The company was initially an irregular air carrier known as All-American Airways based in Miami, unrelated to the local service carrier All-American Airways that became Allegheny Airlines (later US Airways). The company was incorporated in Florida as of January 1, 1948.[3] In 1953, the airline had two C-46 aircraft and had breakeven financial results on $425,714 of revenue, 99% of which was passenger revenue, 87% military revenue.[4] In 1960 the airline changed its name to Saturn Airways[5] and began operating Douglas DC-6s. Saturn bought larger DC-7Cs in 1963 from BOAC[6] and operated them on transatlantic passenger charter flights. On 5 November 1965 Saturn acquired AAXICO Airlines, in a merger where the surviving management and ownership was from AAXICO, making it effectively an acquisition by AAXICO.[7][8] In 1967 the airline moved from Miami to Oakland.[9]
In December 1967[10] and January 1968 Saturn took delivery of two Douglas DC-8 Super 61CF jets. This allowed it to operate transcontinental cargo and passenger charter flights, some of which included military flights to South Vietnam. Between 1968 and 1974 it had two DC-8 Series 50 planes in its inventory and added a third Super 61CF in 1972. In May 1972, Universal Airlines, also based at Oakland airport, collapsed. Saturn added nine former Universal Lockheed L-188 Electra aircraft to its fleet, taking over Universal's military transport obligation.[11] Saturn also operated nineteen Lockheed Hercules aircraft.
Saturn specialized in unusual cargo, including the Triple Crown-winning racehorse Secretariat, a limousine for Archbishop Makarios of Cyprus, and satellite communication equipment for the 1972 visit by Richard Nixon to China, the first time a US commercial air freight flight landed in mainland China in over 20 years.[12] Saturn also delivered Rolls-Royce engines (in the UK) to Lockheed (at Palmdale) for the L-1011 program using Lockheed L-100 Hercules, and had a special CAB certification to do so.[13]
Trans International Airlines merger
Saturn merged into Trans International Airlines (TIA) on November 30, 1976,[14] making Trans International the largest air cargo operation at the time. A significant motivation in the merger was for Howard J. Korth, CEO and 84% owner of Saturn to step back after over 30 years in the industry. Korth had previously been the 96.5% owner of AAXICO.[7] In approving the TIA merger, the CAB went against the recommendation of its own administrative law judge and its own internal Bureau of Operating Rights, both of which recommended against the merger on competitive grounds. The Board itself, however, saw the two companies as largely complementary. In the year ending September 30, 1974, TIA made 84% of its revenue from passenger travel, whereas Saturn's revenue was 64% air-freight, and, moreover, its only passenger aircraft were currently parked, due to the weak state of the passenger charter market. The CAB saw the combined company as better able to compete against both foreign carriers and US scheduled carriers. The CAB noted Saturn's highest-among-supplementals profits (even above that of TIA, which was almost twice the size of Saturn by revenue), despite being only the fourth largest in revenue.[13] In 1975, TIA's revenues were $123.5mm (over $720mm in 2024 dollars) whereas Saturn's were $65.9mm (over $400mm in 2024 dollars).[15]
Fleet
At the time the merger with AAXICO was being evaluated by the CAB, Saturn had eight Douglas DC-7Cs, six of them leased, two of them owned.[7]
11 August 1951C-46F N3908B operating on a flight to Philadelphia from Newark, New Jersey suffered a loss of directional control on takeoff, overrunning the end of the runway into a swampy area. The four crew and 41 passengers on board evacuated safely before the aircraft was consumed by fire.[17][18][19]
24 January 1967DC-6 registration N74841 on a training flight applied asymmetric thrust on landing at Oakland, California, causing the aircraft to swerve off the runway and into mud, collapsing part of the landing gear and ripping off two propellers. The pilot in charge was cited for improper supervision. The four crew were safe but the aircraft was damaged beyond economic repair.[20][21]
