Jet California: PSA 1957-1967

By 1957 PSA had succeeded where hundreds of others had failed. By staying within California they had avoided the CAB's attention and this had allowed them to compete successfully against the big trunk airlines on their own terms. They could set their own prices and decide what routes they would fly. Combining that with reliable friendly service they had been rewarded by strong patronage. With the jet age on the horizon PSA was ready to take it to the next level.

For part 1 of this series see:

Poor Sailer's Airlines: PSA 1949-1957

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Jon Proctor (GFDL 1.2 or GFDL 1.2 ), via Wikimedia Commons

In September 1957 PSA ordered three new Lockheed Electra prop-jets (prop-jet was the term used to descrive turboprops, which technically were jet engines). They had wanted to acquire Sud Aviation Caravelles, but couldn't get the financing organised. Even so, the acquisition of the Electras was a real marker for PSA. Airlines like them were simply not supposed to be able to afford new aircraft and several companies that had tried to upgrade their equipment even to newer second-hand machines had been smacked down by the CAB. However, once again the CAB had no say in the matter and through what was technically a lease agreement PSA could afford the Electras.

Jon Proctor (GFDL 1.2 or GFDL 1.2 ), via Wikimedia Commons

Despite the Electra's well publicised issues the type proved perfect for PSA's network. The first aircraft arrived in November 1959 and the DC-4s were withdrawn in 1960. In comparison the Electra offered a smoother ride, pressurised cabin and a much faster journey time. It cut 40 minutes off the Los Angeles - San Franciso flight.

The 1962 timetable. From timetableimages.com

The extra speed of the Electra enabled PSA to almost double its schedule and massivly increase passenger numbers, which reached over one million in 1962. Sadly PSA's founder Kenny Friedkin died in March 1962. He was replaced by his right hand man J. Floyd 'Andy' Andrews.

Jon Proctor (GFDL 1.2 or GFDL 1.2 ), via Wikimedia Commons

The arrival of the Electras was a further blow to the marketshare of Western and United, both of whom were still flying piston-engined DC-6Bs at higher fare prices. It wasn't until 1961 that Western introduced its own Electras and 1962 until some of the services received new Boeing 720 Fanjets. They also reintroduced the DC-6Bs flying a Thriftair service at a lower rate than even PSAs, although the frequency was also a lot lower too.

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San Diego Air & Space Museum Archives, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

United responded even more slowly and stuck to its one-class Red Carpet service albeit with new DC-8s and 720s. This cost more than twice what PSA was charging and it wasn't until September 1964 that they introduced a jet commuter service using new 727s matching PSA's fares.

With pure jets now the main competition PSA needed to upgrade once again, but fortunately it was in a much stronger position than it had been in 1957. On June 30, 1964 an order was placed with Boeing for 5 727s costing $27 million. By 1965 PSA was raking in a $2.94 million profit. The first of the trijets entered service on April 9, 1965. Western and United were now matching PSA's fares and using comparable jets, but they couldn't match PSA's frequencies. 

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They also couldn't match PSA's flair and fun. Customers in 'lucky seats' received free gifts, free drinks were given to those celebrating special dates and the airline's friendliness and swinging sixties vibe was strong.

Jon Proctor (GFDL 1.2 or GFDL 1.2 ), via Wikimedia Commons

By the end of 1966 the fleet stood at 7 727-14s and 6 L-188 Electras. Services had been resumed to Oakland and a new Los Angeles - San Jose service put it in direct competition with the local service airline Pacific Air Lines. Even though Pacific had a pair of 727s itself it couldn't match PSA's fares or frequency and this was one of the major reasons Pacific would undertake the tri-merger in 1967 to form AirWest.

The decade from 1957-1967 was arguably PSA's most successful. It had proven it could compete with any and all comers, been strongly profitable and massively increased its network, frequency and fleet size. The late 60s would see PSA grow further and get its smile - and that is what we'll look at in part 3:

Grinningbirds: PSA 1967-1970