Midstate Airlines
Encyclopedia
Midstate Airlines of Stevens Point, Wisconsin, (a.k.a. Mid-State Airlines, a.k.a. Midstate Air Commuter (MAC)),was founded by Roy P. Shwery in 1964 and provided air service out of Marshfield
, Wisconsin (home to Marshfield Clinic
), and Central Wisconsin Airport
(CWA). The airline originally operated a fleet of Beechcraft Model 18 aircraft, and later, four Beech 99's. The airline originally flew from Marshfield, to Wisconsin Rapids, to Milwaukee, and onto Chicago. (Central Wisconsin Airport serves the communities of Stevens Point, Wausau, Marshfield, and Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, and the smaller suburbs—Mosinee, Plover, and Rosholt—with long runways that accommodated large jet aircraft).
By the early 1970s, Midstate also was serving Hayward and Ashland, Wisconsin from the Central Wisconsin Airport and Ashland from the Minneapolis - St. Paul International Airport. One of its most fondly-remembered features was the 6:00 PM "Champagne Flight" out of O'Hare, destined for Ashland via Milwaukee, the CWA, and Hayward. Shortly after takeoff from Milwaukee, the passengers were invited to open a cooler put on board in Milwaukee and prepared by Midstate's President's wife. Typically, in the cooler were a few soft drinks, beers, Wisconsin cheese, Pringle's Newfangled Potato Chips, plastic cups and . . . one or two bottles of champagne. Somehow, this ice-breaker generated an informality and good feeling for nearly everyone on board.
In 1977 Midstate switched to 19-passenger Swearingen Metroliners
.
On January 15, 1979, a Metroliner landed in Wisconsin Rapids, hydroplaned, swerved, and collided with a snowbank, resulting in 11 injuries (2 pilots, 9 passengers). Damage to the aircraft was substantial. Correction: snow storm with low visiability and no injuries.
In its heyday, Midstate operated a fleet of 19 Metroliners and added six Fokker
F-27
50-passenger aircraft in 1984 (which required a flight attendant and a certificate modification under FAA part 121 rules), and flew to 15 cities in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Chicago O'Hare airport.
The airline was purchased from Shwery by Sentry Insurance
of Stevens Point, and subsequently resold to CEO and investor Bryce Appleton in 1986.
Appleton led the company from 1983 to 1989.Correction: Appleton was hired in 1980. In a time of airline consolidation, code-sharing, and identical livery agreements between commuter/regional aircraft and their major airline counterparts, Midstate remarkably remained independent, while its popularity and passenger load factors declined rapidly by 1987.
In 1986, Midstate subleased the F-27 aircraft to Chicago Air
, a start-up carrier operated a regional service out of Chicago Midway International Airport. Midstate provided maintenance services to Chicago Air out of Central Wisconsin. However, Chicago Air went into bankruptcy the same year, and Appleton purchased what remained of the Midstate's assets from Sentry Insurance
. The Chicago O'Hare takeoff and landing slots were sold off and Appleton continued to operate the Swearingen Metroliners, establishing a hub in Milwaukee. However, the airline continued to cut back service, providing charter, ceasing operations in 1989.
Marshfield, Wisconsin
Marshfield is a city in Marathon and Wood counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the largest city in Wood County. The small portion of the city that extends into Marathon County is part of the Wausau Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 18,800 at the 2000 census. Marshfield is...
, Wisconsin (home to Marshfield Clinic
Marshfield Clinic
Marshfield Clinic is a health care system in northern, central and western Wisconsin, with 2 hospitals and 52 community care centers as of June, 2010. It was founded in 1916 by six local physicians: K.W. Doege, William Hipke, Victor Mason, Walter G. Sexton, H.H. Milbee, and Roy P...
), and Central Wisconsin Airport
Central Wisconsin Airport
Central Wisconsin Airport , referred to as "C-Way", is a public airport located southeast of the central business district of Mosinee, in Marathon County, Wisconsin, United States...
(CWA). The airline originally operated a fleet of Beechcraft Model 18 aircraft, and later, four Beech 99's. The airline originally flew from Marshfield, to Wisconsin Rapids, to Milwaukee, and onto Chicago. (Central Wisconsin Airport serves the communities of Stevens Point, Wausau, Marshfield, and Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, and the smaller suburbs—Mosinee, Plover, and Rosholt—with long runways that accommodated large jet aircraft).
By the early 1970s, Midstate also was serving Hayward and Ashland, Wisconsin from the Central Wisconsin Airport and Ashland from the Minneapolis - St. Paul International Airport. One of its most fondly-remembered features was the 6:00 PM "Champagne Flight" out of O'Hare, destined for Ashland via Milwaukee, the CWA, and Hayward. Shortly after takeoff from Milwaukee, the passengers were invited to open a cooler put on board in Milwaukee and prepared by Midstate's President's wife. Typically, in the cooler were a few soft drinks, beers, Wisconsin cheese, Pringle's Newfangled Potato Chips, plastic cups and . . . one or two bottles of champagne. Somehow, this ice-breaker generated an informality and good feeling for nearly everyone on board.
In 1977 Midstate switched to 19-passenger Swearingen Metroliners
Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner
The Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner or the Fairchild Aerospace Metro is a 19-seat, pressurised, twin turboprop airliner first produced by Swearingen Aircraft and later by Fairchild at a plant in San Antonio, Texas, United States....
.
On January 15, 1979, a Metroliner landed in Wisconsin Rapids, hydroplaned, swerved, and collided with a snowbank, resulting in 11 injuries (2 pilots, 9 passengers). Damage to the aircraft was substantial. Correction: snow storm with low visiability and no injuries.
In its heyday, Midstate operated a fleet of 19 Metroliners and added six Fokker
Fokker
Fokker was a Dutch aircraft manufacturer named after its founder, Anthony Fokker. The company operated under several different names, starting out in 1912 in Schwerin, Germany, moving to the Netherlands in 1919....
F-27
Fokker F27
The Fokker F27 Friendship is a turboprop airliner designed and built by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker.-Design and development:Design of the Fokker F27 started in the 1950s as a replacement to the successful Douglas DC-3 airliner...
50-passenger aircraft in 1984 (which required a flight attendant and a certificate modification under FAA part 121 rules), and flew to 15 cities in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Chicago O'Hare airport.
The airline was purchased from Shwery by Sentry Insurance
Sentry Insurance
Sentry Insurance, founded in 1904, is a mutual insurance company located in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. It was founded by members of the Wisconsin Retail Hardware Association, now the Midwest Hardware Association, to provide insurance for its members and was originally called Hardware Mutual. Today...
of Stevens Point, and subsequently resold to CEO and investor Bryce Appleton in 1986.
Appleton led the company from 1983 to 1989.Correction: Appleton was hired in 1980. In a time of airline consolidation, code-sharing, and identical livery agreements between commuter/regional aircraft and their major airline counterparts, Midstate remarkably remained independent, while its popularity and passenger load factors declined rapidly by 1987.
In 1986, Midstate subleased the F-27 aircraft to Chicago Air
Chicago Air
Chicago Air was a regional airline carrier that operated in 1986 and exchanged passengers with all-jet Midway Airlines at Chicago Midway International Airport. The carrier operated revenue service from May to November, 1986 between Chicago and Madison, Green Bay, LaCrosse, Eau Claire, and Wausau,...
, a start-up carrier operated a regional service out of Chicago Midway International Airport. Midstate provided maintenance services to Chicago Air out of Central Wisconsin. However, Chicago Air went into bankruptcy the same year, and Appleton purchased what remained of the Midstate's assets from Sentry Insurance
Sentry Insurance
Sentry Insurance, founded in 1904, is a mutual insurance company located in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. It was founded by members of the Wisconsin Retail Hardware Association, now the Midwest Hardware Association, to provide insurance for its members and was originally called Hardware Mutual. Today...
. The Chicago O'Hare takeoff and landing slots were sold off and Appleton continued to operate the Swearingen Metroliners, establishing a hub in Milwaukee. However, the airline continued to cut back service, providing charter, ceasing operations in 1989.
External links
- Roy Shwery biography/http://www.aviationhalloffamewisconsin.com/inductees/shwery.htm
- Bryce Appleton biography/http://www.zoominfo.com/Search/PersonDetail.aspx?PersonID=84830050
- Flight schedules/http://www.timetableimages.com/ttimages/iu.htm