1945 1/15 Charles Hirsig, founder of Summit Airways-beginning of Challenger Airlines, dies at age 34
1945 9/17 Arizona Corp. comm. authorized
1946 3/17 Arizona Airways inaugurates intrastate service
1946 3/28 C.A.B. certificate issued to Ray Wilson, Inc
1946 3/28 C.A.B. certificate issued to Summit Airways
1946 8/21 C.A.B. certificate for Wilson reissued and renamed as Monarch Airlines
1946 11/14 C.A.B. certificate issued to Central Airlines
1946 11/27 Monarch's first scheduled flight DEN COS PUB CNE MVS DRO but unable to land at CNE and DRO due to muddy field conditions,
crew was Capt. Art Ashworth, FO Ray Harvey & Steward Vern Carlson and carried one passenger
1946 11/30 Monarch first flight DEN-DRO
1947 3/21 C.A.B. certficate for Summit reissued and renamed as Challenger Airlines
1947 5/3 Challenger inaugurates service
1947 5/10 Challenger started EMM (Kemmerer, WY) service to DEN & SLC
1947 6/10 Service to WRL starts
1947 6/23 GUP service starts
1947 8/15 GUC service begins
1947 11/9 Service starts at ALS
1948 6/29 C.A.B. certficate issued to Arizona Airways - did not start C.A.B. certified operations
1949 7/1 Service starts at VEL
1949 8/14 CEZ service begins
1949 9/15 Central inaugurates C.A.B. certified service with flight Ft Worth-Dallas-Gainesville-Ardmore-Ada-Shawnee-Oklahoma City
using Beechcraft Bonanzas, CN flights 1 & 2
1950 6/1 Frontier Airlines formed from merger of Monarch Air Lines, Challenger Airlines, and Arizona Airways
1950 7/1 First flight GRI-OMA
1950 9/1 CN replaces Beechcraft Bonanzas with DC-3s
1950 12/1 CN replaces male pursers with female stewardesses
1951 5/6 Arizona founder Rocky Nelson, aged 46, dies in Tucson
1953 6/1 Service to COD starts
1954 9/15 BIS-BIL service begins
1954 12/7 CN starts FYV service
1955 5/1 In May President Eisenhower authorized the issue of permanent certificates to the 13 existing feeder airlines,
changing their designation to "local service carriers."
1957 6/29 CN starts HRO service
1958 3/21 Monarch co-founder Fred Bonfils dies, aged 62, at Denver
1959 3/1 New service: STK-DEN, EAR-DEN, HSI-OMA, HSI-DEN, BIR-OMA, LNK-MKC, IML-DEN, IML-OMA, SNY-DEN, SNY-OMA, STJ-MKC, MKC-STJ, MKC-OMA
1959 4/1 New service: MOT-DEN, RAP-MOT, RAO-AIA, AIA-DEN, AIA-RAP, HSR-AIA, HSR-MOT, BFF-DEN & BFF-RAP
1959 4/12 New service: MOT-BIL
1959 7/1 New service: CNY-DEN, ECS-CPR, ECS-RAP-DIK, GRI-OMA
1959 9/1 New service: BIL-GTF, LWT-SLC, LWT-GTF, GTF-SLC
1959 11/2 New service: HVR-BIS, HVR-GTF, GGW-BIS, GGW-GTF
1960 1/15 FL starts LEM-MOT LEM-CPR LEM-DIK service
1960 11/1 Date approximate, sometime late in 1960 CN signed a contract with AA for 6 CV240s
1961 3/1 CN begins service with CV240s bought from AA
1961 3/13 CN starts PUB-OKC service
1963 Apr. CN & FL presidents Keith Kahle & Lewis Dymond look at a DC-9 model
at the spring convention of the Association of Local Transport Airlines in Fort Worth, TX.
1963 7/10 New service: COS-ABQ, COS-DEN, ALM-ELP, ALM-BIL, SAF-ABQ, SAF-DEN, ELP-BIL
1964 6/1 Convair 580 aircraft introduced on system. CV340/440s converted to turboprops.
1964 6/1 FL stopped using turquoise crescent logo & changed to tan crescent & lowered arrow with arrival of CV580s
1964 8/1 CN announces conversion of 6 CV240s and purchase of 4 more CV240s to also be converted
1965 8/30 CN Board Chairman Jack Bradford and new CN President Lamar Muse along with others took a test flight on a DC-9 on August 30, 1965.
1965 9/19 CN takes delivery of first CV600
1966 6/1 Floyd Ririe is first pilot to retire from FL, he dies over 30 years later!
1966 Aug. President Muse announced that CN would take delivery of two DC-9s in August and September of 1967 - later cancelled due to the FL merger
1966 9/30 Boeing 727-100 service started, 5 odered with options on 5 more, 24F 72Y seating
1966 10/9 New service: HDN-SLC, HDN-DEN
1967 6/1 New service: WYS-DEN
1967 6/13 New service: MKC-STL, STL-GJT
1967 10/1 Central bought and merged into Frontier, new service BZN-SLC, MSO-GTF
1967 6/13 DEN-STL jet service starts
1968 1/5 RKO General buys FL stock (54.9% valued at $6.5M) from Goldfield Corp.
1968 Jan. President's Assistant program started on jet service
1968 2/9 Boeing 727-200s arrive, 5 ordered
1968 3/1 New service: DEN-LAS, LAS-STL
1969 Apr. New FL hangar on Smith Road dedicated, plans announced to purchase Boeing 737-200 aircraft & last DC-3 sold
1969 7/7 Begins using 737 aircraft on its routes
1970 10/25 Service OMA-MDW, OMA-PHX commences
1971 3/1 Beech 99s become part of fleet
1971 Mar. Al Feldman becomes FL President
1971 Apr. Offices at 39th Avenue moved to hangar building on Smith Road
1972 4/13 FL 91 enroute ABQ-PHX hijacked to LAX, hijacker surrendered to Capt. Willy Hurt later that day
1972 8/1 SAF closed due to unsafe runway conditions
1972 10/1 Twin Otter-300s announced to replace Beech 99s
1972 11/10 FL moved from MKC to new MCI airport
1972 12/1 FL moved DEN operations to concourse D
1972 12/8 Twin Otter service starts to SNY AIA CDR BFF
1974 10/28 New service FCA-MSO
1974 10/28 MOT-YWG flights start
1977 9/1 First flight DEN-SMF
1977 11/6 First flight LNK-MDW
1977 9/1 The Sep/Oct FL News announced that a "new look" was coming
1978 4/30 The new Frontier logo is dedicated - it features a sylized "F" icon which was designed by Saul Bass and Associates of Los Angeles
1978 6/1 Service started DEN-GEG
1978 11/3 First flight ELP to GDL & MZT Mexico
1978 12/15 DTW service begins
1979 3/1 Service deleted at HSI EAR MCK & OLU
1979 4/27 SLC-GEG commences
1979 5/1 DFW-SHV flights begin
1979 5/1 RDD service from SMF started
1979 5/11 Monarch co-founder Ray Wilson dies at age 78 in Denver
1979 5/4 First flight, LIT-JAN
1979 5/24 DTW-TOL service begins
1979 6/1 BOI service begins
1979 6/15 HOT service dropped
1979 7/1 New service SLC-EUG
1979 7/16 Start GEG-YVR flights
1979 8/9 FLG dropped from service
1979 9/1 WDG & PNC dropped from service
1979 9/30 Service to SVC & ALM dropped
1979 11/8 BIL-HLN service begins
1979 11/8 Service starts MSO-HLN
1979 11/8 ABQ-ZIH flights commence
1979 11/8 Flights ELP-ZIH get started
1980 2/1 Service to MDW is deleted, service to LEX begins
1980 5/1 DEN-HOU service started and SMF-SCK
1980 6/30 Service to the "highline" is dropped: HVR LWT GGW OLF ISN SDY MLS & GDV
1980 8/1 MLC is dropped from service
1980 11/30 Nebraska stations of CDR SNY & AIA cease operations
1980 12/1 New service, DEN-DSM-LNK, service to JAN is dropped
1980 12/15 LAS-SNA flights begin
1981 3/1 First flight, DEN to RNO
1981 5/1 Service begins to LAX YXE & YQR
1981 5/1 New service: DEN-LAX
1981 6/1 AMA & LBL closed down
1981 7/1 New service: DEN-OAK
1981 8/9 Former FL President Al Feldman dies in Los Angeles at age 53
1981 9/1 GUP service is terminated
1981 9/30 New service: FSD-MSN
1981 10/1 Service dropped at GUP
1981 10/1 First flight DEN-MSN
1981 10/1 DEN-FSD service begins
1981 11/1 DEN-SEA service starts
1981 11/15 Service dropped at LAW
1982 1/31 Drops service to FYV HRO and TBN
1982 3/1 Service dropped at COD WRL and VEL
1982 3/16 ABQ-PVR flights start
1982 4/1 Service dropped at ALS CEZ GUC HDN and PUB
1982 4/30 DEN-SAN service starts
1982 5/31 Last CV580 flight made, FL had flown them since 1964 - 18 years, FL935 OMA-LNK-LBF-BFF-DEN
terminating 7:30pm crewed by Capt. Jerry Hagen, FO Tom Sponsler, FA Marisa Zamora
1982 6/1 DEN-FAT flights begin
1982 11/20 First SAN-PSP flights start
1982 12/15 DEN-IND-CMH begins
1983 1/6 DEN-SGF service commences
1983 3/3 Start up DEN-PDX and BOI-PSC service
1983 3/3 PDX-EUG service starts
1983 6/1 FSD-SUX service begins
1983 9/7 SUX-CID and DSM-CID links added
1983 9/24 CO files chapter 11 bankruptcy and continues to operate
1983 11/18 DEN-MAF-ABI flight begin
1983 12/1 FL Commuter starts up using CV580s
1984 1/9 Frontier Horizon inaugurates service - DEN-DCA DEN-SFO & DEN-ORD with 727s
1984 3/1 FH begins DEN-LGA service
1984 5/1 Chick Stevens downgraded at FRONTIER magazine, by Jan86 shown as "founder" tho still getting articles in occasionally
1984 6/8 DEN-RFD, MSN-RFD and CID-RFD service started
1984 10/1 DEN-MSP & DEN-MKE service starts
1984 12/15 FL Services start bus shuttle service to Keystone, Vail, Copper Mountain, Breckinridge & Winter Park, to run til 4/7/85
1985 1/1 FH goes DEN-TPA & MCO
1985 Feb. FL Commuter ceases operations after opposition from the Employee Coalition
1985 4/1 FL Horizon ceases operations after opposition from the Employee Coalition - consolidated back into FL
1985 4/1 FL DEN-IAD service started, replacing dropped FH service
1985 9/1 New customer service & ramp uniforms introduced
1985 9/5 CO emerges from bankruptcy
1985 10/5 People Express buys FL
1986 8/24 Frontier ceases operations
1986 8/28 Frontier files chapter 11 bankruptcy
1986 10/24 CO buys FL and PEX
1987 2/1 Lorenzo orders new CO president Tom Plaskett to merge CO, NY, PX, FL and all other airline subsidiaries into one giant airline - CO,
the biggest one-day merger in airline history, sometimes called the "big bang" -
schedules were disrupted for months and Plaskett was fired after 9 months on the job
1990 5/31 Frontier finally liquidated & paperwork finished per H. Lee Davis, exactly 40 years after its founding
1990 12/3 CO files chapter 11 bankruptcy second time
1993 4/28 CO emerges from chapter 11 bankruptcy second time
1995 2/28 New DEN airport opens
1997 7/4 Central founder Keith Kahle dies in Fort Worth aged 87, names ex-Central employees honorary pallbearers
1998 7/22 U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District Of Colorado, closes the Chapter 11 case of Frontier Airlines
2001 4/22 Last remnants of FL Hangar demolished by explosives as Stapleton Airport undergoes urban re-development
Jake Lamkins
Webmaster
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