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GC-Phoenix air<br>service to begin

It was the winter of 1928 when J. Parker Van Sandt carved out a cotton field in Phoenix to establish a flight school along with a winter base of operations for his air tours. The air strip would evolve into Sky Harbor Airport, now one of the busiest in the country.

Grand Canyon Airlines plans to begin service to and from Scottsdale Airport on Oct. 25. (Photo courtesy of Grand Canyon Airlines)

The previous year, Van Sandt had taken a fleet of Ford Tri-Motor airplanes to start Scenic Airlines, which would become Grand Canyon Airlines. Scenic flew the first commercial air tour over Grand Canyon on Oct. 3, 1927.

While conducting business in Grand Canyon and Phoenix, Van Sandt created a bit of a connection between the state’s largest city and the nation’s most awesome natural wonder. The first flight out of Sky Harbor occurred Nov. 18, 1928 with a fishing trip to Rocky Point, Mexico.

Grand Canyon Airlines, believed to be the air-tour operator with the world’s longest continuous service, wants to re-establish the link between the two sites. So beginning Oct. 25, Grand Canyon Airlines will begin daily service between Grand Canyon and Scottsdale.

"This is a fantastic opportunity to again return to the Valley of the Sun," said John Dillon, GCA general manager. "The Grand Canyon is the crown-jewel of Arizona, not Nevada. We are on a quest to help get it back."

Many visitors to Grand Canyon approach the Arizona wonder through air services out of Las Vegas. Some have even called Las Vegas the true gateway city to the Canyon. Dillon believes that can change.

"We hope our services will help bring it home where it belongs," Dillon said. "We have a solution that now allows visitors to experience the Grand Canyon in a day without any hassles. We are continually amazed at how many residents of our great state have never visited the Grand Canyon."

Besides the tour options available through Grand Canyon Airlines, local residents will be interested to hear that one-way flights are available to and from Scottsdale. Dillon said flights will leave Grand Canyon airport in the afternoon, which would get passengers to the valley in time for any planned evening activities. Return flights from Scottsdale to the Canyon leave in the morning.

"For the local public, we’ll have one-way fares; the prices need to be established," Dillon said. "It will be something very affordable. It will be nice to offer (locals) different options."

Dillon wondered if commuter service to the valley would be possible after flying baseball fans down to an Arizona Diamondbacks game last year.

Locals could abandon the idea of a four-hour, one-way drive and make the plane trip in an hour. Dillon said connections to Sky Harbor Airport will be established for those passengers. There will also be shuttle service to most hotels in the Phoenix area.

The main gist of the operation, however, will be the new tour options available to tourists. Various packages have been established.

"We’ve been strongly encouraged the past few years by many friends and partners in the travel and tourism industry to bring our services back to the valley," Dillon said. "And we are extremely excited about their tremendous support. We really believe the timing is finally right for us to have a permanent presence in the Scottsdale-Phoenix market again."

Grand Canyon Airlines flies the Vistaliner aircraft, which is a modified DeHavilland Twin Otter. The plane was developed with sightseeing in mind with 19 seats, state-of-the-art equipment and two pilots on board.

The trip from Scottsdale to Phoenix will feature a route that should be interesting to patrons. The 90-minute flight leaves Scottsdale, flies over Carefree and Cave Creek and follows the Verde River into the high country. The route passes over spots like Horseshoe Reservoir, Montezuma Well, Tonto National Forest, Sedona’s red rock country and Oak Creek Canyon.

After passing over the west side of Flagstaff, several other points of interest can be seen, including San Francisco Peaks. Then it’s on to Grand Canyon. After landing, passengers hook up with Grand Canyon Coaches for a ground tour of the natural wonder, stop for lunch and take in the IMAX film.

That’s just one example of a specialized tour. Dillon said there will be various options for tourists to consider, including combinations with jeep, helicopter and rafting tours.

Dillon said the option of traveling to and from the Phoenix area should be attractive to local residents, along with businesspeople.

"We already do a large amount of corporate and incentive charter work from the valley to the Grand Canyon each year," Dillon said. "We are thrilled to now have daily departures from Scottsdale for these clients."

To celebrate, Grand Canyon Airlines will hold a grand opening on Oct. 25 from 7-9 p.m., in the Scottsdale Airport terminal. Local residents are invited.

"We will have five of our Twin Otter Vistaliner airplanes, one of our luxury motor coaches and vans, and the grand-daddy of our air tours, our 1929 Ford Tri-Motor airplane on display for viewing," Dillon said. "Throughout the evening, we will also be offering complimentary night flights of the valley lights aboard the Vistaliners."

Local residents interested in attending can head to Scottsdale on complimentary motorcoach transportation. The motorcoach will leave Grand Canyon that Friday morning and return the next day. There will also be seats available on airplanes departing for Scottsdale on the evening of Oct. 24 and returning on the morning of Oct. 26.

For those who want to attend, they should inform Dillon by this coming Tuesday (Oct. 22) so preparations can be made.

Call Grand Canyon Airlines at 638-2359 or toll free at 866-235-9422, or e-mail the airline at: info@grandcanyonairlines.com.


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