It was the most progressive era in the state’s history with good government at the forefront and leaders in office who had a vision for the future of the state. The mid-1970s was a golden era in Florida politics and a time when the state was basking in a tourism boom and a positive image that would disappear in the coming years.
At the time the Federal Government regulated air travel and thus, three airlines controlled over 90% of the domestic air traffic to and from Florida. Those three airlines were Atlanta based Delta a large national carrier, New York based Eastern (who moved to Miami in 1975) which was the second largest airline in the western world at the time and a smaller Miami based Florida/Gulf Coast oriented airline, National.
Hubs airport were almost non-existent in 1974 although Delta and Eastern transited many passengers through Atlanta, while Braniff used Dallas in a similar way and United, TWA and American connected passengers in Chicago. Still schedules were largely based around point to point flights, and people generally flew nonstop or one-stop to preferred destinations on carriers which were strong locally.
Throughout the 1970s the Federal Government regulatory body of the airlines, the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) considered Miami and Fort Lauderdale “co-terminals” or one market like New York and Newark as well as San Francisco and Oakland. This allowed airlines to take the route authority for one airport and serve and both with a single flight. So for example Delta’s Fort Lauderdale-Miami-Montreal and Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Hartford/Springfield and Eastern’s Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Buffalo or National’s Fort Lauderdale-Miami-Los Angeles utilized the rule. It also allowed airlines to take route authority for either airport and use it at both, something Eastern and Delta did liberally until deregulation in 1978 when Eastern focused more on Miami and Delta more on Fort Lauderdale. Unfortunately for those who wanted to visit Palm Beach County, West Palm Beach was considered by the CAB an entirely separate market and saw considerably fewer flights than both Miami and Fort Lauderdale with fewer route awards available. The pattern of residents or visitors in South Palm Beach County using Fort Lauderdale was formed during this period and really has not changed through the years.
In 1974, Miami (including Fort Lauderdale Airport) was Eastern’s second largest market behind Atlanta and just ahead of New York while it was Delta’s third largest behind Atlanta and Chicago. While Delta has more flights out of Miami and Fort Lauderdale than out of Chicago’s two airports, many of the flight routings were Miami-Fort Lauderdale-XXX so Delta actually carried fewer passengers to/from the market than out of Chicago.
At the time Tampa International was the second busiest Florida airport and Orlando was the 4th. In the decades since, those two airports have reversed place. Fort Lauderdale was in 1974 and is in 2013 the third busiest Florida airport, although it is much busier today than it was in 1974 whereas Miami while still the state’s busiest airport has slipped from the 5th busiest in the country to the 15th busiest in the nation. Currently Orlando is the 16th busiest, Fort Lauderdale the 22nd busiest and Tampa the 28th busiest.
National and Eastern served more Florida cities, but Delta served the largest markets at the time and continued to build its presence in the state until it became the dominant carrier following Eastern’s collapse in the early 1990s. Delta’s position has since been undermined by Southwest and JetBlue while American Airlines (who did not serve Florida at all until after deregulation in 1979) made Miami fortress hub after Eastern and Pan Am (which bought National) collapsed in early 1990s. This ended up chasing many other airlines north up I-95 to Fort Lauderdale.
The largest stations for Delta were Fort Lauderdale, Miami and Tampa. For Eastern they were Miami, Tampa and Fort Lauderdale. For National they were Miami, Tampa and Orlando.
Below is a full listing of Delta, Eastern and National’s nonstop flights from Florida cities in 1974.
Daytona Beach
Delta No service
Eastern 10 daily flights
Atlanta (3x daily)
Jacksonville (5x daily)
Miami (2x daily)
National 5 daily flights
Jacksonville (3x daily)
Miami (1x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (1x daily)
Fort Lauderdale
Delta 45 daily flights
Atlanta (6x daily)
Baltimore (1x daily)
Boston (3x daily)
Chicago – O’Hare (4x daily)
Columbus (1x daily)
Detroit (2x daily)
Hartford/Springfield (1x daily)
Jacksonville (3x daily)
Miami (7x daily)
Newark (4x daily)
New York – LaGuardia (2x daily)
New York – Kennedy (4x daily)
Orlando (2x daily)
Philadelphia (2x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (5x daily)
Eastern 45 daily flights
Atlanta (5x daily)
Baltimore (1x daily)
Boston (1x daily)
Buffalo (1x daily)
Chicago – O’Hare (4x daily)
Cleveland (1x daily)
Detroit (1x daily)
Freeport (1x daily)
Hartford/Springfield (1x daily)
Miami (4x daily)
Nassau (2x daily)
Newark (3x daily)
New York – LaGuardia (7x daily)
New York – Kennedy (4x daily)
Philadelphia (4x daily)
Pittsburgh (1x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (3x daily)
West Palm Beach (1x daily)
National 13 daily flights
Miami (3x daily)
Newark (2x daily)
New York – LaGuardia (4x daily)
New York – Kennedy (2x daily)
Fort Myers
Delta no service
Eastern no service
National 8 flights daily
Miami (2x daily)
Orlando (1x daily)
Sarasota/Bradenton (2x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (3x daily)
Gainesville
Delta No service
Eastern
Atlanta (3x daily)
Miami (1x daily)
National No service
Jacksonville
Delta 24 daily flights
Atlanta (8x daily)
Columbia (1x daily)
Fort Lauderdale (3x daily)
Daytona Beach (5x daily)
Miami (1x daily)
New York- Kennedy (1x daily)
Orlando (2x daily)
West Palm Beach (3x daily)
Eastern 16 flights daily
Atlanta (6x daily)
Chicago – O’Hare (1x daily)
Daytona Beach (5x daily)
Melbourne (1x daily)
New York – Kennedy (1x daily)
New York – LaGuardia (1x daily)
Washington – National (1x daily)
National 12 daily flights
Daytona Beach (3x daily)
Miami (2x daily)
New Orleans (1x daily)
Newark (1x daily)
Norfolk (1x daily)
Orlando (1x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (1x daily)
Tallahassee (2x daily)
Melbourne
Delta no service
Eastern 6 daily flights
Atlanta (3x daily)
Jacksonville (1x daily)
Miami (1x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (1x daily)
National 3 daily flights
Miami (2x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (1x daily)
Miami
Delta 45 daily flights
Atlanta (8x daily)
Boston (3x daily)
Chicago – O’Hare (3x daily)
Cincinnati (2x daily)
Detroit (1x daily)
Fort Lauderdale (7x daily)
Houston – Intercontinental (2x daily)
Jacksonville (1x daily)
Memphis (2x daily)
Montreal (2x daily)
Newark (3x daily)
New York – LaGuardia (1x daily)
New York – Kennedy (4x daily)
Philadelphia (2x daily)
San Francisco (1x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (2x daily)
Washington – National (1x daily)
Eastern 88 daily flights
Atlanta (6x daily)
Baltimore (2x daily)
Birmingham (1x daily)
Boston (3x daily)
Charlotte (1x daily)
Chicago-O’Hare (4x daily)
Cleveland (2x daily)
Dallas/Fort Worth (2x daily)
Detroit (2x daily)
Fort Lauderdale (4x daily)
Freeport (6x daily)
Gainesville (1x daily)
Hartford/Springfield (1x daily)
Melbourne (1x daily)
Nassau (7x daily)
New Orleans (2x daily)
Newark (3x daily)
New York – LaGuardia (8x daily)
New York – Kennedy (3x daily)
Orlando (4x daily)
Philadelphia (3x daily)
Pittsburgh (2x daily)
Providence (1x daily)
Raleigh/Durham (2x daily)
St Louis (2x daily)
St Thomas (1x daily)
San Juan (4x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (3x daily)
Washington- National (5x daily)
West Palm Beach (2x daily)
National 42 daily flights
Baltimore (1x daily)
Daytona Beach (1x daily)
Fort Lauderdale (3x daily)
Fort Myers (2x daily)
Houston (2x daily)
Jacksonville (2x daily)
London –Heathrow (1x daily)
Los Angeles (2x daily)
Melbourne (2x daily)
Newark (3x daily)
New York – LaGuardia (3x daily)
New York – Kennedy (6x daily)
Orlando (4x daily)
Philadelphia (1x daily)
San Francisco (2x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (4x daily)
West Palm Beach (3x daily)
Orlando
Delta 17 daily flights
Atlanta (8x daily)
Chicago – O’Hare (3x daily)
Dallas/Fort Worth (1x daily)
Fort Lauderdale (2x daily)
West Palm Beach (3x daily)
Eastern 31 daily flights
Atlanta (6x daily)
Boston (1x daily)
Chicago-O’Hare (2x daily)
Cleveland (1x daily)
Fort Lauderdale (3x daily)
Huntsville (1x daily)
Indianapolis (1x daily)
Miami (4x daily)
Newark (1x daily)
New York – LaGuardia (1x daily)
New York – Kennedy (3x daily)
Philadelphia (1x daily)
Pittsburgh (1x daily)
San Juan (1x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (1x daily)
Titusville/Cocoa (1x daily)
Washington-National (1x daily)
National 20 daily flights
Boston (1x daily)
Fort Myers (1x daily)
Jacksonville (3x daily)
Miami (4x daily)
Newark (1x daily)
New York – LaGuardia (1x daily)
New York – Kennedy (1x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (7x daily)
West Palm Beach (1x daily)
Panama City
Delta No service
Eastern No service
National 5 daily flights
Pensacola (3x daily)
Tallahassee (1x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (1x daily)
Pensacola
Delta No service
Eastern 9 daily flights
Atlanta (4x daily)
Birmingham (3x daily)
Montgomery (2x daily)
National 7 daily flights
Mobile (4x daily)
Panama City (3x daily)
Sarasota/Bradenton
Delta No service
Eastern 8 daily flights
Atlanta (4x daily)
Orlando (1x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (3x daily)
National
Fort Myers (2x daily)
New York – Kennedy (1x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (5x daily)
Tallahassee
Delta No Service
Eastern 7 daily flights
Atlanta (5x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (2x daily)
National 3 daily flights
Jacksonville (2x daily)
Panama City (1x daily)
Tampa/St Pete
Delta 36 daily flights
Atlanta (8x daily)
Boston (3x daily)
Chicago – O’Hare (4x daily)
Cincinnati (2x daily)
Fort Lauderdale (5x daily)
Indianapolis (1x daily)
Louisville (1x daily)
Miami (2x daily)
New York – LaGuardia (1x daily)
New York- Kennedy (3x daily)
Philadelphia (2x daily)
West Palm Beach (4x daily)
Eastern 45 daily flights
Atlanta (6x daily)
Boston (2x daily)
Chicago (2x daily)
Cleveland (1x daily)
Columbus (1x daily)
Dallas/Fort Worth (2x daily)
Detroit (2x daily)
Fort Lauderdale (3x daily)
Hartford/Springfield (1x daily)
Louisville (1x daily)
Melbourne (1x daily)
Miami (4x daily)
Newark (1x daily)
New York – LaGuardia (2x daily)
New York – Kennedy (2x daily)
Orlando (1x daily)
Philadelphia (2x daily)
Pittsburgh (1x daily)
St Louis (1x daily)
Sarasota/Bradenton (3x daily)
Tallahassee (2x daily)
Washington-National (2x daily)
West Palm Beach (2x daily)
National 33 daily flights
Daytona Beach (1x daily)
Fort Myers (3x daily)
Houston-Intercontinental (2x daily)
Jacksonville (1x daily)
Melbourne (1x daily)
Miami (4x daily)
New Orleans (3x daily)
New York – Kennedy (2x daily)
Orlando (7x daily)
Panama City (2x daily)
Sarasota/Bradenton (5x daily)
Washington-National (2x daily)
Titusville/Cocoa
Delta No service
Eastern 2 daily flights
Melbourne (1x daily)
Orlando (1x daily)
National No service
Vero Beach
Delta No service
Eastern 4 daily flights
Miami (2x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (2x daily)
National No service
West Palm Beach
Delta 18 daily flights
Atlanta (4x daily)
Boston (1x daily)
Chicago – O’Hare (2x daily)
Jacksonville (3x daily)
Orlando (3x daily)
Savannah (1x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (4x daily)
Eastern 16 daily flights
Atlanta (3x daily)
Boston (1x daily)
Fort Lauderdale (1x daily)
Miami (2x daily)
Newark (2x daily)
New York – LaGuardia (1x daily)
New York – Kennedy (2x daily)
Philadelphia (1x daily)
Tampa/St Pete (2x daily)
Washington – National (1x daily)
National 9 daily flights
Jacksonville (1x daily)
Miami (3x daily)
New York – Kennedy (1x daily)
New York – LaGuardia (1x daily)
Orlando (1x daily)
Washington- National (2x daily)
The Florida Squeeze 
I know United flew to Florida as well. Probably not many flights but they had service to Florida even though you say American did not at this time.
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I am pretty sure TWA came to Florida also then. Obviously United, TWA and the other airlines had limited flights due to regulation. United advertised flights to Fort Lauderdale and Miami in upstate NY when I was growing up in the 1970s. So they definitely flew New York-South Florida.
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Eastern was the airline to Florida in those days. When you thought of Florida you thought of Eastern.
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Don’t forget about the Everglades Jetport which was to be the largest airport in the world…. now just that one huge lone runway out in the middle of the glades.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dade-Collier_Training_and_Transition_Airport
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