A lot has changed in our 74+ years in business, but one thing has stayed consistent throughout the years; Our need to explain to newcomers that, no, we do not build airplanes. So why are we called Airline Hydraulics Corp. (Airline) when what we do doesn't directly involve the airline industry? Let's hop into a time machine and learn how we got our name while exploring our rich company history.
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1940s: Airline Equipment Company | 1950s: Airline Hydraulics Company |
1980s: Airline Hydraulics Corporation | Today
Our Story
1940s
Let's take it back to the start, 1949. In Philadelphia, it was a time of vibrancy for industrial manufacturers. The city had a booming manufacturing economy with staple companies like Baldwin Lima Hamilton, Midvale Heppenstall, Westinghouse Electric, and Philco, employing thousands of workers. Our founder, M. Joseph Loughran, saw the need for these companies to source pneumatic tools and accessories. With his background selling hardware and establishing industry connections, he could successfully help them with the pneumatic equipment they needed. So he did.
M. Joseph Loughran created Airline Equipment Company in 1949 to distribute pneumatic tools and accessories to the major manufacturers in Philadelphia. The name was born from our core competency: Selling equipment used with the pneumatic air lines in factories.
The most significant industrial manufacturers in the city bought air tools from Airline Equipment Company.
With its growing reputation, the company became referred to simply as "Airline." Our slogan was "Call Airline for the tools you need."
1950s
1953 was the catalyst for Airline's long-term success in hydraulics. After adding new hydraulic offerings to our line card, the doors of new customers opened exponentially and Airline, but there was one problem - the name “Airline Equipment Company” was becoming inadequate. It simply did not do the company justice to its growing activity of selling hydraulics. However, the name “Airline” was already well-known by many in the industry. It was a tricky branding decision to make!
So Mr. Loughran and his team adopted a new name, “Airline Hydraulics Company,” to indicate the new hydraulic direction the company was heading while staying true to the original name many already recognized.
1960s & 1970s
In 1968, Mr. M. Joseph Loughran’s son, Joseph E. Loughran, joined the Company, bringing a fresh perspective to the business and a desire to create a rich company culture. (In the photo below, to the left is Joseph E. Loughran, son of Mr. M. Joseph Loughran, to the right.).
1980s
In the decade of big hair, Airline's name took its final transformation - Changing from Airline Hydraulics Company to Airline Hydraulics Corporation, but still referred to as "Airline," as it is today.
1990s
In 1998, Joseph E. Loughran made a significant commitment to invest in sales and engineering resources to become the region's leading fluid power and automation equipment provider.
2000s
As the years continued, Airline grew as a powerhouse of industrial manufacturing services, capabilities, and products and had the resources to continue growing.
2005 was a massive year for Airline, not only because of its overall expansion but because of Joseph E. Loughran's decision to make Airline an Employee Owned Company and establish an Employee Stock Ownership Program (ESOP) created a new sense of purpose among employees. He saw the power of motivating and rewarding employees through their company ownership, and the outcome of that 2005 decision can be seen today in how we work.
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Today, all
With all of Airline’s success, CEO Joseph E. Loughran was ready to slow down and pass on the torch for day-to-day oversight. That’s when Airline formed an independent Board of Directors to assign Airline's future CEOs, with Joseph Loughran remaining as Chairman of the board.
On September 15, 2021, at 79 years old, Joseph E. Loughran passed away peacefully, leaving behind a great legacy. His memory lives on through Airline’s ESOP, the company culture he instilled, and his warmth and kindness, which made him beloved by the Airline team.
Today
We have come a long way since 1949. And Airline’s success over the last 74 years can be attributed to many things. Still, the one thing that has never changed is that Airline has consistently embraced new technologies to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and deliver the best results to our customers.
Even with several name tweaks over the years, we have always been known to our customers as Airline because of our long-standing reputation for expertise and quality commitment.
Additional Resources
- Visit airlinehyd.com
- More Articles About Airline
- Company History Timeline
- Careers at Airline
- Company Culture at Airline
- Airline FAQs
- Airline Knowledge Center
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