Republic Airlines (1979-1986)

Infobox Airline
airline = Republic Airlines


image_size = 150
IATA = RC
ICAO = REP
callsign = Republic
founded = 1 July 1979
commenced =
ceased = 1986
hubs = Detroit
secondary_hubs = Minneapolis-St.Paul
Memphis
focus_cities =
frequent_flyer =
lounge =
alliance =
subsidiaries =
fleet_size = 171
destinations =
parent =
company_slogan =
headquarters =
key_people =
website = Infobox Defunct company
company_name = Republic Airlines
company_
slogan =
company_type =
fate = purchased
Predecessor = North Central Airlines
Southern Airways
successor = Northwest Airlines
foundation = 1 July 1979
defunct =
location = Detroit
industry =
products =
key_people =
num_employees =
parent =
subsid =

Republic Airlines (airline codes|RC|REP|Republic) was an airline formed on 1 July 1979 by the merger of North Central Airlines and Southern Airways.

History

Republic Airlines came to being in 1979 with the merger of North Central Airlines and Southern Airways. The new airline's headquarters was at Minneapolis-Saint Paul and at the time of its formation was the 6th largest airline in the USA. In 1980, following its buyout of Hughes Airwest, Republic became the largest airline in the United States by destinations served. The route network was served with the world's largest Douglas DC-9 fleet and also Boeing 727s. [Airlines Remembered by BI Hengi, Publisher Midland Publishing]

On January 23, 1986, Northwest Airlines, flying since 1947 under the name Northwest Orient, announced that it would purchase Republic for $884 million; the merger was completed on October 1. Republic operated hubs in Minneapolis-St.Paul, Detroit, and Memphis: these airports are now the backbone of Northwest's domestic route network. On the day of the merger, Northwest dropped the "Northwest Orient" brand name and returned to its pre-1947 name, Northwest Airlines.

Despite Northwest's ongoing efforts to remove all remaining presence of any Republic-branded imagery, as of 2007 it is still possible to find a few old Republic logos around Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport and Memphis International Airport if one looks hard enough. (The logos can no longer be seen at Detroit Metropolitan Airport because Northwest's old terminal there has been demolished.)

Historical fleet

*133 - Douglas DC-9-14; Douglas DC-9-15; Douglas DC-9-31; Douglas DC-9-32; Douglas DC-9-51
*22 - Boeing 727-025; Boeing 727-2M7; Boeing 727-2S7; Boeing 727-277
*8 - McDonnell Douglas MD-82
*6 - Boeing 757-2S7
*2 - Convair CV-580

External links

* [http://rzjets.net/operators/operator.php?opid=1066 Fleet and code information]
* [http://www.mnhs.org/library/findaids/00358.html Republic Airlines historical artifacts] - Inventory list of items stored at the Minnesota Historical Society

References