, narrow-body, short- to medium-range, twin-engined jet airliners designed and produced by Brazilian aerospace manufacturer Embraer.
The E-Jet was designed to complement Embraer’s earlier ...
aircraft.
Retired
*
Airbus A320-200
The Airbus A320 family is a series of narrow-body airliners developed and produced by Airbus.
The A320 was launched in March 1984, Maiden flight, first flew on 22 February 1987, and was introduced in April 1988 by Air France.
The first membe ...
*
Boeing 727-200
The Boeing 727 is an American narrow-body airliner that was developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes.
After the heavier 707 quad-jet was introduced in 1958, Boeing addressed the demand for shorter flight lengths from smaller airp ...
*
Boeing 737-300
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 Febru ...
*
McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30
The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is an American five-abreast, single-aisle aircraft designed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. It was initially produced as the Douglas DC-9 prior to August 1967, after which point the company had merged with McDonnell A ...
[ ]
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
{{DEFAULTSORT:Us Airways Shuttle
Airlines established in 1992
Airlines disestablished in 2015
US Airways Group
Defunct airlines of the United States
Former Star Alliance affiliate members
Airline shuttles