Great Plains Airlines
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| Founded | 2001 | ||||||
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| Ceased operations | 2004 | ||||||
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| Fleet size | 5 | ||||||
| Destinations | 11 | ||||||
| Headquarters | Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States | ||||||
Great Plains Airlines was a regional airline headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States. The airline was founded in 2001 with a mix of tax credits and government loans totaling $27 million and expanded rapidly, filing with the Air Transportation Stabilization Board for a guarantee of $17 million from a $25 million loan, though this was rejected, as the Board deemed the airline's business plan to be too risky. The airline filed for bankruptcy and ceased operations in 2004 after attempts to secure additional financing and investments were unsuccessful. After it ceased operations, all five of the company's aircraft were repossessed by creditors and all other property belonging to the airline was auctioned off.
The airline's foundation was based upon giving Oklahoma City and Tulsa travelers quality and affordable non-stop service to a number of destinations, ultimately with flights to underserved heavily-traveled business destinations on the east and west coasts.
To assist in starting the airline, the operating certificate was purchased from Ozark Airlines, an airline not related to the original Ozark Airlines, but a small airline operating Dornier 328JETs. The airline also took over operation of Ozark's two aircraft, and later expanded the fleet to five aircraft including a Dornier 328 turbo-prop by the time of the airline's closure.
In 2002 Great Plains joined with commuter airline Rio Grande Air to provide a feeder network from Albuquerque to the smaller New Mexico cities of Alamogordo and Taos as well as to Durango, Colorado. Rio Grande Air adopted Great Plains "ZO" code on their flights.
The airline had several signature items, including Krispy Kreme donuts and Arby's sandwiches served on board.
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