 Home > About Continental > History > 1978 to 1990
- 1978
- Deregulation of the airline industry in 1978 began more than a decade of turbulence for Continental.
- October 31, 1982
- The airline merged with Texas International led by Frank Lorenzo (retaining the Continental name), offering service to four continents (North and South America, Asia and Australia) with a fleet of 112 aircraft.
- September 23,1983
- Continental filed to reorganize under Chapter 11 of the Federal Bankruptcy Code. Rebuilding the company began immediately and by the end of 1984, Continental recorded a $50 million profit.
- April 28, 1985
- Inaugurated first nonstop service to Europe with flights from Newark and Houston to London. Later Paris, Frankfurt, Madrid and Munich would be added.
- June 30, 1986
- Continental emerged from Chapter 11.
- February 1, 1987
- Became third largest U.S. airline with the consolidation of Frontier, People Express and New York Air.
- June 1987
- The OnePass Frequent Flyer Program was created.
- October 4, 1988
- Formed first global alliance with Scandinavian Airline Systems (SAS).
- Summer of 1990
- Beginning a complete disassociation from Continental, Frank Lorenzo sold most of his direct and indirect investments in the airline.
- December 3, 1990
- Rising fuel costs due to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait led to Continental’s second bankruptcy filing.
|
|