Northwest Airlink

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Northwest Airlink
IATA ICAO Callsign
  • NJ
  • CP
  • XJ
  • 9E
  • NEE
  • CPZ
  • MES
  • FLG
  • NORTHEAST
  • COMPASS
  • MESABA
  • FLAGSHIP
FoundedDecember 1984 (1984-12)
Ceased operationsJuly 2009 (2009-07)
(merged into Delta Connection)
Hubs
Frequent-flyer programWorldPerks
Alliance
Parent company

Northwest Airlink was the brand name of Northwest Airlines' regional airline service, which flew turboprop and regional jet aircraft from Northwest's domestic hubs in Minneapolis, Detroit, and Memphis. Service was primarily to small-to-medium-sized cities and towns where larger aircraft might not be economical to operate and also to larger markets to either provide additional capacity or more frequent flights than could be justified using mainline aircraft. Beginning in July 2009, the Northwest Airlink trade name was phased out, and replaced by the Delta Connection trade name for Delta Air Lines as part of the Delta/Northwest merger.

History[edit]

Northwest Airlink was formed in December 1984 when Northwest Airlines took steps to enhance its domestic services by entering a marketing agreement with Mesaba Airlines. Mesaba was the dominant airline serving Minneapolis/St Paul at the time. Under the agreement, Mesaba would operate as Northwest Orient Airlink. Mesaba initially operated commuter and regional turboprop aircraft. The Mesaba fleet at this time comprised fourteen Beechcraft 99 and one Fokker F27 Friendship aircraft. In 1985 Big Sky Airlines entered the Northwest Airlink agreement with 8-18 passenger seat aircraft including British Aerospace BAe Jetstream 31 and Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner commuter propjets.[1] Another Northwest Airlink operator was Fischer Brothers Aviation flying CASA C-212 Dornier 228 and Short 360 commuter turboprops.[2]

An Official Airline Guide (OAG) flight schedule dated February 1994 lists the following commuter and regional air carriers operating Northwest Airlink service:[3]

In 2001, Pacific Island Aviation was operating Northwest Airlink service with Short 360 commuter turboprop aircraft between Guam, Saipan and Tinian.[4]

Northwest Jetlink was subsequently formed to operate services with Avro RJ85 jets flown by Mesaba Airlines. Another Northwest Jetlink operator was Business Express Airlines flying Avro RJ70 jets.

Destinations[edit]

Operators and fleet[edit]

Fleet[edit]

Northwest Airlink BAe Jetstream 31 operated by Express Airlines I (1991)

The following air carriers were operating Northwest Airlink service at the time of the merger of Northwest Airlines with Delta Air Lines:

Northwest Airlink fleet
Airline IATA Service ICAO Code Callsign Aircraft In Fleet Image Parent
Compass Airlines CP CPZ Compass Embraer E175 32 Northwest Airlink Embraer E175 (2008) Northwest Airlines
Mesaba Airlines XJ MES Mesaba Bombardier CRJ-200 16 Northwest Airlink CRJ-200 (2012)
Bombardier CRJ-900 34 "Mesaba 3513" arriving from MSP.
Saab 340 49 Northwest Airlink Saab 340 operated by Mesaba shortly after takeoff from Minneapolis St-Paul (2007)
Pinnacle Airlines 9E FLG Flagship Bombardier CRJ-200 39 Northwest Airlink CRJ-200 (2012) Pinnacle Airlines Corp.

Historical regional jet fleet[edit]

The Northwest Airlink brand, through its various regional and commuter airline partners, operated a variety of twinjet aircraft over the years including the following types:

Aircraft Image
Avro RJ70
Avro RJ85 A beautiful RJ-85 gliding into MSP, she will be missed come october...most of Mesaba's RJ-85's will live on with Air France. 1101

Historical turboprop fleet[edit]

The Northwest Airlink brand, through its various regional and commuter airline partners, operated a variety of twin turboprop aircraft over the years including the following types:

Aircraft Image
ATR 42
BAe Jetstream 31 Northwest Airlink BAe Jetstream 31 operated by Express Airlines I (1991)
Beechcraft Model 99
CASA C-212 CASA C-212-200 N160FB of Northwest Airlink at Flint, Michigan
Dornier 228
Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner Recently painted in the new Air Link colours. This was to be my ride to Toledo - I didn't realize how short the distance was. Company metro slides behind the Dash also in new colours.

Look all around the Dash 8 to see the Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner

Fokker F27 This rather elderly Mesaba F-27 was scrapped shortly after I took this shot through the tinted windows of the Northwest club louonge at MSP in the early 1980's.
Short 360 Northwest Airlink (operated by Pacific Island Aviation) Short 360 N711PK at Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport
De Havilland Canada Dash 8-100

Incidents and accidents[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ https://www.airliners.net, photos of Northwest Airlink / Big Sky Airlines aircraft
  2. ^ http://www.airliners.net, photos of Northwest Airlink / Fischer Brothers aircraft
  3. ^ Feb. 1994 OAG Pocket Flight Guide, North American Edition
  4. ^ http://www.departedflights.com, Feb. 1, 2001 Pacific Islands Aviation/Northwest Airlink timetable
  5. ^ "NTSB report" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-04-10. Retrieved 2007-07-13.
  6. ^ "NTSB report" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-09-20. Retrieved 2007-07-13.
  7. ^ NTSB Aircraft Accident Report, Crash of Pinnacle Airlines Flight 3701, October 14, 2004.
  8. ^ "Accident Description: Northwest Airlink Flight 4712". Aviation-safety.net. April 12, 2007. Retrieved June 2, 2016.

External links[edit]