Northwest Airlines

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Northwest Airlines
IATA NW	ICAO NWA	Callsign Northwest
Founded		1926 (as Northwest Airways)
Hubs		Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport Memphis International Airport Narita International Airport Amsterdam Schiphol Airport
Focus cities		Indianapolis International Airport Honolulu International Airport
Frequent flyer program		WorldPerks
Member lounge		WorldClubs
Alliance		SkyTeam
Fleet size		796(Including Orders)
Destinations		255
Parent company		Northwest Airlines Corp.
Headquarters		Eagan, Minnesota
Key people		Douglas Steenland (CEO), Neal Cohen (CFO)
Website: http://www.nwa.com

Northwest Airlines (Pink Sheets: NWACQ), occasionally known as NWA, is an airline headquartered in Eagan, Minnesota in the United States of America. Northwest has three major hubs in the United States: Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport, and Memphis International Airport. Northwest also operates flights from a hub in Asia at Narita International Airport near Tokyo and also operates transatlantic and Asian flights in cooperation with partner KLM from Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam. Additionally, it maintains focus city operations at the Indianapolis International Airport and Honolulu International Airport.

Northwest is the world's fifth largest airline^{[citation needed]} in terms of RPK (revenue-passenger-kilometers) and it has the largest fleet in the world. In addition to operating one of the largest domestic route networks in the U.S., Northwest carries more passengers across the Pacific (5.1 million in 2004) than any other U.S. carrier, and carries more air cargo than any other passenger airline.^{[citation needed]} The airline, along with its parent company and subsidiaries, is currently operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection which, in the United States, allows continued operation during the reorganization effort, not cessation of flights as in the case in some countries. Northwest is expected to exit bankruptcy protection during the second quarter of 2007.

Northwest Airlines' regional flights are operated under the name Northwest Airlink by Mesaba Airlines, Pinnacle Airlines, and Compass Airlines. Its frequent flyer program is called WorldPerks. Northwest Airlines' tagline is "Now you're flying smart."

Contents 1 History 1.1 Beginnings 1.2 Global expansion 1.3 Merger with Republic and the 1990s 1.4 Passengers stranded on plane in 1999 1.5 September 11, 2001 aftermath and beyond 2 Labor relations 3 Destinations 4 Fleet 4.1 Passenger fleet 4.2 Retired fleet 4.3 NWA Cargo fleet 5 Cabin 5.1 World Business Class 5.2 First Class 5.3 International Economy Class 5.4 Domestic Economy Class 6 WorldPerks 7 WorldClubs 7.1 Locations 8 Codeshare agreements 9 Incidents and accidents 9.1 Fatal accidents 9.2 Non-fatal accidents and incidents 10 Sources 11 References 12 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Beginnings

Northwest Airlines was founded in 1926 by Col. Lewis Brittin, under the name Northwest Airways. Like other early airlines, Northwest's focus was not in hauling passengers, but in flying mail for the U.S. Post Office Department.^[1] The fledgling airline established a mail route between Minneapolis and Chicago, using open cockpit biplanes such as the Curtiss Oriole.

Northwest began flying passengers in 1927. In 1928, the airline started its first international route with service to Winnipeg, Canada. The airline's operations were expanded to smaller cities in the region by the end of the decade. In 1931 Northwest sponsored Charles and Anne Lindbergh on a pioneering flight to Japan, scouting what would become known as the Northwest Airlines Great Circle route, and proving that flying through Alaska could save as much as 2,000 miles on a New York-Tokyo route. In 1933, Northwest was designated to fly the Northern Transcontinental Route from New York City to Seattle, Washington; it adopted the name Northwest Airlines the following year as a result of the Air Mail Scandal. Northwest stock began to be publicly traded in 1941.

During World War II, Northwest joined the war effort by flying military equipment and personnel from the continental United States to Alaska. During this time, Northwest began painting their aircraft tails red, as a visual aid in the often harsh weather conditions. This experience with the severe northern climate led the government to designate Northwest as the United States' main North Pacific carrier following the war.

In the spring of 1947 Northwest began staffing its Tokyo base with company personnel, flying them across the "Northern Route" in twin-engine Douglas DC-3 aircraft. On 15 July 1947, Northwest became the first airline to fly a commercial passenger flight from the U.S. to Japan, using The Manila, a Douglas DC-4 aircraft, by way of Anchorage. From Tokyo, the flight continued to Seoul, Shanghai, and Manila. Taipei replaced Shanghai after the end of Chinese civil war of 1949. With its new routes, the airline re-branded itself as Northwest Orient Airlines, although the legal name of the company remained Northwest Airlines.

[edit] Global expansion

On 1 August 1949, Northwest took delivery of its first double-deck Boeing 377 Stratocruisers, which allowed the airline to establish higher service standards and reduce flight time. They were used to fly the Tokyo route nonstop from Seattle, and – with one stop in Anchorage – from Chicago. In 1951, Northwest helped establish Japan Airlines by leasing its aircraft and crew to the new company. In 1952, under the U.S.-Japan bilateral aviation treaty, Northwest and Pan American were the two U.S. flag carriers awarded rights to fly not only from the U.S. to Japan, but to pick up and carry passengers beyond Japan. Northwest remains the largest non-Japanese carrier at Tokyo's Narita Airport, with flights to 15 cities in Asia including Seoul, Busan, Manila, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Bangkok, Taipei, Kaohsiung and Singapore.

Northwest meteorologists pioneered the first clear-air turbulence forecasting system in 1957, important since the airline flew many northern routes over turbulence-prone mountain areas. Northwest remains a leader in turbulence prediction, providing TPAWS (turbulence prediction and warning services) to other airlines. ^[1]

On 1 June 1959, Northwest took delivery of its first turboprop jet aircraft, the Lockheed L-188 Electra. On 8 July 1960, Northwest put the Douglas DC-8 into service, offering the shortest flight times on routes to Asia. In August 1960, Northwest retired the last Boeing 377 Stratocruiser. The airline took delivery of the Boeing 720B in 1961, and in 1963, with the new Boeing 707, and the retirement of the last propeller aircraft, Northwest became the first U.S. airline with an all-turbofan jet fleet, hence the slogan "Northwest Orient: The Fan-Jet Airline". Northwest began operating the Boeing 727-151 in 1964.

Northwest took delivery of its first Boeing 747-151 aircraft in 1970. The airline began retiring the older Boeing 707s, and using the newer 747s on high-density domestic routes, where the 727 lacked sufficient capacity.

[edit] Merger with Republic and the 1990s

After airline deregulation, Northwest began nonstop flights to other Asian cities, returned to China in 1984 after a 34 year hiatus, and gradually strengthened its presence in the southern United States. It also began flying to Britain, Ireland, Germany, and Scandinavia. On 1 October 1986, Northwest purchased its competitor, Minneapolis-St. Paul-based Republic Airlines and adopted its three-hub network centered around Minneapolis-St. Paul, Detroit, and Memphis. Northwest dropped the word Orient from its brand name after the merger.

In 1989, Northwest introduced a new identity designed by Landor Associates superseding the 1970 logo and livery. A new livery, nicknamed the "bowling shoe" by employees, was adopted at the same time. New burgundy and beige uniforms designed by Claude Montana, but manufactured by Walt Disney Imagineering, were also introduced. Northwest's CEO Al Checchi was a board member at Disney, so WDI's manufacturing was a natural fit, but the uniforms wore out quickly. The joke among flight attendants was "Why can Disney make a good Mickey Mouse costume, but they can't make a good uniform for us?".

Three years later, when Northwest launched the "Some People Just Know How to Fly" ad campaign, new blue uniforms for flight attendants and customer service agents designed by French designer Thierry Mugler were introduced. The uniforms were criticized by flight attendants as being expensive (as they were made in France in the same plant that made Mugler's ready-to-wear collection) and flimsy, and were phased out in 1996 in favor of the current uniform.

1989 also saw major changes in ownership at the airline. Northwest was purchased in a 1989 leveraged buyout by an investment group headed by Al Checchi and Gary Wilson, KLM, and many others. To pay off the debt incurred in their takeover, the new management sold many of the airline's aircraft to leasing companies, and sold property around the world, including land in central Tokyo. The expense of the buyout was so great that in 1993, following several years of losses due to industry overcapacity and a traffic downturn following the Gulf War, Northwest threatened bankruptcy unless its employee groups agreed to three years of wage cuts. After signing the concessionary agreements, Northwest made its first profit since 1989.

Also in 1993, Northwest began its strategic alliance with KLM, which was the largest airline partnership ever conceived at the time. This partnership eventually became the Wings Alliance. However, the alliance never grew beyond the two airlines, and is now obsolete from a passenger's perspective, because both airlines are part of the larger SkyTeam Alliance. (From a legal perspective, the Northwest/KLM alliance remains important: it has antitrust immunity, whereas the broader SkyTeam alliance merely has code sharing privileges.) Northwest gradually pulled out of its minor European destinations and once more focused its attention on the domestic and Asian markets. On 1 May 1996 Northwest began the first nonstop service from the U.S. to China, on the Detroit - Beijing route. Nonstop Detroit-Shanghai service followed in April 2000. Later, these nonstop services were suspended in 2002. Northwest currently serves these routes via Tokyo. The airline sought government approval to restore nonstop Detroit - Shanghai service in March 2007 but lost its bid to United's Washington, D.C. (Dulles)-Beijing route.

Throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s, Northwest enjoyed profits and focused on improving technology to increase convenience while reducing costs. The airline has offered airport self-service check-in kiosks since 1997, and has more than any other airline. Northwest was also the first large U.S. airline to offer passengers Internet check-in, with service from December 2000. During the early 2000s, Northwest Airlines acquired a reputation of refusing to adopt industry-wide fare increases that had been accepted by other United States airlines. This changed in March 2005, when Northwest adopted fare hikes in response to rising oil prices.

[edit] Passengers stranded on plane in 1999

On January 2-3, 1999, Northwest Airlines stranded passengers on its planes for periods up to 8½ hours. An official inquiry found "... [the delays] were serious and indicate that this event had important implications for passenger safety. Moreover, even if the well being of passengers had not been an issue, the review team believes that the stranding of passengers on aircraft queued on taxiways for up to 8½ hours invites more serious problems and is simply unacceptable. None of the other airlines serving Detroit experienced ground delays approaching the magnitude of Northwest's delays."^[2] Subsequently, passengers brought various legal claims against the carrier including false imprisonment and negligence and obtained a $1.7 million settlement.^[3]

The problem of passengers stranded on aircraft during bad weather is a common problem among many U.S. airlines. This problem is exacerbated by the shortage of gates at some airports, the reluctance of airlines to ask other airlines (or other airlines to allow use of their gates) for temporary gate use, reluctance of airlines to use stairs for deplaning, etc. In late 2006 and early 2007, similar well publicized incidents have occurred on other airlines, namely American Airlines in Austin and JetBlue in New York. However, the above mentioned Northwest incident is noteworthy because of the large monetary settlement.

[edit] September 11, 2001 aftermath and beyond

Due to the effects of competition from low-cost carriers such as Southwest Airlines and increased labor costs due to a new contract with employees represented by the AMFA labor union, Northwest began to make cutbacks in early 2001. Two small rounds of employee layoffs and other cutbacks were implemented in the months prior to the September 11 terrorist attacks. Subsequent to the attacks, Northwest was forced to make major changes to its business structure through major employee layoffs and other cost cutting measures. The retirement of costly and aging aircraft such as the Boeing 727 and McDonnell Douglas DC-10 were accelerated as new aircraft went into service. In addition, the airline pursued options to reduce costs across the board, including removing pillows, peanuts, pretzels, in-flight entertainment on domestic flights, and newspapers and magazines. Also, over 50 McDonnell Douglas DC-9, Boeing 757, Boeing 747, and Airbus A320 family aircraft have been withdrawn from use in an attempt to lower overall capacity and save money.

Following many years of a pioneering and close partnership with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Northwest, along with partners KLM and Continental Airlines, joined the SkyTeam Alliance, a partnership of ten airlines from around the world, on 15 September 2004. This was partially a result of Air France acquiring KLM, forming the Air France-KLM group. The airline continued to hemorrhage money, however. In the spring of 2005, a media spectacle occurred when the news leaked that top executives in the company had been selling much of their stock. Subsequently, shareholders filed lawsuits against four top officials for insider trading, including Chairman Gary Wilson, CEO Doug Steenland, former director Al Checchi and former CFO Bernie Han.

Despite far-reaching money saving initiatives, Northwest was forced to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the first time in its 79-year history. The filing took place in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York on 14 September 2005. With Northwest's filing, four of the six largest U.S. carriers were operating under bankruptcy protection. Northwest joined Delta Air Lines (which filed just minutes before), United Airlines, and US Airways in bankruptcy. US Airways and United Airlines have since emerged from bankruptcy protection. Northwest common stock shares dropped more than 50% for the second time in three days following the news, largely because stock is generally cancelled as part of the bankruptcy process. In the following weeks, Northwest Airlink carriers Mesaba Airlines and Pinnacle Airlines both announced that Northwest had missed payments to them for their Airlink flying. Northwest also announced plans to shrink its Airlink fleet by over 45 aircraft. Mesaba Aviation filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy on October 13, 2005. However, Northwest recently announced that it would begin to increase capacity again.

Northwest has announced that they will hopefully emerge from bankruptcy in the first half of 2007.^[4]

However, on January 10, 2007, it was revealed that Northwest and Delta had been in early talks for several weeks regarding a possible merger after they each emerge from bankruptcy.^[5]

[edit] Labor relations

A recurring issue in Northwest's history is its troubled labor relations. In 1998, Northwest walked away from the bargaining table, locked out its pilots (represented by ALPA) and shut down the airline for more than two weeks. The airline sustained heavy losses as a result, and ended 1998 in the red, after being profitable since 1993.

On August 20, 2005, after months of negotiations, an impasse declared by the NMB and a 30-day cooling off period, the over 4,750 Northwest aircraft mechanics, janitors, and aircraft cleaners represented by AMFA went on strike against the company. After numerous negotiation sessions, no agreement was reached, and the company began hiring permanent replacement workers. In mid-October, after permanently hiring about 500 non-union workers, Northwest made a final offer to the union. The offer would have saved about 500 union jobs and offered four weeks of severance pay to terminated employees. This offer was significantly worse than the original declined by the union, which would have saved over 2,000 jobs and offered 16 weeks of severance pay. On 21 October 2005, AMFA announced that it would not allow its members to vote on the offer, citing that parts of the contract would violate the union's commitment to its members. Finally, in late December 2005, Northwest made what it termed its "final offer" to the union. The agreement would have terminated all striking workers and given them rights to unemployment compensation. The union voted down the offer. On October 9, 2006, AMFA leadership and Northwest reached an agreement ^[6]. Under the settlement, all AMFA workers still on strike as of that date will be converted to lay-off status with 5 weeks of severance pay (10 weeks if they resign from Northwest). However, these employees will have a right of recall to their old jobs. Approval of the settlement was ^[7] on 6 November 2006.

Most recently, hours before the start of a possibly devastating strike, Northwest and its flight attendant and pilot unions appeared to secure new contract agreements. However, while the pilots approved the new contract, the flight attendants voted the offer down. They then proceeded to oust their union, the PFAA, and replace it with the AFA. Another tentative agreement was negotiated with the new union, and on 31 July 2006 it was announced that the union members had again negated the deal. The union has now pledged CHAOS strikes, which are isolated and target selected hubs, flights, or aircraft. CHAOS was first set to begin on August 15, but was later moved to August 25 because of a purported terrorist plot to attack aircraft flying from Great Britain to the United States. However, the August 25 start of CHAOS was blocked by a court ruling hours before the strike was to begin. The ruling was the result of an appeal from Northwest Airlines regarding a previous decision by a judge allowing the flight attendants to strike while Northwest is under bankruptcy protection.

[edit] Destinations

Further information: Northwest Airlines destinations

Northwest primarily operates a hub and spoke route system with hubs in Amsterdam, Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Memphis, and Tokyo. The Amsterdam hub primarily consists of service from the U.S. to that city with beyond flights operated by KLM. It operates a few routes outside the hub system, such as San Francisco-Honolulu. Indianapolis is served as a focus city with much, but not all, of the added service to non-hub cities through Northwest Airlink flights.

In recent years, Northwest has concentrated on flights to its hubs. However, as recently as the early 1990s, it operated more flights not involving hubs, such as Boston-Seattle and Los Angeles-Seattle. In 1991, it began service to Australia, which had been abandoned by Continental a few years earlier after United and Qantas began non-stop flights to the continental U.S. using the newly introduced, long range 747-400, which Continental did not operate. Northwest served Sydney-Los Angeles, as well as Melbourne-Osaka-New York. The Melbourne flights raised Japanese protest because less than 30% of passengers on the Australia-Japan segment were originating in the U.S. ^[8]

In the mid-1980s, Northwest operated the only U.S. flag carrier service to Glasgow, Oslo, and Stockholm, as well as service to Copenhagen. However, this was later withdrawn after several years.

[edit] Fleet

Northwest is in the midst of a major long-haul fleet renewal program. As part of this program, Northwest introduced a simplified new paint scheme and logo in 2003. The airline has replaced its McDonnell Douglas DC-10 aircraft with the Airbus A330 and will soon introduce the new Boeing 787 into their fleet. The first Airbus A330-300, used on European flights, arrived on August 6, 2003. Northwest also operates the longer range and slightly shorter A330-200 on some trans-Pacific markets, within the Far East, and on some transatlantic routes. Northwest's last DC-10 flight arrived in Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport the morning of January 8, 2007 after completing a flight from Honolulu International Airport^[9]. The last Northwest Airlines DC-10 commercial flight across the Atlantic took place on October 29, 2006, from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport to Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport^[10]. All Northwest Airlines flights to and from Europe are now operated using the Airbus A330 aircraft family. Northwest Airlines has an additional 10 Airbus A330-300 aircraft on order scheduled for delivery between now and the end of 2007. Northwest Airlines will also soon operate reconfigured Boeing 757-200 aircraft for European flights with fewer passengers.

In the future, Northwest is looking for manufacturers to discuss the replacement of their 100 seat McDonnell Douglas DC-9 aircraft, of which some aircraft have been in service with for over 40 years. They could possibly order aircraft from the Embraer 190 or the Airbus A320 family.^[11]

[edit] Passenger fleet

The Northwest Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft as of March 2007:^[12]

Northwest Airlines Fleet

Aircraft	Total	Passengers (First*/Economy)	Routes	Notes
Airbus A319-100	66 (5 orders)	124 (16/108)	United States, Canada, Mexico	Short-medium haul domestic routes
Airbus A320-200	75	148 (16/132)	United States, Canada, Mexico	Short-medium haul domestic routes
Airbus A330-200	12	243 (32/211)	Transatlantic, Transpacific, Intra-Asia, India	New World Business Class Audio/Video on Demand in every seat Medium-long haul international routes
Airbus A330-300	14 (14 orders)	298 (34/264)	Transatlantic, Honolulu, Transpacific	New World Business Class Audio/Video on Demand in every seat Medium-long haul international routes
Boeing 747-200	2	430 (30/400)	Tokyo-Honolulu, Tokyo-Saipan	Classic World Business Class[13] To be phased out, late-September 2007
Boeing 747-400	16	403 (65/338)	Transpacific	Launch customer New World Business Class Long haul international routes
Boeing 757-200	56	160 (16/144) 182 (20/162) 182 (22/160) 184 (22/162)	North American, Intra-Asia	Transatlantic routes to begin in 2007 Configured with winglets New interiors/World Business Class[14]
Boeing 757-300	16	224 (24/200)	North American, U.S. West Coast-Hawaii	Medium-long haul domestic routes
Boeing 787-8	(18 orders) (50 options)		Transpacific, Intra-Asia, United States	Entry into service: August 2008
Douglas DC-9-30	68	100 (16/84)	United States, Canada	Short haul routes
Douglas DC-9-40	8	110 (16/94)	United States, Canada	Short haul routes
Douglas DC-9-50	29	125 (16/109)	United States, Canada	Short haul routes

^{*First Class is offered on most domestic flights. World Business Class is offered on Transatlantic/Transpacific Flights.}

[edit] Retired fleet

Northwest Airlines Retired Fleet

Aircraft	Year Retired	Replacement	Notes
Boeing 747-100	2000	Boeing 747-400
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-40	2002	Boeing 757-300
Boeing 727	2003	Airbus A320 Family
McDonnell Douglas DC-9-10	2004	Airbus A320 Family
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30	2007	Airbus A330 Family	Selling to ATA Airlines and Omni Air International

[edit] NWA Cargo fleet

As of 2006, NWA Cargo is the largest cargo carrier among U.S. combination passenger and cargo airlines. NWA Cargo’s fleet of 14 dedicated Boeing 747 freighter aircraft fly from key cities throughout the United States and Asia and connect the carrier’s cargo hub in Anchorage, Alaska (Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport), facilitating the quick transfer of cargo between large cities on both sides of the Pacific. NWA Cargo also transports freight aboard the passenger fleet of Northwest Airlines to more than 250 cities worldwide.

[edit] Cabin

[edit] World Business Class

World Business Class is the equivalent of first class on Northwest Airlines' international flights. It is currently available on Boeing 747-400 and Airbus A330 aircraft, but will soon be added on select Boeing 757-200 aircraft for trans-atlantic service. All seats have 60 inches of pitch and 176 degrees of recline. Passengers aboard this class receive complimentary meals, refreshments, and alcohol. All seats are equipped with a personal In-Flight-Entertainment (IFE) system, power-ports, a moveable reading light, a folding work table, and a swivel cocktail table.

[edit] First Class

Domestic First Class is offered on domestic flights. It is available on Airbus A319, A320, Boeing 757-200, 757-300, and DC-9 aircraft. Seats range from 19.5 to 21.5 inches wide, and have between 34 and 37 inches of pitch. Passengers aboard this class receive complimentary meals, refreshments, and alcohol.

[edit] International Economy Class

Economy Class is available on all international flights. Seats range from 17 to 17.5 inches wide, and have between 31 and 34 inches of pitch. Passengers aboard this class receive complimentary meals, refreshments, as well as a mid-flight snack. Alcohol can be purchased for $5.00 except for trans-atlantic flights where it is complimentary. Passengers aboard Airbus A330 aircraft also have a personal In Flight-Entertainment (IFE) system located in the seat back in-front of them and passengers seated in rows 10-23 (A330-200) and rows 10-28 (A330-300) have a power port located below their seat.

[edit] Domestic Economy Class

Economy Class is available on all domestic flights. Seats range from 17 to 17.5 inches wide, and have between 30 and 33 inches of pitch. Passengers aboard this class receive complimentary drinks, but may purchase smartsnack boxes, sandwiches (on select flights), and light snacks for a nominal fee. Alcohol may also be purchased for $5.00.

[edit] WorldPerks

WorldPerks offers regular travelers the ability to obtain free tickets, First Class upgrades on flights, discounted membership for its airport lounges (WorldClubs), or other types of rewards. Customers accumulate miles from actual flight segments they fly or through Northwest's partners, such as car rental companies, hotels, credit cards, and other vendors. WorldPerks' elite tiers are Silver Elite, Gold Elite and Platinum elite which allow for more mileage bonus, priority waitlists and standby and other benefits. Over the years, some details of the program have changed, such as introducing capacity controlled awards (only a certain number of seats are allocated for free travel), expiration of account if no activity occurs in three years, requirement of a Saturday night stay for domestic coach awards, waiving of capacity controls for awards but requiring double the amount of miles for redemption, and adding several partner airlines for mileage accumulation and award redemption.^[15] The original name of the WorldPerks program was the Northwest Orient Airlines Free Flight Plan, which began in 1981. ^[16] The original program used paper coupons and gave credit for flight segments, much like the current Southwest Airlines program. Upon renaming the program to "WorldPerks", a mileage based system was begun.

In addition to its Northwest Airlink and SkyTeam Alliance partnerships, Northwest offers frequent flyer partnerships with the following airlines:^[17]

Air Europa Air Tahiti Nui Alaska Airlines American Eagle (California Routes Only) Big Sky Cebu Pacific China Southern Airlines (joining SkyTeam in late 2007) Copa Airlines Garuda Indonesia Gulfstream International Airlines

Hawaiian Airlines (Inter-Island and International Routes Only) Horizon Air Japan Airlines (oneworld member) Jet Airways Jetstar Asia Airways (WorldPerks Asia only) Kenya Airways Malaysia Airlines Malév Hungarian Airlines Midwest Airlines

Northwest also offers frequent flyer partnerships with the following car rental agencies:^[18]

Alamo Rent A Car Dollar Rent A Car National Car Rental Thrifty Car Rental

[edit] WorldClubs

WorldClubs is Northwest's member lounge. Members have reciprocal access to a number of other clubs, including fellow SkyTeam carriers such as Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and Air France. Northwest also has partnerships with various other airline lounges on an airport-by-airport basis. Unlike some other airline lounges, WorldClubs offer complimentary alcoholic beverages in domestic locations. Northwest also offers free Wi-Fi internet access world-wide. Northwest Airlines and Continental Airlines are the only two airlines in the United States that offer lifetime memberships in their airport lounge programs, something that currently costs non-elite members $4,690. ^[19]

[edit] Locations

The following locations are Northwest Airlines WorldClub locations:

Boston Chicago O'Hare Shared with Continental Airlines Detroit (4) Honolulu Los Angeles Manila Memphis Milwaukee Minneapolis/St. Paul (2)

Newark New York La Guardia Portland San Francisco Seattle/Tacoma Seoul Tokyo Narita (2) Washington Dulles Washington Reagan

Northwest Airlines WorldClub members are allowed to use partner clubs, which offer more clubs in more locations. For partner club information, visit nwa.com: [2].

[edit] Codeshare agreements

Northwest Airlines has codeshare agreements with the following airlines as of February 2007:

Air France Alaska Airlines Alitalia American Eagle (California Routes Only) Big Sky Airlines Continental Airlines Delta Air Lines Gulfstream International Airlines

Hawaiian Airlines (Inter-Island Routes Only) Horizon Air KLM Royal Dutch Airlines KLM Cityhopper Malév Hungarian Airlines (Amsterdam-Budapest Only) Mesaba Aviation Pinnacle Airlines

[edit] Incidents and accidents

[edit] Fatal accidents

• On January 10, 1938, Flight 2, a Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra crashed in the Bridger Mountains, 12 miles northeast of Bozeman, Montana. All 8 passengers and 2 crew were killed. This was the airline's first fatal crash. Three other Lockheed Model 14 aircraft belonging to Northwest crashed over the next thirteen months.

• On 12 March 1948, Flight 4422, a Douglas DC-4 military charter en route from Shanghai back to the U.S.[3] crashed into Mount Sanford, Alaska.

• The disappearance of Flight 2501 [4], a DC-4 flying from New York City to Minneapolis-St. Paul on 23 June 1950, over Lake Michigan, has never been solved.

• On 2 April 1956, Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 2 crashed on takeoff from the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on a flight to Portland, Oregon, Chicago and New York City. The pilots ditched the Boeing Stratocruiser into Puget Sound; 4 passengers and 1 flight attendant died after escaping the wreckage, likely from hypothermia or drowning.

• On 16 August 1987, Flight 255 [5] crashed on takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport. All aboard the MD-82 were killed except for one young girl.

• On 3 December 1990, Northwest Flight 1482, a DC-9-10 [6] and Northwest Flight 299, a Boeing 727-200 [7] collided at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport near the intersection of runways 09/27 and 03C/21C in dense fog. The B-727 had begun its takeoff roll, and the DC-9 had just taxied onto the active runway. None of the 146 passengers and 10 crew members aboard the 727 were injured, but the DC-9 sustained heavy damage. One crew member and 7 of the 39 passengers aboard the DC-9 were killed.

[edit] Non-fatal accidents and incidents

• On 24 November 1971,Northwest Airlines Flight 305 en route from Portland International Airport to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, was hijacked by D. B. Cooper. After receiving a $200,000 ransom payment and 4 parachutes in Seattle, he ordered the crew to fly to Mexico, and jumped from the aft airstairs of the Boeing 727-051 while it was in flight over Washington. The aircraft later landed safely in Reno, NV but Cooper's fate remains unknown.

• In 1990, 3 crew members were intoxicated when they flew their Boeing 727 airliner from Fargo, North Dakota to Minneapolis, Minnesota. Another incident occurred in January 2001 when a pilot flew a Douglas DC-9 from San Antonio, Texas to Minneapolis. Upon landing, he had a 0.056% blood alcohol content level, above the Federal Aviation Administration limit, and was fired.

• Three Northwest aircraft were targeted in the failed Operation Bojinka terrorist plot of 1995. Also related to terrorism, just before the 11 September 2001 attacks, Zacarias Moussaoui (who was later labeled as a possible "20th hijacker" by the news media) was arrested after attempting to use a flight simulator owned by Northwest Aerospace Training Corporation (NATCO), which is affiliated with Northwest.

• Several baggage handlers were injured while removing cargo from Northwest Airlines Flight 957 after a hydrogen peroxide leak. Other bags were then transferred onto Flight 7, where they caused a small fire mid-flight.

• On 13 June 2001 Flight 28 from Manila to Tokyo made an emergency landing in a different airport in Tokyo when one set of its landing gear descended but did not lock into place. None of the 410 people aboard was injured.

• In 2004, pilots mistakenly landed at Ellsworth AFB instead of the nearby Rapid City airport. Passengers aboard were asked to close their window shades by the US Air Force.

• On 10 October 2004 an Airbus A330 en route San Francisco-Tokyo was forced to make an emergency landing at Tokyo Narita International Airport after the right engine experienced a malfunction. No one on board was injured.

• On 19 June 2005 a Northwest McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 en route from Mumbai (Bombay) to Amsterdam diverted to Mehrabad Airport in Tehran Iran. A warning light (later proven to be a false alarm) indicated there was a possible fire in the cargo hold. This was the first US airliner to land in Iran since the 1979 revolution.

• On 19 August 2005 a Northwest Airlines Boeing 747-251 lost its nose gear and skidded on the runway at Guam International Airport. There were no fatalities.

• On 29 August 2005 a Northwest Airlines Airbus A330-223, operating as Northwest Airlines Flight 5, clipped and collided with a Horizon Air De Havilland Canada Dash 8 at Portland International Airport before departing for Tokyo, Japan. There were no fatalities.

• On 6 May 2006 the landing gear of a Northwest Airlines Boeing 757, operating as Northwest Airlines Flight 756, became stuck in the grass as it was taxiing for takeoff from Minneapolis/St. Paul due to the pilot turning the plane too sharply. No injuries were reported.^[20]

• On 18 June 2006 a Boeing 747-400 en route Taipei-Osaka (Flight NW070) was forced to make an emergency landing at Kansai International Airport after reporting problems with one of its engines.

• On 23 August 2006 Northwest Airlines Flight 42 from Amsterdam to Mumbai turned back to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport escorted by two Dutch F-16 fighter jets after 12 passengers were behaving suspiciously.[8] Those passengers were detained in the Netherlands and were released the next day after Dutch officials determined the incident was not terrorism related.

• On 03 September 2006 a Northwest Airlines DC-10 bound for London, England made an emergency landing in Duluth, Minnesota due to smoke in the cabin. After 10 hours of waiting, the plane returned to Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport. The flight took off the following day.^[21]

• On 09 November 2006, Flight 756, the same flight involved in the incident in May 2006, a Northwest Airlines Boeing 757 originating from Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport bound for Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, made an emergency landing back at Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport for smoke in the cabin. The flight took off 2 1/2 hours later aboard a different aircraft. The cause of the smoke was a minor engine problem.^[22]

• On 21 January 2007 a Northwest Airlines McDonnell-Douglas DC-9, operating as Northwest Airlines Flight 1726, skidded off the runway at General Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee, Wisconsin after aborting takeoff due to an engine problem. Snowy conditions caused the flight, which was bound for Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, to lose traction when the pilot applied the brakes. All 99 passengers and 5 crew members were unharmed. ^[23]

• On 5 February 2007, a Northwest Airlines DC-9 collided with the tug that was moving it from the gate area at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, puncturing the fuselage. No one on the plane was injured, as it was empty, but the driver of the tug sustained minor injuries.^[24]

[edit] Sources

• Ruble, Kenneth D.; (1986). Flight to the Top: How a Hometown Airline Made History--and Keeps on Making It: The Absorbing Sixty-year Story of Northwest Airlines. New York: Viking Press.
• "Pilots Who Flew Drunk are Sentenced to Prison". (October 27, 1990). St. Louis Post-Dispatch, p. 7A. Retrieved March 21, 2005 from LexisNexis.
• Moylan, Martin J. "NWA to trim mechanics jobs". (March 17, 2005). Detroit Free Press.
• Northwest Airlines history timeline on www.nwa.com
• U.S. Postal Service history; airmail service starts
• "Order 2006-2-1", Joint Application of Alitalia-Linee Aeree Italiane-S.p.A., Czech Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Inc., KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Northwest Airlines, Inc. and Societe Air France for Approval of and Antitrust Immunity for Alliance Agreements, United States Department of Transportation, February 6, 2006.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Northwest Airlines
• NWA Restructuring Information

• NWA Route Maps
• NWA Fleet Age
• NWA Fleet Detail
• NWA Fleet Detail NWA.com
• Guide to earning miles on Northwest Airlines
• Article on Northwest's 2003 rebranding as NWA
• ASN worldwide aircraft incident database
• Case study on Northwest Airlines Asian localization
• Trev's Northwest Page: A website for Northwest Airlines news, history, and photos.
• Northwest Airlines seating charts and seat reviews
• Northwest Airlines Passenger Opinions
• Northwest WorldPerks Bonus Miles Promotions