Eastern Air Lines was a U.S.-based company that operated between 1926 and 1991. One of the airline’s hubs was Miami, being the city’s biggest employer from the mid-1970s until the time of its closure.
The carrier’s main focus was in the United States, with some routes to Canada and Mexico. In 1971, the company expanded in the Caribbean, more precisely in Puerto Rico, with the acquisition of Caribair.
See also: #TBT: PLUNA flights between Montevideo, Rio de Janeiro and Madrid in 2007.
Nearly from the beginning, Eastern Air Lines requested on several occasions the corresponding authorization to operate between the United States and South America. For different reasons, in all these cases it was denied.
Braniff and Pan Am were the most important companies in the U.S.-South America market, with departures from their different hubs in the United States.
Subsequent to the deregulation of the airline industry in 1978, Braniff was affected by the entry of new companies and the strengthening of its competitors. This, in addition to high fuel costs, was the beginning of the end for Braniff.
Due to its crisis, Braniff began negotiations with Pan Am in early 1982 to sell its routes between the United States and South America, but the agreement would never be finalized since it was considered that Pan Am would have a monopoly in the area. Months later, Eastern took over these routes from Braniff, starting flights to South America in May of that year.
Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Paraguay were the South American countries served by Eastern Air Lines. The airline operated with Boeing 727, DC-10, Lockheed L-1011-1 TriStar, among others.
See also: #TBT: TAP flights between Portugal, Brazil and Argentina in 1972.
Schedule between United States and South America in 1987 – Eastern Air Lines
DEPARTURES FROM UNITED STATES
- Barranquilla: Tuesday, Wednesday and Sunday – Boeing 727
To see all tables, place the mobile phone in a horizontal position
| Flight | From | ETD | To | ETA |
| EA 955 | Miami | 19:00 | Barranquilla | 20:25 |
- Bogotá: daily – Lockheed L-1011-1 TriStar
To see all tables, place the mobile phone in a horizontal position
| Flight | From | ETD | To | ETA |
| EA 518 | Los Angeles | 08:30 | Miami | 16:14 |
| EA 518 | Miami | 17:35 | Bogotá | 19:35 |
- Buenos Aires and Santiago: daily except Tuesday – DC-10
To see all tables, place the mobile phone in a horizontal position
| Flight | From | ETD | To | ETA |
| EA 27 | New York | 18:25 | Miami | 21:08 |
| EA 27 | Miami | 23:00 | Buenos Aires | 08:27 +1 |
| EA 27 | Buenos Aires | 09:22 +1 | Santiago | 10:24 +1 |
On Friday and Saturday it was flight EA 23 departing from Los Angeles (timetables from Miami, Buenos Aires and Santiago de Chile were unchanged).
- Cali via Panama City: Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday – Boeing 727
To see all tables, place the mobile phone in a horizontal position
| Flight | From | ETD | To | ETA |
| EA 977 | New York | 13:30 | Miami | 16:10 |
| EA 977 | Miami | 17:35 | Panama City | 19:15 |
| EA 977 | Panama City | 19:58 | Cali | 21:15 |
- Cali, La Paz and Asunción: Monday, Thursday and Saturday – Boeing 727
To see all tables, place the mobile phone in a horizontal position
| Flight | From | ETD | To | ETA |
| EA 987 | Miami | 13:50 | Cali | 16:12 |
| EA 987 | Cali | 16:45 | La Paz | 21:22 |
| EA 987 | La Paz | 22:15 | Asunción | 00:09 +1 |
- Guayaquil and Quito: Friday and Sunday – Lockheed L-1011-1 TriStar
To see all tables, place the mobile phone in a horizontal position
| Flight | From | ETD | To | ETA |
| EA 9 | New York | 09:00 | Miami | 11:39 |
| EA 9 | Miami | 12:50 | Guayaquil | 15:48 |
| EA 9 | Guayaquil | 16:35 | Quito | 17:22 |
DEPARTURES FROM SOUTH AMERICA
- Asunción, La Paz and Cali: Tuesday, Friday and Sunday – Boeing 727
To see all tables, place the mobile phone in a horizontal position
| Flight | From | ETD | To | ETA |
| EA 992 | Asunción | 05:30 | La Paz | 07:47 |
| EA 992 | La Paz | 08:42 | Cali | 12:10 |
| EA 992 | Cali | 13:00 | Miami | 17:26 |
- Barranquilla: Monday, Wednesday and Thursday – Boeing 727
To see all tables, place the mobile phone in a horizontal position
| Flight | From | ETD | To | ETA |
| EA 972 | Barranquilla | 08:30 | Miami | 12:02 |
- Bogotá: daily – Lockheed L-1011-1 TriStar
To see all tables, place the mobile phone in a horizontal position
| Flight | From | ETD | To | ETA |
| EA 505 | Bogotá | 10:05 | Miami | 14:30 |
| EA 505 | Miami | 17:50 | Los Angeles | 19:51 |
- Cali via Panama City: Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday – Lockheed L-1011-1 TriStar
To see all tables, place the mobile phone in a horizontal position
| Flight | From | ETD | To | ETA |
| EA 976 | Cali | 09:15 | Panama City | 10:37 |
| EA 976 | Panama City | 11:35 | Miami | 15:15 |
| EA 976 | Miami | 17:00 | New York | 19:35 |
- Quito and Guayaquil: Tuesday and Sunday – Lockheed L-1011-1 TriStar
To see all tables, place the mobile phone in a horizontal position
| Flight | From | ETD | To | ETA |
| EA 24 | Quito | 07:45 | Guayaquil | 08:31 |
| EA 24 | Guayaquil | 09:30 | Miami | 14:27 |
| EA 24 | Miami | 16:15 | New York | 19:03 |
- Santiago de Chile and Buenos Aires: daily except Wednesday – DC-10
To see all tables, place the mobile phone in a horizontal position
| Flight | From | ETD | To | ETA |
| EA 10 | Santiago | 18:40 | Buenos Aires | 21:22 |
| EA 10 | Buenos Aires | 22:16 | Miami | 06:00 +1 |
| EA 10 | Miami | 08:00 +1 | New York | 10:35 +1 |
On Friday and Saturday it was the EA 22 flight ending in Los Angeles (timetables for Santiago de Chile, Buenos Aires and Miami were not modified).
EASTERN’S COMPLETE NETWORK IN SOUTH AMERICA
Eastern Air Lines filed for bankruptcy on March 9th, 1989, and finally ceased operations on Saturday, January 19th, 1991 at midnight.
American Airlines purchased Eastern’s route rights to and from South America in April 1990, later becoming the leading carrier in the market.
Source
- Guía Argentina de Tráfico Aéreo (GATA) – 1987.
See also: #TBT: Avianca flights between Colombia and Europe in 1954.
