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| Founded | 18 May 1945 (as Trans Caribbean Air Cargo Lines) | ||||||
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| Commenced operations | December 1945 | ||||||
| Ceased operations | 2 March 1971 (merged into American Airlines) | ||||||
| Focus cities | New York–JFK San Juan | ||||||
| Fleet size | 12 | ||||||
| Destinations | 9 | ||||||
| Headquarters | New York, New York | ||||||
| Key people | O. Roy Chalk | ||||||
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Trans Caribbean Airways (TCA) was an irregular air carrier (United States charter airline) until 1957, when it was certificated by the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) as an international air carrier to fly from New York City to San Juan, Puerto Rico. TCA thereafter operated as a small scheduled airline specializing in flying from New York (and later Washington, DC) to the Caribbean, adding a small number of additional routes over time until it was purchased by American Airlines in 1971.
TCA was founded and, for its entire existence controlled, by businessman O. Roy Chalk.
TCA was known for:
- Its unusual final livery of light blue, dark blue and orange
- Being the only irregular (or supplemental air carrier) to achieve scheduled certification during the regulated era of the US airline industry
- Its system being an oasis of low fares among the airlines regulated by the CAB, which otherwise sought to regulate fares to keep them high to support industry profitability. This was noted by advocates of deregulation[1]
- Its routes forming the foundation of the later Caribbean dominance of American Airlines
- ^ Levine, Michael E. (1965). "Is Regulation Necessary? California Air Transportation and National Regulatory Policy". Yale Law Journal. 74 (8): 1446. doi:10.2307/794731. hdl:20.500.13051/15038. JSTOR 794731.