For US Airways, the sky was never the limit. But Friday was.
The airline that started out as All American Aviation -- an airmail carrier headquartered in Pittsburgh in 1939 -- merged with American Airlines in 2013 , and the name was officially retired as of midnight. It made its farewell Friday, when Flight 1939 took off from Philadelphia, making stops in Charlotte, Phoenix and San Francisco.
Pittsburgh was notably absent from the itinerary, but that didn’t stop more than 500 current and former employees of the airline from marking the occasion with a “Final Flight Party” at the Pittsburgh Airport Marriott.
“This is the end of an era,” said Sarah Fischer, 51, of Hopewell, who helped organize the event. She started her airline career in 1987 as a flight attendant with Piedmont, one of 10 airlines that merged with US Airways over the years.
“US Air had a huge influence on Western Pennsylvania,” she said, calling it by the name it had when she joined it. “It would have been nice if the final flight had stopped here, but we’re a family, and this is more like a family reunion than it is a goodbye party.”
The company began carrying passengers in 1949 and changed its name to Allegheny Airlines in 1953. It became US Air in 1979 and with Pittsburgh as its base, the airline grew to 12,000 jobs and nearly 550 daily flights during its glory days as US Airways. The airline was central in the decision to build a $1 billion terminal at Pittsburgh International Airport in 1992
The cutbacks started after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, followed by the the closing of US Airways’ Pittsburgh hub in 2004. This weekend, American Airlines is shutting down the US Airways flight operations control center in Moon, costing the area another 650 jobs. The region also has lost a reservations center in Green Tree, a flight crew base and flight simulation training in Moon. American Airlines is keeping a jet maintenance base here.
Some of those attending the party Friday evening brought photographs, lapel pins and newspaper clippings to share. Some pilots and flight attendants wore their original uniforms.
Former Capt. Bill Crawford, 82, of Edgeworth, a pilot from 1967 through his retirement in 1991, met his wife, Marilyn, aboard a flight.
“I wasn’t a flight attendant. I was a stewardess,” she said proudly.
It was a different time, her husband said.
“Everyone had an interest that went beyond their paychecks,” he said.
“It’s sad, but we have to progress,” said Capt. Chuck Croco, 80, of McMurray, a pilot from 1966 to 1994. “It was a wonderful airline to work for and it did so much for all of us, for everyone here and so many others. It was a great airline for its employees, and we were part of something that was growing.”
Bettie Stephenson, 60, of Moon, started working for Allegheny Airlines in1978 and rose through the ranks as a manager. She was part of the design team for the airport’s new terminal before leaving the company in 2004.
“We are all blessed here,” she said. “I know people around the world because of this airline. The opportunities I had were amazing. It’s going to live on in everybody’s heart. Actually, even though it’s going to be American Airlines, it will always be US Airways to us.
”The thing that’s unique about the airline industry is that you work so much as a team. Everybody’s job is important, from the baggage handlers to the utility people to the flight attendants to the captains. There’s so many more behind the scenes that make it all come together.“
And all those alumni were represented Friday night.
“They say the jet fuel gets in your blood,” said Laurie Guarino, 43, of Oakmont, a flight attendant since 1998 who is looking forward to flying as an employee of American Airlines. “I love the life and the lifestyle. I don’t think I could sit at a desk and look at the same four walls every day.
”I think there’s good and bad in the merger, but I think that even though things are changing, more opportunities are going to arise. I’m optimistic that there will be more flights in Pittsburgh in the future.“
Dan Majors: dmajors@post-gazette.com and 412-263-1456.
First Published: October 17, 2015, 4:00 a.m.