"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:Xg5Xe.127632$084.71465@attbi_s22...

One of our repeat guests -- an 80-something year old Arizona sweetheart
who has helped immensely with my task of writing a "History of the Iowa
City Airport" -- casually mentioned today that she remembers Mid-Continent
Air Lines flying into Iowa City when she was growing up. (Her family
owned the land just north of the airport -- where the Inn sits today.)

This blew me away, as NO ONE has ever mentioned this air line. To date,
I've discovered that Boeing Air Transport, then United, then Northwest
(for a weekly stop), and then Ozark served Iowa City -- but never a
mention of a "Mid-Continent."

A Google search brought up some history of this airline, which shows them
stopping at cities all around Iowa City -- but I can't find any timetable
information that proves her claim that they stopped here.

Anyone remember this carrier? Does anyone know who would know?

Thanks in advance!


Mid-Continent Airlines operated from August 1938 to August 1952. Your
80-something acquaintance remembers it from her formative years so we're
talking about the period from 1938 to the mid-forties. R.E.G Davies doesn't
mention IOW service by Mid-Continent in his "Airlines of the United States
since 1914". I have an October 1945 CAB route map that shows only Route 1,
operated by United, going through IOW, and that it was suspended due to
national defense. Mid-Continent operated Routes 26 and 48 which served
other cities in Iowa; Mason City, Des Moines, Ottumwa, and Sioux City, but
not Iowa City.

I know you're a former newspaperman and have researched the history of IOW,
surely local newspaper files were incorporated in your research? I think if
Mid-Continent had served IOW you'd have found mention of it there. I think
it likely her memory is flawed.