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What A Hoot! The Hooters Air Story

© John L. Hoh, Jr.

This being February, many look forward to the annual Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. Reviled by some, adored by others, this issue seeks to bring some summer in the dead cold of Winter.

This looks to be as good a time as any to feature Hooters Air. Along the way we'll try to discover if the airline is as wise as the owl on its tail-or just an airline seeking to provide some fun in air travel a la Pacific Southwest Airlines.

The start date for Hooters Air is 6 March 2003. The inaugural flight connected Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, with Atlanta, Georgia. An impetus for the creation of Hooters Air was the bankruptcy dissolution of Vanguard Airlines, although the connection seems hazy. Did Hooters take over aircraft used by Vanguard at a reasonable price that made such a venture feasible?

Of course, the airline is owned by the group that runs the Hooters chain of restaurants. And Hooters has this, um, reputation. When the airline started, newspapers employed liberal word play (even some innuendo) in their reporting. With such witticisms as "Whoooo would fly Hooters Air?" to "Buffalo wings can fly," and many things in between, Hooters Air received free publicity. That can't hurt an airline.

And Hooters seems to have thrived. Hooters now flies to Myrtle Beach, Atlanta, Columbus (Ohio,) Gary/Chicago, Newark/New York, and Nassau. Starting 31 January 2005 Hooters will start service to Rockford, Illinois, Las Vegas, and Denver. Service to Pittsburg is scheduled to begin 10 February 2005. (Route Map)

Hooters Air aircraft livery schemes feature the orange and white colors of the famous Hooters restaurant chain. Hooters Air graphics and the Hooters owl "Hootie" on the tail round out the Hooters Air look.

And, of course, we cannot forget the Hooter girls! They are more than pretty faces. They are the food and beverage hostesses. The crew on a flight certainly is cause for higher air fare. Hooters Air flights are manned by a flight crew consisting of two pilots, three flight attendants and two Hooters Girls. The pilots and flight attendants wear the traditional pilot/flight attendant uniforms. The Hooters Girls themselves wear the traditional restaurant uniforms-the snug, form-fitting outfits that the Girls are famous for. The Hooters Girls are actually restaurant employees who assist with the hostess and food and beverage functions in flight.

Hooters Air seems to be a partner with Pace Airlines and Vacation Express.