Mackey Airlines

Mackey Airlines, Inc., later known as Mackey International Airlines, was an American airline that primarily served Florida and The Bahamas. At one point, the airline also operated Douglas DC-8 jetliners in scheduled passenger service between Florida, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles.

Mackey Airlines
IATA ICAO Callsign
MI - MACKEY
FoundedSeptember 20, 1946 (original)
1968 (relaunch)
Ceased operationsJanuary 1967 (original)
1981 (relaunch)
Operating bases
Fleet sizeSee Fleet below
HeadquartersFort Lauderdale, Florida, United States
Key peopleJoseph C. Mackey

History
Mackey Airlines Douglas DC-6 at West End Airport in 1965

Original operations

Mackey Airlines was founded by former stunt pilot and United States Air Force Colonel Joseph C. Mackey on September 20, 1946. Flights flew primarily out of its Fort Lauderdale base and from West Palm Beach and Miami. Mackey Airlines served the Bahamas, as well as Haiti and the Turks and Caicos Islands in the Caribbean.[1] In 1956 it acquired Midet Aviation.[2] The original Mackey Airlines was acquired by Eastern Air Lines in January 1967, although flights to Bimini from Miami continued into at least 1968.

Reformation and later operations
A Convair 440 at Fort Lauderdale in 1975 wearing full Mackey International Airlines title on its cabin roof

"Colonel Joe" soon began a new company named Mackey International Airlines, equipped with secondhand Convair 440[3] and Douglas DC-6 piston-engine airliners. A Mackey International Air Commuter subsidiary operation was equipped with Beech 99 19-seat turboprop aircraft. In 1977, Mackey's headquarters located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida was the target of a bombing attributed to Cuban anti-Castro activity in the United States.[4][5] In 1979, Mackey Airlines acquired Charter Airlines based in Gainesville and flew the only Convair 580 on intrastate Florida routes.[6] Mackey International Airlines ceased operations in 1981.[7]

Destinations in 1979
Mackey Airlines time table from December 1962

Mackey International Airlines was serving the following destinations in 1979:[8]

The Bahamas

  • Freeport (FPO)
  • Marsh Harbour (MHH)
  • Nassau (NAS)
  • Treasure Cay (TCB)

Florida

  • Fort Lauderdale (FLL) - Headquarters
  • Fort Myers (FMY)
  • Gainesville (GNV)
  • Miami (MIA)
  • Naples (APF)
  • Orlando (MCO)
  • Panama City (PFN)
  • Pensacola (PNS)
  • Tampa (TPA)
  • West Palm Beach (PBI)

In 1973, Mackey International Airlines was serving additional destinations in the Bahamas including Bimini, George Town, Governors Harbour, Great Harbour Cay and North Eleuthera, and was also serving Grand Turk and South Caicos in the Turks & Caicos Islands.[9]

Fleet

The following prop, turboprop and jet aircraft were operated by the airline at various times during its existence:

Mackey Airlines Douglas DC-8-51 at Las Vegas's airport in 1980
Aircraft Total Introduced Retired Notes
Mackey Airlines fleet[10]
Beechcraft Model 18 1 1960 1966
Douglas C-54 Skymaster 3 1959 1966
Douglas DC-3 5 1953 1964
Douglas DC-6 7 1961 1967
Mackey International Airlines fleet[11]
Beechcraft Model 99 3 1968 1978
Convair CV-340 1 1978 1978
Convair CV-440 8 1970 1981
Convair CV-580 2 1979 1980
de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 7 1968 1975
Douglas DC-6B 11 1968 1980
Douglas DC-8-51 3 1979 1981 Only jet aircraft type operated by the airline
Short SC.7 Skyvan 1 1971 1971

See also

References
  1. Gradidge, 1997, p. 101
  2. "Midet Aviation". Airline History. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  3. Gradidge, 1997, pp. 101-103
  4. "Viasat Internet Provider".
  5. Miami Herald
  6. "Charter Airlines". StanWing. Retrieved 2 May 2020.
  7. La Floridiana by William Moriaty Nolan's Pop Culture Review #216
  8. http://www.departedflights.com, Nov. 15, 1979 Mackey International Airlines route map
  9. http://www.departedflights.com, 1973 Mackey International Airlines route map
  10. "Mackey Airlines". Aerobernie.bplaced.net. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  11. "Mackey International Airlines". Aerobernie.bplaced.net. Retrieved April 12, 2023.

Bibliography
  • J.M.G.Gradidge, The Convairliners Story, 1997, Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd, ISBN 0-85130-243-2
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