One last flight under US Airways logo

Some came purposely to ride on the final US Airways flight between Philadelphia and San Francisco - and back. Others on Friday morning were on Flight 1939, named for the year US Airways was founded, by chance.

Joe Hart, 56, was heading home to Charlotte, N.C., while Joy and Rob Barcome, both 51, were on their way to a wedding. Chavez Carter, 31, was going to attend homecoming at his alma mater, Alcorn State University in Lorman, Miss.

"It's serendipitous, I suppose," said Ben Fedeles, 32, an Air Force officer headed back to MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa. "It's a piece of history, and sometimes you just walk into it."

When the 187 ticketed passengers - and 78 others wanting to fly standby - arrived at Philadelphia International Airport Gate A18 for the first leg of a four-part final US Airways journey, they were greeted with balloons, free coffee, and doughnuts.

"Work brought me to Philadelphia. I just happen to be on the last flight," said Hart, an investment banker.

"But the coincidence is I was also on Flight 1549, the Hudson River flight," Hart said. He was among the 155 passengers and crew aboard US Airways Flight 1549, which pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger successfully landed in the Hudson River after a flock of Canada geese knocked out the aircraft's engines shortly after takeoff from LaGuardia Airport in January 2009.

"It's kind of an interesting coincidence," Hart said. "I just texted a bunch of people who were on the flight with me when we hit the river and said, 'How weird is this?' "

The Airbus A321 landed at Philadelphia International Airport at 5:54 a.m. Saturday after departing from San Francisco at 1:07 a.m. as a red-eye flight. When it did, US Airways faded into aviation history.

US Airways and American Airlines merged in December 2013. The combined carrier retained the American name and will switch to a single passenger-reservation system on Saturday.

Flight 1939 departed Philadelphia for Charlotte at 10:05 a.m. Friday. The flight continued from Charlotte to Phoenix, and from Phoenix to San Francisco. The last leg was scheduled to leave San Francisco at 9:55 p.m.

Among the 12 passengers on all four legs of the 5,394-mile journey was Ethan Hellofs, 13, and his mother, Julie, from Chapel Hill, N.C.

In third grade, Ethan said, he "fell in love with airplanes." He wants to be a commercial pilot.

Ethan asked his parents about a month ago to take the flight, "to be part of aviation history."

His mother recalled: "At the time, his father and I hemmed and hawed about it. But as we thought about it, he is so passionate about airplanes, all things aviation, that we decided about a week ago to surprise him with the tickets."

"Life is about making memories," she said, "and we thought this is one memory he'll have forever."

Among the nostalgia buffs on the final leg of the trip was Edwin Colodny, 89, who was US Airways' CEO from 1975 to 1991.

"I feel very close to the US Airways history, having been a part of it for a long time," said Colodny, who joined Allegheny Airlines in 1957 as staff attorney and was involved in four mergers or acquisitions of US Airways' predecessor airlines.

Colodny flew to Philadelphia from Burlington, Vt., on Friday, and caught a 4 p.m. nonstop to San Francisco in order to be on the red-eye to Philadelphia.

"We are commemorating a good, long run, and celebrating the start of a new era that is very exciting," he said. "It's both looking back, and looking forward."

lloyd@phillynews.com

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@LoydLinda

This article contains material from The Associated Press.