Evergreen International Airlines
Encyclopedia
Cargo airline
Cargo airlines are airlines dedicated to the transport of cargo. Some cargo airlines are divisions or subsidiaries of larger passenger airlines.-Logistics:...
based in McMinnville
McMinnville, Oregon
McMinnville is the county seat and largest city of Yamhill County, Oregon, United States. According to Oregon Geographic Names, it was named by its founder, William T. Newby , an early immigrant on the Oregon Trail, for his hometown of McMinnville, Tennessee...
, Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It operates contract freight services, offering charters and scheduled flights, as well as wet lease
Wet lease
Aircraft leases are a number of types of leases used by airlines and other aircraft operators. Airlines lease aircraft from other airlines or leasing companies for two main reasons; to operate aircraft without the financial burden of buying them, and to provide temporary increase in capacity...
services. It operates services for the U.S. military and the United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
, as well as ad hoc charter flights. Its crew base is John F. Kennedy International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport
John F. Kennedy International Airport is an international airport located in the borough of Queens in New York City, about southeast of Lower Manhattan. It is the busiest international air passenger gateway to the United States, handling more international traffic than any other airport in North...
, New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Evergreen maintains a large aircraft maintenance and storage facility at the Pinal Air Park
Pinal Airpark
Pinal Airpark is a county-owned, public-use airport located seven nautical miles northwest of the central business district of Marana, in Pinal County, Arizona, United States....
in Marana, Arizona that the company acquired from the CIA's Air America fleet.
History
The airline was established by Delford Smith (founder and owner) and began operations in 1960 as Evergreen Helicopters. It acquired the operating certificate of Johnson Flying Service and merged it with Intermountain AirlinesIntermountain Airlines
Intermountain Airlines, also known as Intermountain Aviation and Intermountain Airways, was a CIA airline front company. Intermountain performed covert operations for the CIA in Southeast Asia and elsewhere during the Vietnam War era....
from Pacific Corporation
Pacific Corporation
The Pacific Corporation , was a holding company that the Central Intelligence Agency used to control several aviation front companies.Former US Army pilot George Doole created Pacific as a Delaware corporation in 1950...
(a CIA front company) in 1975 to form Evergreen International Airlines
Evergreen International Airlines
Evergreen International Airlines is a cargo airline based in McMinnville, Oregon, USA. It operates contract freight services, offering charters and scheduled flights, as well as wet lease services. It operates services for the U.S. military and the United States Postal Service, as well as ad hoc...
. The holding company, Evergreen International Aviation
Evergreen International Aviation
Evergreen International Aviation, Inc. is a global aviation services company based in McMinnville, Oregon. Founded as Evergreen Helicopters in 1960 by Delford M. Smith, Evergreen is primarily known for commercial helicopter operations in agricultural and forestry applications...
, formed in 1979, wholly owns the airline.
One of Evergreen's Boeing 747
Boeing 747
The Boeing 747 is a wide-body commercial airliner and cargo transport, often referred to by its original nickname, Jumbo Jet, or Queen of the Skies. It is among the world's most recognizable aircraft, and was the first wide-body ever produced...
airplanes (registered N473EV, which suffered an in-flight engine separation in 1993, since repaired, and later scrapped in 2001) starred in the 1990 action film Die Hard 2
Die Hard 2
Die Hard 2 is a 1990 action film and the second in the Die Hard film series. The film was directed by Renny Harlin, and stars Bruce Willis as John McClane...
. Additionally, Evergreen Boeing 727's
Boeing 727
The Boeing 727 is a mid-size, narrow-body, three-engine, T-tailed commercial jet airliner, manufactured by Boeing. The Boeing 727 first flew in 1963, and for over a decade more were built per year than any other jet airliner. When production ended in 1984 a total of 1,832 aircraft had been produced...
were featured in numerous films including Donnie Brasco with Al Pacino
Al Pacino
Alfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
, and The Rookie
The Rookie
The Rookie may refer to:* The Rookie , a comedy film starring Tommy Noonan and Peter Marshall* The Rookie , a buddy cop film starring Clint Eastwood, Charlie Sheen and Raul Julia...
with Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
.
Destinations
Evergreen International Airlines operates the following freight services as of August 2006:- Domestic scheduled destinations: AnchorageAnchorage, AlaskaAnchorage is a unified home rule municipality in the southcentral part of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the northernmost major city in the United States...
, and New YorkNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Chicago, IllChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. - International scheduled destinations: Nagoya, Japan, Hong KongHong KongHong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Shanghai, China.
Fleet
The Evergreen International Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft (as of October 1, 2010):| Aircraft | In Fleet | Orders | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boeing 747-100SF | 2 | 0 | Supertanker 1 stored at VCV |
| Boeing 747-200C | 2 | 0 | |
| Boeing 747-200BSF | 6 | 0 | |
| Boeing 747-200FSCD | 1 | 0 | |
| Boeing 747-400F Boeing 747-400 The Boeing 747-400 is a major development and the best-selling model of the Boeing 747 family of jet airliners. While retaining the four-engine wide-body layout of its predecessors, the 747-400 embodies numerous technological and structural changes to produce a more efficient airframe... |
1 | 0 |
Evergreen previously operated three Boeing 747 LCF
Boeing 747 Large Cargo Freighter
The Boeing 747 Large Cargo Freighter or Dreamlifter is a wide-body cargo aircraft. Cargo is placed in the aircraft by the world's longest cargo loader...
oversized freighters for Boeing
Boeing
The Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...
, but the contract was given to Atlas Air
Atlas Air
Atlas Air, Inc. is an American cargo airline based in Purchase, Harrison, New York. It operates scheduled freight flights on a wet lease basis for some of the world's leading airlines, flying to 101 cities in 46 countries. Its crew bases include: Miami International Airport, New York's John F...
in September 2010. This was due to Boeing's rescheduled delivery of the Boeing 747-8Fs
Boeing 747-8
The Boeing 747-8 is a wide-body jet airliner developed by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Officially announced in 2005, the 747-8 is the fourth-generation Boeing 747 version, with lengthened fuselage, redesigned wings and improved efficiency...
ordered by Atlas Air
Atlas Air
Atlas Air, Inc. is an American cargo airline based in Purchase, Harrison, New York. It operates scheduled freight flights on a wet lease basis for some of the world's leading airlines, flying to 101 cities in 46 countries. Its crew bases include: Miami International Airport, New York's John F...
to increase their current fleet. The "Dreamlifter" is the logistic support aircraft for Boeing's global Boeing 787 Dreamliner production. The company is also scheduled to operate the SOFIA
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
Boeing 747SP
Boeing 747
The Boeing 747 is a wide-body commercial airliner and cargo transport, often referred to by its original nickname, Jumbo Jet, or Queen of the Skies. It is among the world's most recognizable aircraft, and was the first wide-body ever produced...
aircraft for NASA and the German Aerospace Center
German Aerospace Center
The German Aerospace Center is the national centre for aerospace, energy and transportation research of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has multiple locations throughout Germany. Its headquarters are located in Cologne. It is engaged in a wide range of research and development projects in...
(DLR) at NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, CA (in the silicon valley near San Jose
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
).
The airline has modified a Boeing 747-100 for aerial firefighting
Aerial firefighting
Aerial firefighting is the use of aircraft and other aerial resources to combat wildfires. The types of aircraft used include fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters. Smokejumpers and rappellers are also classified as aerial firefighters, delivered to the fire by parachute from a variety of fixed-wing...
, receiving final certification from the FAA in October 2006. Compared to existing large water bombers and airtankers, the Evergreen 'Supertanker' will offer at least seven times more fire retardant
Fire retardant
A fire retardant is a substance other than water that reduces flammability of fuels or delays their combustion. This typically refers to chemical retardants but may also include substances that work by physical action, such as cooling the fuels; examples of these include fire-fighting foams and...
capacity. In December, 2010, Israel hired Evergreen's fire-fighting aircraft to assist in firefighting efforts of the 2010 Mount Carmel forest fire.
In August 2007, Evergreen announced that it had ordered 3 Boeing 747-400BCF
Boeing 747-400
The Boeing 747-400 is a major development and the best-selling model of the Boeing 747 family of jet airliners. While retaining the four-engine wide-body layout of its predecessors, the 747-400 embodies numerous technological and structural changes to produce a more efficient airframe...
to upgrade its commercial operations, with deliveries in summer 2009. In March 2010, the orders have not yet been delivered. It has since been revealed that the airline will be taking an ex-Singapore Airlines
Singapore Airlines
Singapore Airlines Limited is the flag carrier airline of Singapore. Singapore Airlines operates a hub at Changi Airport and has a strong presence in the Southeast Asia, East Asia, South Asia, and "Kangaroo Route" markets...
Boeing 747-400F
Boeing 747-400
The Boeing 747-400 is a major development and the best-selling model of the Boeing 747 family of jet airliners. While retaining the four-engine wide-body layout of its predecessors, the 747-400 embodies numerous technological and structural changes to produce a more efficient airframe...
in April 2010.
Retired fleet
At August 2006, Evergreen International Airlines previously operated the following aircraft:| Aircraft | Total | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Boeing 727-100F | 1 | |
| Boeing 747-100F | 3 | N481EV |
| Douglas DC-9-32CF | 4+ | N931F,N933F,N944F |
| Lockheed P-2 Neptune | 1 | |
| McDonnell Douglas DC-8-33(F) Douglas DC-8 The Douglas DC-8 is a four-engined narrow-body passenger commercial jet airliner, manufactured from 1958 to 1972 by the Douglas Aircraft Company... |
? | N8266U |
| Lockheed L-188A Electra Lockheed L-188 Electra The Lockheed Model 188 Electra is an American turboprop airliner built by Lockheed. First flying in 1957, it was the first large turboprop airliner produced in the United States. Initial sales were good, but after two fatal crashes which prompted an expensive modification program to fix a design... |
? | N7136C |
Incidents and accidents
- March 18, 1989: Flight 17, a DC-9 was on a cargo flight from Kelly Air Force BaseKelly Air Force BaseKelly Field Annex and is a former United States Air Force facility located in San Antonio, Texas. In 2001, the runway and land west of the runway became "Kelly Field Annex" and control of it was transferred to the adjacent Lackland Air Force Base, part of Joint Base San Antonio...
outside San Antonio to Tinker Air Force BaseTinker Air Force BaseTinker Air Force Base is a major U.S. Air Force base, with tenant U.S. Navy and other Department of Defense missions, located in the southeast Oklahoma City, Oklahoma area, directly south of the suburb of Midwest City, Oklahoma.-Overview:...
outside of Oklahoma City, with a stop at Carswell Air Force BaseCarswell Air Force BaseCarswell Air Force Base, was a United States Air Force Strategic Air Command base located about northwest central of Fort Worth, Texas, United States; the air force base is mostly within the Fort Worth city limits and has portions within Westworth and White Settlement...
in Fort Worth. As the plane was departing, the cargo door on the plane opened; the pilot immediately requested emergency return to Carswell. As the plane was approaching on base leg, the cargo door fully opened, which caused the plane to yaw to the left and right, and then roll, until crashing near SaginawSaginaw, TexasSaginaw is a city in Tarrant County, Texas, United States, and a suburb of Fort Worth. The population was 19,806 at the 2010 United States Census. It was named in 1882 by Jarvis J. Green, who had lived and worked on Saginaw Street in Pontiac, Michigan...
in an inverted position. Both pilots on board were killed. The investigation found that when closing the cargo door, the copilot did not close it fully, but since the locked and latched indicators were applied incorrectly, the copilot thought the door was fully locked. - Lee wavesLee wavesIn meteorology, lee waves are atmospheric standing waves. The most common form is mountain waves, which are atmospheric internal gravity waves...
were believed responsible for the in-flight separation of the #2 engine on an Evergreen Boeing 747-100Boeing 747The Boeing 747 is a wide-body commercial airliner and cargo transport, often referred to by its original nickname, Jumbo Jet, or Queen of the Skies. It is among the world's most recognizable aircraft, and was the first wide-body ever produced...
, registration: N473EV, near Anchorage, AlaskaAnchorage, AlaskaAnchorage is a unified home rule municipality in the southcentral part of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the northernmost major city in the United States...
in 1993. The plane was since repaired, then flew until 2001.