PSA logo from the 1980s

Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) (IATA: PS, ICAO: PSA, and Callsign: PSA) was an airline headquartered in San Diego, California. It is one of the four heritage airlines that form US Airways, the other airlines being America West Airlines, Piedmont Airlines and Allegheny Airlines. Allegheny Airlines begun the process of merging into Piedmont Airlines in 2004. America West and US Airways announced their merger in 2005, while the other mergers occurred in the 1980's. Prior to its merger, PSA was one of the first large discount airlines in the United States and is considered a precursor to Southwest Airlines. Its Boeing customer number was 14. Following the merger with USAir, the PSA name was given to Jetstream International Airlines in order to preserve the PSA name and trademarks. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... IATA airline designators, sometimes called IATA reservation codes, are two-character codes assigned by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to the worlds airlines in accordance with the provisions of Resolution 762. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with ICAO airline code. ... Most airlines employ a distinctive and internationally recognised call sign that is normally spoken during airband radio transmissions as a prefix to the flight number. ... A Boeing 747-400 of Virgin Atlantic Airways An airline provides air transport services for passengers or freight. ... Nickname: Americas Finest City Location of San Diego within San Diego County Coordinates: Country United States State California County San Diego Founded July 16, 1769 Incorporated March 27, 1850 Government  - Mayor Jerry Sanders  - City Attorney Michael Aguirre  - City Council Scott Peters Kevin Faulconer Toni Atkins Tony Young Brian Maienschein... US Airways is an American low-cost airline headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, owned by US Airways Group, Inc. ... America West Airlines (IATA: HP, ICAO: AWE, and Callsign: Cactus), operating as US Airways, is one of the United States ten major airlines. ... Piedmont Airlines Logo Piedmont Airlines began flying in 1948. ... Allegheny Airlines (IATA: AL, ICAO: ALO, and Callsign: Allegheny) was an airline based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. ... Boeing 737-700 of UK low cost carrier easyJet waiting for take off at Bristol A low-cost carrier or low-cost airline (also known as a no-frills or discount carrier / airline) is an airline that offers generally low fares in exchange for eliminating many traditional passenger services. ... Southwest Airlines, Inc. ... The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA, TYO: 7661 ) is an aerospace and defense corporation headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. ... PSA Airlines (IATA: n/a, ICAO: JIA, and Callsign: Blue Streak) is a regional airline based in Dayton, Ohio that flies under US Airways Express for US Airways. ...

History

The airline was founded in 1949 with a leased Douglas DC-3 that flew one weekly round trip from San Diego to Oakland via Burbank. Reservations were initially taken from a World War II surplus latrine refitted as a ticket office. In 1951, PSA crossed the San Francisco Bay and began flying to San Francisco. In 1955, PSA purchased two Douglas DC-4 aircraft from Capital Airlines and painted boxes around the windows to make the planes resemble the more advanced Douglas DC-6. 1949 (MCMXLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1949 calendar). ... The Douglas DC-3 is a fixed-wing, propeller-driven aircraft, which revolutionized air transport in the 1930s and 1940s and is generally regarded as one of the most significant transport aircraft ever made (also see Boeing 707 and Boeing 747). ... Oakland, founded in 1852, is the eighth-largest city in California[1] and the county seat of Alameda County. ... Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... 1951 (MCMLI) was a common year starting on Monday; see its calendar. ... San Francisco Bay, San Pablo Bay, and the Golden Gate San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean. ... FAA diagram of SFO SFO redirects here. ... 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The designation DC-4 was used by Douglas Aircraft Company when developing the DC-4E as a large, four-engined type to complement its forthcoming DC-3 design. ... Capital Airlines was an airline serving the eastern United States which was merged into United Airlines in 1961. ... The Douglas DC-6 is an aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company from 1946 to 1959. ...

During the 1960s, PSA operated Lockheed L-188 Electra aircraft on the San Diego-San Francisco route: these were replaced with Boeing 727-214 and Boeing 737-214s by the end of the decade. In the mid-1970s, PSA briefly operated Lockheed L-1011 aircraft before deeming them unprofitable and selling them. PSA expanded its service to Sacramento, San Jose, Long Beach, and Ontario, California during this period, and by 1980 was operating a hub at Los Angeles International Airport. The Lockheed L-188 Electra first flew in 1957, and was the first turboprop airliner built in the USA. It delivered performance only slightly inferior to that of a full jet aircraft, at a lower operating cost. ... Sun Country 727 The Boeing 727 was, for a very long time, the most popular jet_liner in the world. ... 737 in new Boeing Colors. ... The Lockheed L-1011 TriStar, commonly referred to as just L-1011 (pronounced ell-ten-eleven), was the third widebody passenger jet airliner to enter operation, following the Boeing 747 and the McDonnell Douglas DC-10. ... Nickname: City of Trees Location of Sacramento in California County Sacramento  - Mayor Heather Fargo Area    - City  99. ... Nickname: Capital of Silicon Valley Location of San Jose within Santa Clara County, California. ... Nickname: The International City (on flag), Friendly City (in Latin on citys seal), or the LBC Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates: Country United States State California County Los Angeles County Mayor Bob Foster Area    - City 170. ... Ontario is a city located in San Bernardino County, California. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... Runway layout at LAX LAX redirects here. ...

After airline deregulation, California's major intrastate airlines (PSA, Air California (later rebranded AirCal), Western Airlines and United Airlines) became embroiled in intense airfare wars. PSA attempted to extend its route network beyond California with flights to Reno, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, and Phoenix. The airline also introduced automated ticketing and check-in machines at several major airports, and briefly operated flights to Mexico. When PSA's plan to buy out the assets of Dallas-Ft. Worth-based Braniff International Airways fell flat, the airline expanded its route network north to Washington, Oregon and Idaho. PSA used a new fleet of BAe 146 regional jets to serve smaller airports on the West Coast, such as Eureka, California and Concord, California. President Jimmy Carter signs the Airline Deregulation Act. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Area  Ranked 3rd  - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 km²)  - Width 250 miles (400 km)  - Length 770 miles (1,240 km)  - % water 4. ... Air California, later AirCal, was a regional airline serving different points in the state of California and some neighboring western U.S. states. ... A new restoration of a Convair 240 sports a Western Airlines paint scheme. ... Uniteds logo as seen at United hub Denver International Airport. ... City nickname: The Biggest Little City in the World Founded May 13, 1868 County Washoe County Mayor Bob Cashell Area  - Total  - Land  - Water 179. ... For other uses around the city, see Las Vegas metropolitan area and Las Vegas Strip. ... Salt Lake City redirects here. ... Nickname: Valley of the Sun Location in Maricopa County and the state of Arizona Coordinates: Country United States State Arizona Counties Maricopa Incorporated February 25, 1881  - Mayor Phil Gordon (D) Area    - City  475. ... Nickname: Big D Location in the state of Texas Country United States State Texas Counties Dallas, Collin, Denton, Kaufman, and Rockwall Incorporated 2 February 1856  - Mayor Laura Miller Area    - City  385. ... {{Infobox_Airline | airline=Braniff International Airways| logo=Braniffinternationallogo1960s. ... Official language(s) None Capital Olympia Largest city Seattle Area  Ranked 18th  - Total 71,342 sq mi (184,827 km²)  - Width 240 miles (385 km)  - Length 360 miles (580 km)  - % water 6. ... Official language(s) None Capital Salem Largest city Portland Area  Ranked 9th  - Total 98,466 sq mi (255,026 km²)  - Width 260 miles (420 km)  - Length 360 miles (580 km)  - % water 2. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The BAe 146 (also known as the Avro RJ) is a medium-sized commercial aircraft manufactured by BAE SYSTEMS. It carries its four jet engines on a high wing above the fuselage; not below, or at mid-fuselage, as on most conventional civilian aircraft. ... Motto: Eureka - (I have found it!) Map of California showing the location of Eureka Coordinates: Country United States State California County Humboldt Founded 1850 Incorporated April 18, 1856 (town) Re-incorporated February 19, 1874 (city) Government type Mayor-council  - Mayor Virginia Bass  - City manager David Tyson Area    - City  14. ... Motto: Where Families Come First Location of Concord in California. ...

In 1986, Western and AirCal were purchased by out-of-state airlines (Delta Air Lines and American Airlines respectively). Some believe USAir was actually pursuing AirCal because of fleet commonality — (Boeing 737-300's) — but that American Airlines spoiled the deal and PSA was its second choice. Upon hearing that USAir was interested in AirCal, American Airlines aggressively courted the AirCal Board of Directors. It made more sense for American Airlines to purchase PSA due to fleet commonality, but American Airlines was determined not to concede market share. Therefore, many believe the American/AirCal deal was essentially an attempt to impede USAir's expansion. However, this plan did not work. 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Delta Boeing 757-232 at Los Angeles International Airport in August 2003, showing the livery the airline instituted in 2000. ... American Airlines (AA) is the largest airline in the world in terms of total passengers-miles transported [1] and fleet size[], and the second-largest airline in the world (behind Air France-KLM) in terms of total operating revenues[]. A wholly owned subsidiary of the AMR Corporation, the airline is...

An hour after the AirCal deal was announced, PSA agreed to merge with USAir, which was completed in 1987. PSA's last flight took place on April 8, 1988. The PSA route network slowly disintegrated within USAir and was completely gone by 1994: most of the former airline's assets were scrapped or moved to USAir's hubs on the East Coast. PSA's operations base at San Diego International Airport was gutted and now serves as that airport's commuter terminal. US Airways is an American low-cost airline headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, owned by US Airways Group, Inc. ... 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... April 8 is the 98th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (99th in leap years). ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by United Nations. ... FAA diagram of San Diego International Airport San Diego International Airport (IATA: SAN, ICAO: KSAN, FAA LID: SAN), also known as Lindbergh Field, is located in San Diego, California. ...

In the San Diego Aerospace Museum, there is a display showcasing PSA, the city's hometown airline. San Diego Aerospace Museum is an aviation and space exploration museum in San Diego, California. ...

PSA was one of the sponsors of the original The Dating Game TV show on ABC from 1965-73. The Dating Game was an ABC television show that first aired on December 20, 1965 and was the first of many shows created and packaged by Chuck Barris from the 1960s through the 1980s. ... The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) operates television and radio networks in the United States and is also shown on basic cable in Canada. ...

Following the 2005 merger of US Airways and America West, a US Airways Airbus A319 was repainted in PSA's livery as one of four heritage aircraft commemorating the airlines that merged to form the present-day US Airways. The aircraft was dedicated at San Diego International Airport's commuter terminal on March 30, 2006. 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Airbus A320 is a short-to-medium range commercial passenger aircraft manufactured by Airbus. ... A livery is a uniform worn by a civilian person. ... March 30 is the 89th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (90th in a leap year). ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ...

Corporate Culture

At the time, PSA was known for its sense of humor. Its slogan was "The World's Friendliest Airline," and its recognizable trademark was a smile painted on the nose of each plane and an accompanying ad campaign declaring "Catch Our Smile." After PSA was bought by USAir, ex-PSA mechanics would occasionally paint smiles on USAir planes as a joke.^[1]

During the seventies, PSA was also known for its brightly-colored and extremely short flight attendant uniforms. One PSA flight attendant, Marilyn Tritt, wrote a book about her tenure at the company titled Long Legs and Short Nights (ISBN 0-9649577-0-1). Flight attendant in an Embraer ERJ 145 LR (PBair, Thailand) Stewardess, circa 1949-50, American Overseas, Flagship Denmark, Boeing Stratocruiser In aviation, flight attendants—formerly known as sky girls, air hostesses, stewardesses or stewards—are members of a flight crew employed by airlines to ensure the the safety of the...

Southwest Airlines founder Herb Kelleher studied PSA extensively and used many of the airline's ideas to form the corporate culture at Southwest. Southwest Airlines, Inc. ... Herbert D. Kelleher (born March 12, 1931) is the co-founder, Chairman and former CEO and president of the low-cost airline, Southwest Airlines (based in the United States). ...

Major incidents and accidents

• On September 25, 1978, PSA Flight 182, on a Sacramento-Los Angeles-San Diego route, was on final approach to San Diego's Lindbergh Field when it collided with a Cessna 172 on a training flight. Both planes crashed in the city's North Park section, killing all 128 passengers and 7 crew members aboard the PSA jetliner, both occupants of the Cessna and 7 people on the ground. Nine others on the ground were injured and 22 homes were destroyed or damaged. The accident, with a death toll of 144, was the worst air disaster in San Diego County history as well as the worst California air disaster to date.

• On December 7, 1987, PSA Flight 1771, bound from Los Angeles International Airport to San Francisco International Airport, was cruising above the central California coast when it suddenly entered a high-speed nosedive and crashed on a cattle ranch near the small town of Cayucos. Investigations determined that a disgruntled USAir employee, recently fired for theft, had armed himself and boarded the flight, which was carrying his former supervisor. After writing a suicide note on an air sickness bag, the man shot his ex-supervisor, both pilots and then himself, causing the airplane to crash. All 43 aboard the ill-fated jetliner -- 38 passengers and 5 crew members -- perished.

September 25 is the 268th day of the year (269th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday. ... Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) Flight 182, registration N533PS, was a Boeing 727-214 commercial airliner that collided over San Diego, California with a private Cessna 172 on September 25, 1978. ... Nickname: City of Trees Location of Sacramento in California County Sacramento  - Mayor Heather Fargo Area    - City  99. ... Flag Seal Nickname: City of Angels Location Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates , Government State County California Los Angeles County Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D) Geographical characteristics Area     City 1,290. ... Flag Seal Nickname: Americas Finest City Location Location of San Diego within San Diego County Coordinates , Government County San Diego Mayor City Attorney         City Council District One District Two District Three District Four District Five District Six District Seven District Eight Jerry Sanders (R) Michael Aguirre Scott Peters Kevin... San Diego International Airport, (IATA Airport Code: SAN) also known as Lindbergh International Airport or Lindbergh Field, is located in San Diego, California San Diego International Airport has a primitive design which cannot handle a hub operation. ... Cessna 172RG Cessna 172 instrument panel 1964 Cessna 172E 1965 Cessna F172G 1971 Cessna 172 The early Cessna 172 Skyhawks had no rear window and featured a square fin design, like this 1957 model 1977 Cessna 172M Cessna 172R Panel of C-GLFC The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is a four... San Diego County is a county located on the Pacific Ocean in the far southwest of California, along the border with Mexico. ... December 7 is the 341st day (342nd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 1771 was a commercial flight that crashed near San Luis Obispo, California, on December 7, 1987. ... Runway layout at LAX LAX redirects here. ... FAA diagram of SFO SFO redirects here. ... Cayucos is a beach town in San Luis Obispo County, CA, USA. Approximate population of 3,000. ... US Airways is an American low-cost airline headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, owned by US Airways Group, Inc. ...

References

1. ^ Trinkle, Kevin. Smiles on US Airways. The PSA History Page. Retrieved on 2006-06-05.

For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... June 5 is the 156th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (157th in leap years), with 209 days remaining. ...

External links

• The PSA History Museum - Dedicated to preserving the history of PSA
• Catch Our Smile - Extensive history and images of PSA
• PSA-history.org - History of PSA
• Notable California Aviation Disasters Website listing significant aviation accidents in California