The Beech Aircraft Corporation was founded back in 1932 by Olive Ann and Walter Beech in Wichita, Kansas. After World War II, the company developed successful aircraft families such as the Bonanza and the King Air series, from which the Model 1900 series emerged. The 19-seat commuter quickly became a bestseller, also due to its pressurized cabin and a higher cabin ceiling which now made it possible to walk upright – a new feature in this class of aircraft at the time. One of the largest operators was US Airways Express, the regional subsidiary of US Airways. With first aircraft delivered from 1991, up to 50 aircraft were operated at its peak by four independent airlines, operating under the US Airways Express brand: Arizona-based Mesa Airlines, Kansas-based Air Midwest, New York-based CommutAir, and Virginia-based Colgan Air – N124CJ was initially operated for US Air as N83306 by CommutAir before being purchased and reregistered by Colgan Air in 2003.