Hughes Airwest
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| Founded | 1968 (as AirWest) | ||||||
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| Commenced operations | 1970 (Hughes Airwest) | ||||||
| Ceased operations | October 1, 1980 (acquired by Republic) |
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| Fleet size | 48 | ||||||
| Destinations | 56 | ||||||
| Company slogan | Top Banana in the West | ||||||
| Headquarters |
San Francisco Int'l Airport San Mateo County, California, U.S. |
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| Key people |
Howard Hughes (Owner) Russell V. Stephenson (President) |
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Hughes Airwest (IATA: RW, ICAO: -, Call sign: Hughes-Air) was an airline in the western United States, backed by the Summa Corporation of Howard Hughes. The original name for the airline was Air West. Hughes Airwest flew routes in the western U.S. and to a few cities in Mexico and Canada; it was purchased by Republic Airlines on October 1, 1980. Its headquarters were on the grounds of San Francisco International Airport in unincorporated San Mateo County, California.
On April 17, 1968 three "local service" airlines in the western U.S. merged to form Air West:
The initial Air West fleet included Boeing 727-100s, Douglas DC-9s, Fairchild F-27s, and Piper Navajos. The first new addition to the Air West fleet was a McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30 which had been ordered by Bonanza Air Lines. Hughes Airwest became an all-jet airline in 1979 with Boeing 727-200s and DC-9s and was then acquired by and merged into Republic Airlines (1979–1986) in 1980.
Hungry for another adventure in the airline industry, TWA's former owner Howard Hughes sought the airline in 1968, and the deal was finalized in 1970. The airline was renamed Hughes Air West and its call sign became "Hughes Air." It expanded to several cities in the western United States, Canada and Mexico. With the new yellow paint scheme, unveiled 28 September 1971, the airline began calling itself Hughes Airwest, two words instead of the initial three word name.
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