Monarch Airlines (1946–50)
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| Commenced operations | November 27, 1946 | ||||||
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| Ceased operations | June 1, 1950 | ||||||
| Subsidiaries | Challenger Airlines | ||||||
| Fleet size | five Douglas DC-3s | ||||||
| Destinations |
Albuquerque, New Mexico Salt Lake City, Utah Grand Junction, Colorado |
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| Headquarters | Denver, Colorado, United States | ||||||
| Key people | F.W. Bonfils (founder) Hal S. Darr (president) |
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Monarch Airlines was an American airline based in Denver, Colorado, that began its scheduled air service on November 27, 1946, with a flight from Denver to Durango, Colorado, using a Douglas DC-3. It was formed by F.W. Bonfils of The Denver Post family and Ray M. Wilson, who operated a Denver flying school. Other services started to Albuquerque, Salt Lake City and Grand Junction.
Monarch pioneered all-weather operations in its service area by installing its own navigational system. By 1948, the airline was sharing several functions with Challenger Airlines, such as maintenance and sales at Denver. Monarch bought a controlling interest in Challenger in December 1949.
Monarch merged with Arizona Airways and Challenger Airlines on June 1, 1950, to form Frontier Airlines. Monarch's President, Hal S. Darr, became President of the new airline. Ray Wilson became V.P. Operations and Maintenance of the new company and Monarch's Treasurer, C.A. Myhre, became Executive Vice President and later President of Frontier.
Monarch had five DC3s at the merger: NC64421, NC64422, NC64423, NC64424, and NC66610. They became Frontier Sunliners Arizona, New Mexico, Royal Gorge, Mesa Verde and Utah.
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