the Caledonian ''case'' set a precedent for affinity group charters then ABC charters
Caledonian Airways attaining market leadership in transatlantic affinity group charters.
On 20 May 1963, the US Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) granted Caledonian a foreign air carrier permit for a three-year period under Section 402 of the US Federal Aviation Act. It became effective on 17 June 1963 when it was signed by President John F. Kennedy, making Caledonian the first overseas charter carrier to obtain this permit.
The so-called Caledonian Case established a precedent and constituted the legal basis for all airlines that had always wanted to operate charters to and from the US and Canada, but had been unable to overcome the objections of the established airlines, such as Pan Am and British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC), prior to the enactment of this law.
Caledonian's US breakthrough led to it being granted Canadian affinity group charter permission as well. The UK Air Transport Licensing Board (ATLB) licensed Caledonian to begin North Atlantic IT charters in September 1964.
Caledonian's transatlantic growth strategy focused on taking advantage of strong ethnic ties of overseas Scottish communities in North America to the land of their ancestors and an obscure International Air Transport Association (IATA) resolution dating from 1953. Under this resolution, airlines were permitted to offer cut-price charter tariffs if these were negotiated with an individual representing a distinct group that shared a common affinity among its members prior to the application for charter transportation.
The way independent charter operators like Caledonian, who were not IATA members, interpreted that resolution was that it applied to closed groups only whose primary purpose of travel was their common interest, rather than securing cheap air fares for its members.
IATA imposed further restrictions on airlines seeking to exploit this loophole by insisting that any agent booking these flights had their commission capped at 5%, that the affinity group's membership could not exceed 20,000 and that those seeking to avail themselves of these offers must have been members for at least six months prior to the commencement of travel. These restrictions were designed to protect IATA members' transatlantic scheduled traffic by preventing non-members from undercutting them.
To comply with IATA's arbitrary transatlantic charter rules, Caledonian and other independent charter operators insisted that anyone who wanted a cheap transatlantic charter flight needed to be a bona fide member of an affinity group, and that the prospective traveller needed to be a member of such an organisation for a minimum period of six months. As a result, clubs and associations with names like Friends of Clan Albion, Anglo-Scottish-American Group, Anglo-American Families Association, Rose and Maple Amity Club, Paisley Buddies, British American Club, Canadian US Pacific Association etc. sprang up on both sides of the Atlantic.
As the charterer was responsible for paying for the aircraft's entire capacity regardless of whether all seats were filled, there was a great temptation to let people, who were not eligible to travel under the affinity group rules, take the seats of other, eligible travellers who had cancelled their bookings. As a result, there were numerous occasions on which the airlines got into trouble with the authorities on both sides of the Atlantic. This made the system increasingly unworkable.
In 1967, Caledonian gained Presidential approval to carry passengers from 19 European countries to the US and to operate IT charters from the US to the UK, following authorisation by the CAB. Confirmation by the White House of the CAB's decision to let Caledonian fly US-originating charter passengers to Britain made it at the time the only airline permitted to cater to the IT market on both sides of the Atlantic.
In 1968, the CAB agreed to expand Caledonian's US IT charter authority to enable it to operate circle-tour charters between 19 European points and the US, with flights commencing the following year.
By 1969, more charter passengers were crossing the Atlantic with Caledonian than those flying on the transatlantic scheduled services of Aer Lingus, El Al, Sabena or Swissair.
By 1970, Caledonian was carrying the majority of the approximately 1.4 million passengers flying as members of affinity groups across the Atlantic each year.
Caledonian sought to differentiate itself from the other UK independent airlines and US supplemental carriers with which it competed in the transatlantic closed group charter market by providing a personalised, high quality full-scheduled-service style inflight service that exceeded most contemporary scheduled transatlantic operators' economy class service standards by a wide margin.
On a typical transatlantic 707 charter, there were individually printed menus. The inflight service began with tartan-clad cabin staff serving each passenger free cocktails from the drinks trolley at each seat row as soon as the seat belt signs were turned off. This was followed by the main meal, starting with a separately served hors d'œuvre before serving a main course of fillet of beef, Tournedos, lamb or a chicken dish, accompanied by a selection of complimentary wines. Thereafter, a dessert course was served, followed by a choice from a cheese tray and a basket of fresh fruit. The inflight service concluded with tea or coffee being served with complimentary brandies and liqueurs, as well as free cigarettes for those who smoked.
In Canada wardair was doing much of the same to fight regulations and offer a superior product