Aloft on a Wing and a Name

Air Florida's officers and employees have clung to the hope that the Miami-based carrier would fly again ever since it declared bankruptcy last July. But Air Florida will probably never return to the air. Last week the company announced a tentative plan to merge into Chicago-based Midway Airlines ( estimated 1984 revenues: $140 million).

The agreement calls for Midway to operate four of Air Florida's seven Boeing 737 jets and to hire about 235 of the airline's 1,200 employees. The aircraft will fly under the name Midway Express to help rekindle confidence among Air Florida customers, hundreds of whom were left with worthless tickets when the carrier went bankrupt. Midway Express will offer inexpensive, low-frills flights instead of Midway's regular service, which is aimed at business travelers. The acquisition, expected to cost Midway about $7 million, will allow the carrier to expand into Florida and take over the Caribbean routes that Air Florida served. Provided the plan receives court and regulatory approval, Midway Chairman Arthur Bass predicts that the buy-out will enable his company to double its revenues in 1985.