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In 1968, Air West was formed out of a merger of three regional carriers: Pacific Air Lines, Bonanza Air Lines, and West Coast Airlines. All three were struggling financially and a consolidation of routes and equipment seemed the best solution at the time. Nick Bez (Nikola Bezmalinovich), a Croatian immigrant who had built a salmon fishing and canning empire in Alaska and the Pacific Northwest, joined with his West Coast Airlines—started in 1946 in Seattle—to lead the board of directors. Former Pacific Air Lines’ president G. Robert Henry assumed the position of president and chief operating officer. Based in San Francisco, the 3,800-employee carrier served numerous destinations up and down the California corridor, from San Diego to Crescent City, along with cities throughout the Southwest and Northwest, and even several tourist destinations in Mexico.
This image was posted on March 17, 2022.