It’s been a while since I wrote about Eastern Airlines, which I believe to be the world’s most unique “real” carrier. The carrier is headquartered in the United States and has over a dozen wide-body aircraft, but it uses them infrequently. However, the carrier is still operational…
What is Eastern Airlines?
Perhaps some context would be helpful. First and foremost, the name’s past should be acknowledged. Eastern was a significant carrier (one of the “big four” at the time) that went out of business in 1991.
The rights to the Eastern brand were bought in 2015, but the airline fell out of business within a few years. Finally, in 2018, Dynamic International Airways (mainly a charter operator) acquired the rights to the Eastern brand, and that is what Eastern is today.
For those who are unfamiliar with the present version of Eastern, the airline operates a fleet of over a dozen used Boeing 767s and 777s. The airline says the following is its mission:
“Our mission is to restore the sense of awe and wonder to air travel by providing direct, nonstop flights at the best value to underserved markets around the world.”
In principle, the airline mainly serves paths between the United States and Latin America; the routemap from Eastern’s website is shown below.
Eastern Airlines’ routemap (sort of)While I can respect the idea of running flights in neglected areas in principle, the airline hasn’t done much of it in practice. We’ve seen Eastern frequently declare lines only to abandon them before they debut in recent years:
- The carrier was scheduled to start weekly trips from Chicago to Sarajevo, but that never occurred.
- The carrier was meant to start three times weekly trips from New York to San Diego, but this never occurred.
- The carrier was meant to start twice-weekly trips from New York to Jinan via Anchorage, but that never occurred.
- The carrier was meant to start twice-weekly trips from New York to Los Cabos, but that never occurred.
That is only a tiny sample of the aircraft that Eastern planned to run but did not complete.
Am I the only one confused by Eastern?
What is the present condition of Eastern Airlines, given the foregoing history? For some reason, I remembered the carrier this morning and went to their website.
At the time, Eastern’s only path available for purchase is a once-monthly flight from New York (JFK) to Guayaquil (GYE). Yes, once a month. That’s all. There are no other options. The airline operates 15 wide-body aircraft and one weekly flight. Hmmm…
In terms of Eastern’s inventory of 15 aircraft, how much flight have they done? Only three of those aircraft have made any trips in the last few months:
- Eastern purchased five Boeing 777s in late 2020, but has yet to fly a single trip with any of them.
- Only three Boeing 767s with the registry numbers N700KW, N703KW, and N705KW have flown in recent months.
- Almost all of these aircraft appear to be military excursions, with itineraries such as Guam to Anchorage, El Paso to Camp Springs, Kuwait City to Portsmouth (via Shannon), and so on.
Is anyone interested in taking a look at what’s going on here? I mean, this is a legitimate company with legitimate aircraft. This is not a flight operated by Global Ghana Airlines. Despite having a large inventory for several years, the airline has been unable to reliably and frequently run planned trips.
Rather, the airline appears to have some haphazard contracts while keeping a significantly underused inventory. Without more connectedness, I don’t think Eastern’s point-to-point economic strategy makes sense.
There is also a sizable market for charter carriers and wet lease arrangements, which the airline would be much better off pursing. Even so, the carrier appears to be doing very little business.
While I understand that these aircraft were bought for a portion of the cost of a new plane, this is still real money being spent. Who is paying for this, and how is the company still operating?
Eastern Airlines hasn’t yet flown its Boeing 777sBottom line
Eastern is the strangest “real” carrier I can think of. The US carrier has an inventory of more than a dozen wide-body aircraft, but only three of them have flown in recent months, mainly for (probably) military flights. The carrier is presently offering seats for a once-monthly trip between New York and Guayaquil.
Can anyone make sense of this, and when will the other shoe drop?
Related Questions
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Is Eastern Airways still operating?
Air Kilroe Limited (doing business as Eastern Airways) possesses a Type A Operating Licence from the United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority.
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Eastern Airways.IATA ICAO Callsign T3 EZE EASTFLIGHT Founded 1997 Operating bases East Midlands Aberdeen (begins 30 March 2023) Southampton Newquay Humberside Fleet size 14 -
What airline took over Eastern Airlines?
In 1985, Frank Lorenzo purchased Eastern carriers and transferred many of its assets to his other carriers, including Continental Airlines and Texas Air. Eastern was dissolved in 1991 as a result of ongoing labor conflicts and a debilitating walkout in 1989.
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Why did Eastern Airlines close?
Eastern Airlines (EAL) suspended operations on January 18, 1991. Years of labor unrest, a high debt burden, and an innately shaky north-south route layout all contributed to the demise of what was once one of the biggest carriers in the free world.
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When did Eastern Airlines close?
Eastern Air Lines suspended service in January 1991. This was the end of a great airline, as well as a sorrowful moment for its workers and devoted customers.
Sources:
- https://onemileatatime.com/insights/eastern-airlines/#:~:text=What%20is%20Eastern%20Airlines%3F,and%20ceased%20operations%20in%201991.
