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Caribair (Puerto Rico)
Encyclopedia
Caribair was a major airline
that flew out of San Juan
, Puerto Rico
. It was the first Puerto Rican airline to use jet aircraft
for their services.
based National Airlines
, which was later revoked by the CAB. The airline's first timetable was published on May 15, 1945.. At the beginning, Caribbean Atlantic Airlines served Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands
.
Caribair's service was popular both with local residents and tourists traveling between Puerto Rico and other Caribbean
. By 1950, the airline's name had officially changed to Caribair and services to the Dominican Republic
were started. Caribair kept growing during the 1950s and into the 1960s, and by 1962, the international airline was serving destinations between San Juan and the Dominican Republic, Guadeloupe
, St. Thomas
and St. Croix and St. Maarten. Domestic destinations included Mayaguez
and Ponce
.
Eastern Airlines wanted a larger presence in Puerto Rico and so it helped finance the opening of the Dorado Beach hotel, in Dorado
. The hotel was close to Dorado's airport
, which was a former military air base that reopened as a civilian airport in the early 1960s, shortly after Lawrence Rockefeller opened his new hotel facility. Caribair began operating some of Eastern's flights on behalf of the Miami based airline company. In order to compete with increased flights from other airlines, Caribair ordered new McDonnell Douglas
DC9 jets, becoming, as aforementioned, the first Puerto Rican airline to offer modern jet service. The DC-9 jets allowed Caribair to expand their route system and the airline soon began services to Miami
, St. Lucia, Caracas, Grenada
, Barbados
, Martinique
, St. Vincent
and Jamaica
. Between 1972-1973 Caribair's offered service to Miami that made stops in Santo Domingo
, Port-au-Prince
, Kingston
and Montego Bay
on the way to Miami and back to San Juan.
In June 1970, a member of the Puerto Rican Air National Guard apparently received a distress call fom both from a Caribair jet and a Pan American World Airways
. Pilots of both flights reportedly claimed to have seen an UFO close to San Juan's Isla Verde International Airport. The FAA released a statement about this incident in 1977.
Early during the 1970s, service was established by Eastern to Atlanta
, Delta Air Lines
' hub airport. With Eastern fighting Delta for market supremacy both in Atlanta and in the South, Eastern felt it was necessary to buy Caribair. The sale was completed by the summer of 1973, by which time Delta had also realized the potential of Puerto Rico as a destination from the South. Delta returned to the Puerto Rican market during the mid-1970s, after decades of absence in the island. Eastern bought Caribair's entire fleet and by 1980, Eastern had an established a hub at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport
. Other local airlines such as Prinair
, Air Puerto Rico and Fina Air
tried to follow in Caribair's footsteps as Puerto Rico's main international airline, but so far, they have been unsuccessful.
In 2002, a Dominican airline, Dominican company Caribair
, began to fly using the Caribair name.
FLEET SUMMARY
REGIST. MODEL S/N ACQUIRED DISPOSED NOTES
DOUGLAS DC-3 FAMILY
N1549V C-47A-DK 13480 09/22/64 W/O SJU 9/22/64;
N16068 DC3A-191 1908 09/25/62 01/12/63 Ship 207; owned
N18940 DC3A-197B 2006 08/17/62 Ship 208; leased
N21787 DC3-313 2186 04/29/46 11/04/68 Ship 200; owned
N25879 DC3A-197C 2176 09/17/62 03/31/63 Ship 210; leased
N28323 DC3-277C 2253 05/31/57 11/04/68 Ship 204; owned
N34970 DC3D 42966 /63 /71 Ship 206; owned
N65389 C-47A-DL 19382 12/53 /67 Ship 201; owned
N74620 C-47-DL 4294 Ship 209; leased
N79044 C-47A-DL 9654 /71 Ship 202; owned
N8011E C-47-DL 4521 06/63 11/04/68 Ship 205; owned
CONVAIR 340 (all owned) / 440 (leased) FAMILY
N3406 340-32 6 04/30/64 05/15/73 NEVER CVTD 640
N3407 340-32 20 07/30/65 05/15/73 CVTD 640 11/18/66(#1)
N3408 340-32 21 07/25/62 01/23/73 CVTD 640 05/17/66 (#5)
W/O SJU 01/23/67;
LEFT WING FOR N3420
N3409 340-32 26 04/12/62 05/15/73 NEVER CVTD 640
N3410 340-32 27 06/01/62 05/15/73 CVTD 640 08/19/66 (#7)
N3411 340-32 31 03/28/62 05/15/73 CVTD 640 06/10/66 (#6)
N3412 340-32 32 09/04/62 05/15/73 CVTD 640 03/22/66 (#3)
N3417 340-32 48 10/30/64 05/15/73 CVTD 640 04/21/66 (#4)
N3420 340-32 64 10/01/65 05/15/73 CVTD 640 01/15/66 (#2)
DMGD SJU 04/25/67;
LEFT WING FROM N3408
N4405 440-75 463 02/08/67 11/11/67 LSD FROM GEN DYN
N45003 440-89 440 02/66 10/66 LSD FROM GEN DYN
The (#_) identifies the sequence of conversion and delivery from CV340 to CV640.
DOUGLAS DC-9 FAMILY (all leased)
N1938R DC-9-31 47098/108 NTU; DEL as N938PR
N1939R DC-9-31 47120/209 NTU; DEL as N939PR
N938PR DC-9-31 47098/108 06/01/67 05/15/73 VARIOUS LEASES
BEFORE OP’D BY CBA
N939PR DC-9-31 47120/209 12/12/67 05/15/73 LSD TO DOMINICANA
08/01/68-11/30/68
N967PR DC-9-31 47121/277 03/23/68 05/15/73 ALWAYS OP’D BY
CCARIBAIR
LEGEND: W/O – WRITTEN OFF CVTD – CONVERTED DMGD – DAMAGED
NTU – NOT TAKEN UP GEN DYN – GENERAL DYNAMICS
Airline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...
that flew out of San Juan
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...
, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
. It was the first Puerto Rican airline to use jet aircraft
Jet aircraft
A jet aircraft is an aircraft propelled by jet engines. Jet aircraft generally fly much faster than propeller-powered aircraft and at higher altitudes – as high as . At these altitudes, jet engines achieve maximum efficiency over long distances. The engines in propeller-powered aircraft...
for their services.
History
The Powelson Line began operating on February 1939 as Caribbean Atlantic Airlines, later as Caribair on July 20, 1948 by authorization of the CAB. A subsidiary of FloridaFlorida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
based National Airlines
National Airlines (NA)
National Airlines was an airline founded in 1934 and was headquartered on the grounds of Miami International Airport in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States near Miami.- History :...
, which was later revoked by the CAB. The airline's first timetable was published on May 15, 1945.. At the beginning, Caribbean Atlantic Airlines served Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands
United States Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands of the United States are a group of islands in the Caribbean that are an insular area of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located in the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles.The U.S...
.
Caribair's service was popular both with local residents and tourists traveling between Puerto Rico and other Caribbean
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
. By 1950, the airline's name had officially changed to Caribair and services to the Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
were started. Caribair kept growing during the 1950s and into the 1960s, and by 1962, the international airline was serving destinations between San Juan and the Dominican Republic, Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe is an archipelago located in the Leeward Islands, in the Lesser Antilles, with a land area of 1,628 square kilometres and a population of 400,000. It is the first overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. As with the other overseas departments, Guadeloupe...
, St. Thomas
Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands
Saint Thomas is an island in the Caribbean Sea and with the islands of Saint John, Saint Croix, and Water Island a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands , an unincorporated territory of the United States. Located on the island is the territorial capital and port of...
and St. Croix and St. Maarten. Domestic destinations included Mayaguez
Mayagüez, Puerto Rico
Mayagüez is the eighth-largest municipality of Puerto Rico. Originally founded as "Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria" it is also known as "La Sultana del Oeste" , "Ciudad de las Aguas Puras" , or "Ciudad del Mangó"...
and Ponce
Ponce, Puerto Rico
Ponce is both a city and a municipality in the southern part of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government.The city of Ponce, the fourth most populated in Puerto Rico, and the most populated outside of the San Juan metropolitan area, is named for Juan Ponce de León y Loayza, the...
.
Eastern Airlines wanted a larger presence in Puerto Rico and so it helped finance the opening of the Dorado Beach hotel, in Dorado
Dorado, Puerto Rico
Dorado is a small tourist town in the northern coast of Puerto Rico, west of San Juan and is located in the northern region of the island, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, north of Toa Alta, east of Vega Alta, and west of Toa Baja. Dorado is spread over five barrios and Dorado Pueblo...
. The hotel was close to Dorado's airport
Dorado Airport
Dorado Airport or Dorado Beach Airport was a small single runway airport in Dorado, Puerto Rico.Clara Livingston, at the time owner of the property, had order the strip to be built, and her friend, Amelia Earhart, may have used the facility as well...
, which was a former military air base that reopened as a civilian airport in the early 1960s, shortly after Lawrence Rockefeller opened his new hotel facility. Caribair began operating some of Eastern's flights on behalf of the Miami based airline company. In order to compete with increased flights from other airlines, Caribair ordered new McDonnell Douglas
McDonnell Douglas
McDonnell Douglas was a major American aerospace manufacturer and defense contractor, producing a number of famous commercial and military aircraft. It formed from a merger of McDonnell Aircraft and Douglas Aircraft in 1967. McDonnell Douglas was based at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport...
DC9 jets, becoming, as aforementioned, the first Puerto Rican airline to offer modern jet service. The DC-9 jets allowed Caribair to expand their route system and the airline soon began services to Miami
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
, St. Lucia, Caracas, Grenada
Grenada
Grenada is an island country and Commonwealth Realm consisting of the island of Grenada and six smaller islands at the southern end of the Grenadines in the southeastern Caribbean Sea...
, Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
, Martinique
Martinique
Martinique is an island in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of . Like Guadeloupe, it is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. To the northwest lies Dominica, to the south St Lucia, and to the southeast Barbados...
, St. Vincent
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is an island country in the Lesser Antilles chain, namely in the southern portion of the Windward Islands, which lie at the southern end of the eastern border of the Caribbean Sea where the latter meets the Atlantic Ocean....
and Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
. Between 1972-1973 Caribair's offered service to Miami that made stops in Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo, known officially as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city in the Dominican Republic. Its metropolitan population was 2,084,852 in 2003, and estimated at 3,294,385 in 2010. The city is located on the Caribbean Sea, at the mouth of the Ozama River...
, Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince is the capital and largest city of the Caribbean nation of Haiti. The city's population was 704,776 as of the 2003 census, and was officially estimated to have reached 897,859 in 2009....
, Kingston
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
and Montego Bay
Montego Bay
Montego Bay is the capital of St. James Parish and the second largest city in Jamaica by area and the fourth by population .It is a tourist destination with duty free shopping, cruise line terminal and the beaches...
on the way to Miami and back to San Juan.
In June 1970, a member of the Puerto Rican Air National Guard apparently received a distress call fom both from a Caribair jet and a Pan American World Airways
Pan American World Airways
Pan American World Airways, commonly known as Pan Am, was the principal and largest international air carrier in the United States from 1927 until its collapse on December 4, 1991...
. Pilots of both flights reportedly claimed to have seen an UFO close to San Juan's Isla Verde International Airport. The FAA released a statement about this incident in 1977.
Early during the 1970s, service was established by Eastern to Atlanta
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
, Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc. is a major airline based in the United States and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The airline operates an extensive domestic and international network serving all continents except Antarctica. Delta and its subsidiaries operate over 4,000 flights every day...
' hub airport. With Eastern fighting Delta for market supremacy both in Atlanta and in the South, Eastern felt it was necessary to buy Caribair. The sale was completed by the summer of 1973, by which time Delta had also realized the potential of Puerto Rico as a destination from the South. Delta returned to the Puerto Rican market during the mid-1970s, after decades of absence in the island. Eastern bought Caribair's entire fleet and by 1980, Eastern had an established a hub at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport
Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport
Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport is a joint civil-military public airport located in Carolina, Puerto Rico, three miles southeast of San Juan. Over 4 million passengers board a plane at the airport per year according to FAA reports . It is owned and managed by the Puerto Rico Ports...
. Other local airlines such as Prinair
Prinair
Prinair was a Puerto Rican airline. It was Puerto Rico's domestic and international flag carrier airline for almost two decades.- History :Services began in 1966, under the name Aerolíneas de Ponce , with Aero Commanders...
, Air Puerto Rico and Fina Air
Fina Air
Fina Air was an airline based in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It operated charter flights to the Dominican Republic from Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Rafael Hernández Airport in Aguadilla and Eugenio María de Hostos Airport in Mayagüez. The airline has now ceased...
tried to follow in Caribair's footsteps as Puerto Rico's main international airline, but so far, they have been unsuccessful.
In 2002, a Dominican airline, Dominican company Caribair
Caribair
Caribair is an airline based in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. It operated scheduled services within the Dominican Republic and to Haiti, as well as charter flights and air taxi services throughout the Caribbean. Its main base was La Isabela International Airport, Santo Domingo.- History...
, began to fly using the Caribair name.
Historical Fleet
- Douglas DC-3Douglas DC-3The Douglas DC-3 is an American fixed-wing propeller-driven aircraft whose speed and range revolutionized air transport in the 1930s and 1940s. Its lasting impact on the airline industry and World War II makes it one of the most significant transport aircraft ever made...
(11 aircraft) - [Douglas DC-9|Douglas DC-9-31] (3 aircraft)
- [Convair CV-340 converted to CV-640] (7 aircraft)
- [Convair CV-340] (9 aircraft)
- [Convair CV-440] Leased (2 aircraft)
- [Lockheed Model 50] Leased (2 aircraft)
- [Stinson SM-6000-A/B] (5 aircraft)
FLEET SUMMARY
REGIST. MODEL S/N ACQUIRED DISPOSED NOTES
DOUGLAS DC-3 FAMILY
N1549V C-47A-DK 13480 09/22/64 W/O SJU 9/22/64;
N16068 DC3A-191 1908 09/25/62 01/12/63 Ship 207; owned
N18940 DC3A-197B 2006 08/17/62 Ship 208; leased
N21787 DC3-313 2186 04/29/46 11/04/68 Ship 200; owned
N25879 DC3A-197C 2176 09/17/62 03/31/63 Ship 210; leased
N28323 DC3-277C 2253 05/31/57 11/04/68 Ship 204; owned
N34970 DC3D 42966 /63 /71 Ship 206; owned
N65389 C-47A-DL 19382 12/53 /67 Ship 201; owned
N74620 C-47-DL 4294 Ship 209; leased
N79044 C-47A-DL 9654 /71 Ship 202; owned
N8011E C-47-DL 4521 06/63 11/04/68 Ship 205; owned
CONVAIR 340 (all owned) / 440 (leased) FAMILY
N3406 340-32 6 04/30/64 05/15/73 NEVER CVTD 640
N3407 340-32 20 07/30/65 05/15/73 CVTD 640 11/18/66(#1)
N3408 340-32 21 07/25/62 01/23/73 CVTD 640 05/17/66 (#5)
W/O SJU 01/23/67;
LEFT WING FOR N3420
N3409 340-32 26 04/12/62 05/15/73 NEVER CVTD 640
N3410 340-32 27 06/01/62 05/15/73 CVTD 640 08/19/66 (#7)
N3411 340-32 31 03/28/62 05/15/73 CVTD 640 06/10/66 (#6)
N3412 340-32 32 09/04/62 05/15/73 CVTD 640 03/22/66 (#3)
N3417 340-32 48 10/30/64 05/15/73 CVTD 640 04/21/66 (#4)
N3420 340-32 64 10/01/65 05/15/73 CVTD 640 01/15/66 (#2)
DMGD SJU 04/25/67;
LEFT WING FROM N3408
N4405 440-75 463 02/08/67 11/11/67 LSD FROM GEN DYN
N45003 440-89 440 02/66 10/66 LSD FROM GEN DYN
The (#_) identifies the sequence of conversion and delivery from CV340 to CV640.
DOUGLAS DC-9 FAMILY (all leased)
N1938R DC-9-31 47098/108 NTU; DEL as N938PR
N1939R DC-9-31 47120/209 NTU; DEL as N939PR
N938PR DC-9-31 47098/108 06/01/67 05/15/73 VARIOUS LEASES
BEFORE OP’D BY CBA
N939PR DC-9-31 47120/209 12/12/67 05/15/73 LSD TO DOMINICANA
08/01/68-11/30/68
N967PR DC-9-31 47121/277 03/23/68 05/15/73 ALWAYS OP’D BY
CCARIBAIR
LEGEND: W/O – WRITTEN OFF CVTD – CONVERTED DMGD – DAMAGED
NTU – NOT TAKEN UP GEN DYN – GENERAL DYNAMICS