page_title: Stanley Kennedy Sr.
section_title: Creating Inter-Island Airways
hierarchical_section_title: Stanley Kennedy Sr. / Airline career / Creating Inter-Island Airways
caption_attribution_description: English: One-quarter front left side view of Inter-Island Airways Sikorsky S-43 in flight past an unidentified mountainous coastline somewhere in the Hawaiian Islands; circa 1935-1940.
context_page_description: Stanley Carmichael Kennedy Sr. was a US Naval Aviator during World War I, world record holder and Silver Star recipient, pioneer of commercial aviation in the Hawaiian Islands, and founder of Hawaiian Airlines, one of the world's oldest operating airlines. Kennedy ran Hawaiian Airlines from the time of its incorporation in 1929 until he stepped down from daily operations in 1955. He remained Chairman of the Board until his death in 1968.
context_section_description: Kennedy returned from WWI and resumed his career at the Inter-Island Steam Navigation Company. His experience flying seaplanes led him to the possibility of using seaplanes to connect the people of Hawaii. He approached his father about adding a seaplane division to his company's offerings, but his father saw airplanes as "flying toys" to be used in only good weather.
  Shortly after his father's death in 1926, Kennedy's proposal to the company's Board of Directors was accepted, and on January 30, 1929 Inter-Island Airways became a legal entity with Kennedy appointed vice president and general manager. Inter-Island Steam's Board Member F.C. Atherton was appointed President to oversee their investment of $300,000.
  The first employees Kennedy hired were Navy pilot Charles Elliott as Chief Pilot and Army pilot Carl Cover as Operations Manager. Kennedy, Cover, and Elliott, all being WWI veterans, decided on Armistice Day (November 11) to be the inaugural flight in the Sikorsky S-38 amphibious airplanes. On November 11, 1929, Kennedy's dream of scheduled airline service in the Hawaiian Islands took flight as Elliott and Cover flew the two Sikorsky's in formation from Honolulu to Maui, then on to Hilo.
  Starting an airline the month after the Wall Street Crash of 1929, was a daunting task. However, the Board of Directors had great faith in Kennedy, making him the President of both Inter-Island Steam Navigation and Inter-Island Airways in February 1933. The airline lost money for the first 5 years, until Kennedy was able to secure the airmail contract starting on October 8, 1934. This allowed Kennedy to start looking for larger airplanes to operate, and 10 days after the maiden airmail flight he decided on the Sikorsky S-43, making Inter-Island Airways the launch customer for this new aircraft.
caption: Inter-Islands Airways Sikorsky S-43 in Molokai
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