Pinnacle Airline Corp. says it intends to phase out use of the Colgan Air name now that it has purchased another airline.
Colgan, which flies as Continental Connection, United Express and US Airways Express, operated the plane that crashed in Buffalo, N.Y., last year, killing 50 people. Its headquarters are in Manassas, Va.
Pinnacle bought Mesaba Airlines from Delta last week. Pinnacle spokesman Joe Williams said in a statement Thursday that the plan is to reorganize into two airlines, with Pinnacle operating jets and Mesaba operating turboprops.
The phase-out of the Colgan name, reported first by The Buffalo News, won't happen immediately. Williams said Pinnacle will use all three airline names for the foreseeable future.