Eastern Airlines

Maryland's worst aviation disaster occurred on May 31, 1947, when Eastern Airline's nonstop Flight 606 from Newark, headed to Miami, crashed and burned near Port Deposit, killing all 53 passengers and crew aboard the DC-4.As the plane hit the ground, the resultant explosion shook windows and buildings for a 5-mile radius.Five months earlier, on Dec. 20, 1946, another Miami-bound Eastern Airliner, flying at 2,000 feet, collided in clear weather over Aberdeen with a twin-engine C-47 chartered by Universal Airlines.

Maryland's worst aviation disaster occurred on May 31, 1947, when Eastern Airline's nonstop Flight 606 from Newark, headed to Miami, crashed and burned near Port Deposit, killing all 53 passengers and crew aboard the DC-4.As the plane hit the ground, the resultant explosion shook windows and buildings for a 5-mile radius.Five months earlier, on Dec. 20, 1946, another Miami-bound Eastern Airliner, flying at 2,000 feet, collided in clear weather over Aberdeen with a twin-engine C-47 chartered by Universal Airlines.

Eastern Airlines cleared a critical hurdle yesterday in its attempt to reorganize under bankruptcy laws by reaching an agreement to have Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., a federal agency that oversees pension plans, take over the payment of the retirement benefits of Eastern employees.But to satisfy the agency's concerns, Continental Holdings Inc., the parent of Eastern Airlines, must secure the payments with its assets -- a liability that some officialssaid could total more than $500 million-plus interest because of a shortage in the financing of the pension plan.

Frank A. Lorenzo's bid to launch a discount airline at Baltimore-Washington International Airport suffered another blow yesterday as an administrative law judge in Washington recommended that his proposed airline be denied a license to operate.The 90-page ruling by Judge Robert L. Barton Jr. -- his second against Mr. Lorenzo in three months -- is considered likely to quash the yearlong comeback effort by the former airline magnate. The U.S. Transportation Department will make a final decision within three months.

MIAMI -- If United Airlines completes the purchase of Pan American World Airways' Latin American routes, it would bring stability to those routes for the first time in years, analysts said yesterday.United agreed late Monday to pay $160 million for the routes. It beat out American Airlines, which flies to many Latin American and Caribbean countries on routes it bought from Eastern Airlines in 1989.Robert Decker, an analyst with Duff & Phelps, said United can collect passengers from around the country to funnel them through Miami in a way Pan Am could not."

Frank A. Lorenzo's bid to launch a discount airline at Baltimore-Washington International Airport suffered another blow yesterday as an administrative law judge in Washington recommended that his proposed airline be denied a license to operate.The 90-page ruling by Judge Robert L. Barton Jr. -- his second against Mr. Lorenzo in three months -- is considered likely to quash the yearlong comeback effort by the former airline magnate. The U.S. Transportation Department will make a final decision within three months.

Sometimes investors see a silver lining.Start with recession. Toss in war, escalating fuel prices and fear of terrorism. Next, mix in record corporate losses, layoffs and bankrupt competitors. Despite all those dark clouds, the airline stock group has soared more than 25 percent in value this year, clear indication that investors have shrugged off all the bad news as purely temporary. Which has left many airline industry analysts perplexed, since no one really knows for sure how everything is going to turn out."

WHEN THE unthinkable happened, Bob Neugebauer learned what kind of man he is. In March, he was laid off from his job. Five days later, he started work somewhere else, thanks to careful planning."

WASHINGTON -- International air travelers who suffer emotional injury during hijacking or other airborne incidents may not sue the airlines for damages, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously yesterday.Airlines are legally obliged by world treaty only to pay for physical injury or death to passengers during international flights, the court declared. It turned aside psychic injury claims by passengers on an Eastern Airlines flight that nearly ditched in the Atlantic Ocean eight years ago.The decision conflicts with a ruling by Israel's Supreme Court interpreting the same treaty to assure protection against such purely emotional injuries as fright and shock.

With the death of Eastern Airlines last week, so went the deep-discount tickets that offered air travelers limited but welcome relief from increasing airfares.The "suicide fares" marketed by Eastern were intentionally priced far below those of its competitors. In that way, the cash-strapped airline tried to lure additional customers and increase the flow of money into is coffers.Other carriers were compelled to meet Eastern's bargain-basement prices or see their market shares suffer.USAir, which uses Baltimore-Washington International Airport as a hub, competed head-to-head with Eastern on about 1,400 round-trip routes along the East Coast.

MIAMI -- If United Airlines completes the purchase of Pan American World Airways' Latin American routes, it would bring stability to those routes for the first time in years, analysts said yesterday.United agreed late Monday to pay $160 million for the routes. It beat out American Airlines, which flies to many Latin American and Caribbean countries on routes it bought from Eastern Airlines in 1989.Robert Decker, an analyst with Duff & Phelps, said United can collect passengers from around the country to funnel them through Miami in a way Pan Am could not."

WHEN THE unthinkable happened, Bob Neugebauer learned what kind of man he is. In March, he was laid off from his job. Five days later, he started work somewhere else, thanks to careful planning."

WASHINGTON -- International air travelers who suffer emotional injury during hijacking or other airborne incidents may not sue the airlines for damages, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously yesterday.Airlines are legally obliged by world treaty only to pay for physical injury or death to passengers during international flights, the court declared. It turned aside psychic injury claims by passengers on an Eastern Airlines flight that nearly ditched in the Atlantic Ocean eight years ago.The decision conflicts with a ruling by Israel's Supreme Court interpreting the same treaty to assure protection against such purely emotional injuries as fright and shock.

Sometimes investors see a silver lining.Start with recession. Toss in war, escalating fuel prices and fear of terrorism. Next, mix in record corporate losses, layoffs and bankrupt competitors. Despite all those dark clouds, the airline stock group has soared more than 25 percent in value this year, clear indication that investors have shrugged off all the bad news as purely temporary. Which has left many airline industry analysts perplexed, since no one really knows for sure how everything is going to turn out."

With the death of Eastern Airlines last week, so went the deep-discount tickets that offered air travelers limited but welcome relief from increasing airfares.The "suicide fares" marketed by Eastern were intentionally priced far below those of its competitors. In that way, the cash-strapped airline tried to lure additional customers and increase the flow of money into is coffers.Other carriers were compelled to meet Eastern's bargain-basement prices or see their market shares suffer.USAir, which uses Baltimore-Washington International Airport as a hub, competed head-to-head with Eastern on about 1,400 round-trip routes along the East Coast.

On Aug. 18, 1930, an ungainly-looking Ford Tri Motor airplane with 11 passengers droned through the humid skies of Dundalk for a landing on a muddy Logan Field .Thus began a 61-year association between Eastern Airlines and Baltimore, a link that appears to be over, barring a financial miracle to resurrect the hemorrhaging carrier.Faced with a crushing $3 billion debt and in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Eastern announced Friday that it had run out of operating capital. That precipitated a move to terminate flight operations and immediately lay off virtually all of Eastern's 18,000 employees.

On Aug. 18, 1930, an ungainly-looking Ford Tri Motor airplane with 11 passengers droned through the humid skies of Dundalk for a landing on a muddy Logan Field .Thus began a 61-year association between Eastern Airlines and Baltimore, a link that appears to be over, barring a financial miracle to resurrect the hemorrhaging carrier.Faced with a crushing $3 billion debt and in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Eastern announced Friday that it had run out of operating capital. That precipitated a move to terminate flight operations and immediately lay off virtually all of Eastern's 18,000 employees.

Eastern Airlines may be the one major carrier that many business travelers will always refuse to use, no matter what the fare or where they need to fly.Eastern is still operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection 18 months after most of its employees started a strike that inconvenienced thousands and cost many people who couldn't get ticket refunds money. Long before the strike, Eastern had earned a reputation for unreliable flight schedules and mediocre service, delivered by unhappy employees.

Eastern Airlines may be the one major carrier that many business travelers will always refuse to use, no matter what the fare or where they need to fly.Eastern is still operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection 18 months after most of its employees started a strike that inconvenienced thousands and cost many people who couldn't get ticket refunds money. Long before the strike, Eastern had earned a reputation for unreliable flight schedules and mediocre service, delivered by unhappy employees.

Eastern Airlines cleared a critical hurdle yesterday in its attempt to reorganize under bankruptcy laws by reaching an agreement to have Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., a federal agency that oversees pension plans, take over the payment of the retirement benefits of Eastern employees.But to satisfy the agency's concerns, Continental Holdings Inc., the parent of Eastern Airlines, must secure the payments with its assets -- a liability that some officialssaid could total more than $500 million-plus interest because of a shortage in the financing of the pension plan.