Piedmont Airlines Flight Attendant Wing 4th Issue

Winston-Salem, NC 1948-1989

Piedmont Airlines began in 1940 as Piedmont Aviation, an aircraft sales and maintenance company. From 1942 to 1944 they were awarded a government contract for the Civilian Pilot Training Program. In 1947, Piedmont Airlines was certified as a Feeder Air Carrier with their first flight beginning in 1948 using DC-3 aircraft. The airline became an international carrier when they began service to London, England in 1987. In 1986 the airline bought Empire Airlines and Jetstream International Airlines. Piedmont completed its purchase of Henson Airlines in 1987. That buyout took from 1983 to 1987. The regional airlines that flew under the Piedmont banner were Henson, Jetstream, CCAir, Brockway, Britt and Transair. On August 4, 1989 Piedmont flew its last flight and merged into USAir. In 1997, USAir was renamed US Airways. US Airways' merger with American Airlines was completed in December 2013. Piedmont Airlines flights are expected to be rebranded as American Eagle in 2015 due to the merger. A different Piedmont Airlines is currently operating. It is is a regional airline operation for US Airways Express. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of the American Airlines Group.