Category AN AIRIINE AN0 ITS AIRCRAFT

BOEING 727-231

Air Mail Special

One of the more unusual of T. W.A.’s “firsts”is that, of all the air­lines established in 1925 as the result of the Kelly Air Mail Act, it carried the first passenger. He was not even the official recip­ient of Western Air Express’s ticket No. 1 (see page 6) but he did precede Mr. Ben Redman, who had that privilege. Not only was Will Rogers the first passenger in T. W.A.’s 75-year history, he was the first famous personality of the dozens of celebrities who were later to make Howard Hughes’s company the Airline of the Stars.

The civil air mail regulations required that, before an air­line could carry passengers, it had to carry the mail for 90 days, or at least for a trial period (see page 9). A1 DeGarmo, one of the Western’s legendary Four Horsemen (see page 10), was a friend of Will Rogers, then a vaudeville entertainer, noted for his prowess with rope tricks, later to become famous for his droll commentaries on the human condition. In a conspiracy that evaded the law — the lawyers would have had a lovely time in the courts — Will stuck a quantity of stamps on the back of his jacket and mailed himself to Salt Lake City and back.

In 1926, the pilots were not noted for their sartorial ele­gance, as they are today. But their attire was practical, and included a side-arm. This was to guard the mail, and in this case, presumably, to guard Will Rogers as well.

Los Conquistadores del Cielo

Another of T. W.A.’s lesser-known “firsts’ is that it inspired the foundation of that exclusive aviation club. The idea originated when in 1937 the airline obtained widespread support among political and business circles for its cut-off route to San Fran­cisco, branching off northwestwards from Winslow, thus avoid­ing the circuitous route via Los Angeles and a connection on to Western Air Lines, via Las Vegas (see page 38).

President Jack Frye wanted to make a token reward to all the influential supporters who had enabled him to win approval for this important access to San Francisco. John Walker, Frye’s vice-president, suggested a weekend celebration in September 1937 for 60 guests at the Forked Lightning Ranch in Albu­querque. A great time was had by all, including horseback riding, fishing, and a dude rodeo — at which Jack Frye showed that he was no mean hand at roping steers, at least small steers.

The general consensus was “let’s do it again.” and John Walker once again came up with the idea of linking an annual event with the Spanish tradition of the south-western states, the locale of the cut-off route. And so was bom Los Conquista­dores del Cielo, named after Francisco de Coronado, the Span­ish conquistador who had annexed the whole area for Spain.

Jack Frye was elected president and 91 senior aviation aficionados were inducted on 16-18 September 1938 in a col­orful initiation ceremony. This has been enhanced by a dress code, introduced by Walker in 1951: replicas of the raiment worn by Hernan Cortes and the original conquistadores. The Conquerors of the Skies meet every year, at different venues, in an elite association that owes its origins to a T. W.A. route extension.

Flooded Out

In July 1951, there was a great flood in the Missouri River valley, covering an extensive area of low-lying land around Kansas City, where the confluence with the Kansas River exacerbated the disaster. T. W.A.’s engineering base was then at the Fairfax airport (see page 107) which was vulnerable to flooding. In this picture a lone DC-3 can be seen stranded in the waters, but T. W.A. flew the other resident aircraft to higher ground.

Historic Greeting

As narrated on page 52, one of the pivotal events in air transport history was the dramatic flight in 1944 of the first Lockheed Constellation, when Howard Hughes and Jack Frye delivered the prototype from Burbank to Washington in a transcontinental record time, (see page 52) They are pictured here on arrival at Washington’s National Airport with (left) William A. M.Burden, Assistant Secretary of Commerce; and Jesse Jones, Secretary of Commerce.

Maddux Air Lines Posted by admin in AN AIRIINE AN0 ITS AIRCRAFT on November 2, 2015 Jack Maddux Harris Hanshue’s Western Air Express and Jack Frye’s Stan­dard Airlines were not the only airlines of substance among the many which recognized the possible potential for airline operations in the booming California of the late 1920s. Jack L. Maddux, a Los Angeles Lincoln car dealer, took delivery of a Ford 4-AT Tri-Motor and incorporated Maddux Air Lines on 9 September 1927. His activities were overshad­owed by other events, not least by Charles Lindbergh’s his­toric trans-Atlantic flight in May of that year and the Goodwill Tour of the 48 States that followed. Maddux’s con­tribution to the development of the airline business in the West has long been under-recognized, except by historians such as Ed Betts and Bill Larkins, whose research has pre­served the memory of the Maddux operation. Service Begins Maddux began airline service on 1 November 1929 from Rogers Field, Los Angeles, to San Diego. He did it in style. For the occasion, Lindbergh was the honorary chief pilot. But like most of the aspirant airlines in California, he had no mail contract to supplement the passenger revenues. Nevertheless, he was very successful and popular. On 15 November, he added service to Agua Caliente, just across the Mexican MADDUX AIR ONES FORD TRI-MOTORS One of Maddux Air-Line’s Ford 4-ATs flying near the Tejon Pass, north of Los Angeles.   Maddux was one of the earliest airlines to cooperate with United Parcel Sendee (UPS) in carrying goods by air.   Artwork size does not allow accurate scale representation of the Tri-Motor’s corrugated aluminum skin.   Jack Maddux is seen here with Charles Lindbergh, who flew the inaugural flight, (photo courtesy Bill Larkins)   Engines Wright R-975 Whirlwind (220 hp) x 3 Length 50 feet MGT0W 10,130 lb Span 74 feet Range 500 miles Height 12 feet   border, for thirsty Prohibition sufferers and for clients of the race-track and casinos there. On 14 April 1928, he started a twice-daily service from Los Angeles to San Francisco (Oakland), with optional stops at Bakersfield, Visalia, and Fresno. By the end of the year, his fleet com­prised eight Fords, two Lockheed Vegas, and two Travel Airs. Ford Promotion Maddux began 1929 in style, adding a daily service to Phoenix (paralleling Standard), together with some local routes in California. Early in the year, the San Francisco terminus was trans­ferred to Alameda, and the Los Angeles terminus to Glendale. Jack Maddux had assembled the largest fleet of Ford Tri-Motors, eight 4-ATs and eight 5-ATs plus two Lockheed Vegas. The only loss was when an Army pilot, doing some stunt flying, hit a 5-AT in mid-air. Maddux had not apparently sought an air mail contract, but his 16 pilots carried 40,000 passengers in 1929. Historic Merger In the summer, he started to negotiate with the new well-capitalized T. A.T., which began its highly-publicized coast-to-coast air-rail service on 7 July. Charles Lindbergh flew the inaugu­ral flights for both airlines. Another important Maddux employee was Vice-president of Oper­ations Lt. D. W. ‘Tommy’ Tomlinson, an ex-Navy pilot, and who was to play a key role in subsequent developments, when on 16 November 1929, Jack Maddux merged with T. A.T. and became president of the combined airline. T. A.T.-Maddux. Through this merger, T. A.T. was able to serve the two big Californian cities. Los Angeles and San Francisco, both growing quickly in population, wealth, and consequent travel potential. The Ford Tri-Motors Compared Consolidation of a Great Airline Postmaster General Brown’s analytical planning had pro­duced a fine transcontinental route. The Maddux merger had given T. A.T. direct service to all three of the large urban con­centrations in California. But the formation of T. W.A. had been a complicated affair, because Pittsburgh Aviation Industries Corporation (P. A.I. C.) had started service from Pittsburgh to New York, via Philadelphia, with two Travel Airs, in December 1929, and had staked its claim. The threat to Brown’s master plan was neatly solved by dividing the stock of the merged company in the ratio 47.5% T. A.T., 47.5% W. A.E., and 5% P. A.I. C. After a legal delicacy, with the formation of the Eton Corporation on 19 July 1930, Transcontinental & Western Air (T. W.A.) was formed five days later. The coveted mail contract was awarded on 25 August. Although Harris Hanshue was made president of the new company, he quickly became disillusioned. R. W. Rob­bins, of P. A.I. C., took over the presidency in September 1931. Another contender, a group called United Avigation, was disposed of by the offer of a lucrative mail contract on a route sub-leased from American Airways. End of the Air-Rail With the completion of the Lighted Airway, and the improve­ment of aircraft reliability, the pioneering air-rail service came to an end. On 25 October 1930, the train connections were dropped and the Fords flew the whole route, coast-to-coast, in 36 hours, with an overnight stop at Kansas City. On 5 Novem­ber 1932, even the overnight stop was dropped and the Fords flew by day and by night. Nevertheless the journey must have been arduous. The Ford’s engines were noisy, and passengers were issued ear plugs and chewing gum. Another development had been the shipment of livestock on 6 August 1931, one of the first examples of air freighting in the United States. Superb Planning All this was achieved only by some masterly planning. This is well illustrated by the map on this double-page spread, based on an original blueprint, signed by Jack Frye, but undoubtedly the work of T. W.A.’s technical consultant, Charles Lind­bergh, who carried out the detailed surveys. He had a per­sonal aircraft for the arduous travelling involved, and was paid $10,000 per year (a tidy sum in those days) plus 25,000 shares of T. W.A. stock, sold at well below market value. Transcontinental & Western Air, inc. America’s First 36-Hour Transcontinental Passenger Service   Ad   THE NATIONAL SKYWAY   ‘ ГІЄІ4 .   і? ^ г – Аі-лнс   jf^ ,v0 x x wWoynoka (WT) * * Fargo (WT) x* . uA „ьТ Gia*ier(wT) J? ,*r,   ^юкином wj, A, isxas   REGD   Lockheed 1649A Starliner Posted by admin in AN AIRIINE AN0 ITS AIRCRAFT on November 2, 2015 64-88 seats • 340 mph

The final development of the famous Constellation series of airliners was the Model 1649A, introduced by T. W.A. on 1 OJune 1952. At first it was called the Super Star Constellation (by Lockheed). T. W.A. called it the “Jetstream Starliner”, possibly to try to persuade passengers that this aircraft was as good as any of the jets that were about to enter service in 1958, or the long-range turboprop Bristol Britannia that was outpacing the piston-engined airliners in speed, comfort, and low noise level. But this name gave way to the Starliner, which fitted neatly with the names of the individual aircraft in T. W.A.’s fleet. It was a fine performer, able to cross the Atlantic from New York to Paris or London nonstop in both directions. It was the Lockheed 1649Д Starliner (Model 1649A-98-20 except as noted)_____________________

Engines Wright 998TC (3,400 hp) x 4 Length 116 feet MGTOW 156,000-160,000 lb. Span 150 feet Range 4,000 miles Height 25 feet ultimate piston-engined airline flagship, and, as shown in the following pages, was roomy enough to offer several classes of service, and able to compete with Pan American’s first-class – only Stratocruisers.

Fleet No. Regn. MSN Date into Service Name Disposal and Remarsk 316 N7316C 1018 28 Jun 58 Star of the Tigris Converted to freighter, Nov. 60. Sold to Alaska Airlines, 31 Dec 62 317 N7317C 1019 1 Jul 57 Star of the Clyde Converted to freighter, Oct 60. Sold to California Airmotive, 11 Aug 67 318 N7318C 1021 30Jul57 Star of the Arno Sold to Bush Aviation, 27 Dec 65 319 N7319C 1022 26 Jul57 Star of the Loire Converted to freighter, Nov 60. Sold to Bush Aviation, 10 May 66. 320 N7320C 1023 27 Jul 57 Star of the Avon Sold to Transatlantica (Argentina), 11 Aug 61. Reclaimed and sold to Bush Aviation, 15 Dec 65 321 N7321C 1024 2 Aug 57 Star of the Euphrates Sold to Bush Aviation, 8 Oct 65 322 N7322C 1025 30 Jul 57 Star of the Po Converted to freighter, Dec 60. Sold to California Airmotive, 29 Aug 67 323 N7323C 1029 16 Aug 57 Star of the Aegean Converted to freighter, Apr 61. Sold to Bush Aviation, 9 Dec 65 324 N7324C 1030 24 Aug 57 Star of the Danube Converted to freighter, Apr 61. Sold to Aero-Tech, 24 May 68 325 N7325C 1035 17 Sep 57 Star of the Meuse Sold to Arizona Aircraft & Parts, 30 Sep 66 326 N8083H 1038 18 May 58 Model-98-16. Built for , Sold to Alaska Airlines, 31 Dec 62 327 N8082H 1037 1 May 58 Linee Aeree Italiane 1 Sold to Bush Aviation, 26 Oct 65 328 N8084H 1039 4 May 58 (L. AI.) but not deliv- | Sold to Aero-Tech, 13 Jun 68 329 N8081H 1026 30Jun 58 ered. Converted to freighters, Mar 61. 1 Used as engine carrier Jun 62-Dec 66. Sold to California Airmotive, 6 Sep 67 The names allocated to Fleet Nos. 310 onwards were not displayed on the aircraft.

Fleet No. Regn. MSN Date into Service Name Disposal and Remarks 301 N7301C 1002 8 Sep 57 Star of Wyoming Model-98-11. Sold to Bush Aviation, 14 Oct 63 302 N7302C 1003 2 Jun 57 Star of Utah Model-98-09. Sold to Bush Aviation, 21 Oct 65 303 N7303C 1004 1 Jun 57 Star of Vermont Model-98-23. Scrapped 24 Sep 62 304 N7304C 1005 14Jun 57 Star of Rhode Island Model-98-03. Sold to Bush Aviation, 28 Oct 65 305 N7305C 1006 1 Jun 57 Star of Idaho Model-98-09. Sold to Transatlantica (Argentina) 12 Sep 60 306 N7306C 1007 1 Jun 57 Star of Maryland Model-98-09. Temporarily named Spirit of St. Louis. Scrapped 26 Ap. 62 307 N7307C 1008 3 Jun 57 Star of Montana Model-98-09. Sold to Transatlantica (Argentina) 3 Oct 60. Reclaimed by T. W.A. Nov 61. Sold to F. A.A.12 Feb 64 308 N7308C 1009 2 Jun 57 Star of Oklahoma Model-98-22. Sold to Transatlantica. 30 Aug 61. Reclaimed Nov 61. Sold for scrap to Arizona Parts & Spares 30 Sep 66 309 N7309C 1010 3 Jun 57 Star of Maine Model-98-22. Sold to Arizona Parts & Spars, 30 Sep 66 310 N7310C 1012 21 Dec 57 Star of Kansas Model-98-22. Sold to Delta Aircraft & Equipment 29 Apr 64 311 N7311C 1013 4 Jun 57 Star of the Ebro Converted to freighter, Oct 60. Sold to California Airmotive, 20 Sep 67 312 N7312C 1014 17 Jun 57 Star of the Elbe Sold to Arizona Aircraft 8, Parts, 30 Sep 66 313 N7313C 1015 1 Jun 57 Star of the Severn Crashed at Milan, Italy, 26 Jun 59 314 N7314C 1016 1 Jul 57 Star of the Shannon Sold to Moral Rearmament Corp. 10 Dec 65 315 N7315C 1017 27 Jun 57 Star of the Tagus Converted to freighter, Dec 60. Sold to California Airmotive, 22 Aug 67

Tri-Jet Development

Continuing its competitive efforts over the more densely travelled domestic air routes, T. W.A. augmented its fleet of Boeing 727 tri-jets, as well as increasing its fleet of DC-9 twins. Its first 727s had started service in 1964 (see page 75) and in March 1968 the fleet was augmented by a further consignment of “stretched” versions, the Boeing 727-200 series. The inaugural -200 service had been made over the 1,100-mile New York-Miami route by a Northeast Airlines “Yellowbird.” While lacking the range of the 707, it was about the same size, and, short of non­stop coast-to-coast routes, could operate between almost any city pair in the United States.

For many years, the Boeing 727 was the most successful commercial jet airliner on the market. A total of 1,832 Boeing 727s of all types was built, a record that stood until the Boeing 737 twin-jet series overhauled it. T. W.A. had 92 of both 727 series, but showed a preference for the Douglas twins, augmenting its fleet especially when it absorbed Ozark Air Lines (page 91).

Technical Notes

The sub-title of this book emphasizes that this story of T. W. A. places much importance on the aircraft that it flew. As the final text went to the printer, there have been more than 1,250 of them. The Paladwr team has tried to identify and document every single one, with all the necessary details that constitute an accurate fleet record.

One of T. W.A.’s own pilots, Felix Usis ПІ, whose interests include photography and the study of ancient history (thanks partly to layovers in Cairo), devoted many hours of computer time into the preparation of the lists, drawing upon the airline’s own engineering records and, for the earlier aircraft types (long before his time) the results of research done by such historians as Ed Betts, Bill Larkins, Richard Allen, and Edward Peck. Felix supplemented his official records with additional data gleaned from various sources, including some that were not entered into the ledgers at Kansas City and St. Louis.

These lists were then meticulously checked and carefully edited by John Wegg, author and editor-publisher of Airways magazine. John is one of the world’s leading authorities on such data, and (as the saying goes) “the editor’s decision is final.” If such a presumption can be forgiven, we hope that this book will serve as a permanent and definitive reference source of all the aircraft that have flown the routes of one of the world’s great airlines.

The fleet listings are supplemented, where appropriate, with tabulations that could answer readers’ questions about the subtler differences between the variants and sub-types of some airliners. The manufacturer’s serial number (MSN) is preferred to the term constructor’s number (c/n), as in previous Paladwr Press books. Before 1949, registration numbers were NC or NX for commercial or experimental aircraft, respectively. The single N was used thereafter, and airliners already registered were re-registered when time and opportunity permitted.

Complementing the listings and data blocks with some technical observations, artist Mike Machat has added some useful “artist’s notes” — commentaries on special features, in those cases where T. W.A.’s aircraft may have differed slightly from others of the same family.

Acknowledgements

1 hope that readers will excuse any inadvertent omissions in this customary tribute to all the folks, most of them T. W. A. veterans, who have helped me to write this book. The personal recollec­tions of old-timers have fitted in neatly with the other inputs from various sources, official and otherwise. They have added life to the factual record, and have helped this author to reflect the personality of the airline and to appreciate the tremendous depth of loyalty that has carried them through thick and thin.

Among the printed sources, pride of place must go to Legacy of Leadership, which appears at a quick glance to be another pilots’ album of nostalgia; but on closer inspection reveals a great deal more. This is because it was compiled by a great team: Ed Betts, Dan McGrogan, and Syd Albright. I first met Syd in 1965, when visiting Western Air Lines, and he will be pleased to know that the photographs that he dug up, and the reminiscences he shared, have been recalled 35 years later. To all T. W.A. pilots, Ed is almost legendary as their historian, while Dan edited that book into shape. Ozark Airlines — Contrails was a similar compilation, obviously a labor of love by an anonymous group of Ozarkians. TWA by George Cearley, an admirable scrapbook of airline memorabilia, has also been most useful.

Most of the T. W.A. collection of photographs evaporated during the troubled times of Chapter 11-threatened 1980s, but many were either rescued or duplicated by collectors and employees. Roger Bentley’s and Jon Proctor’s collections were especially valuable, and complemented my own. They were punctuated by key contributions from Felix Usis III (including the eye-catcher on the back dust-jacket), Roger Bent­ley, John Malandro (master navigator), Pete Barrett and Ona Gieschen (Save-A-Connie), Bernice de Garmo (daughter-in­law of one of the Four Horsemen), Steve Geronimo, Constance Walker, and Terry Van Dyke.

As mentioned above, countless T. W.A.-ers have been kind enough to offer contributions, and I have included as many of them as possible. They have included Andy Anderson (who flew the Stratoliner, unheated and unpressurized, during the War), Barry Craig (who tried to sponsor this very book 12 years ago), Bernice and Richard deGarmo, Tom Donahue, Lawrence Dooling, Clark Fisher, Bill Halliday, Chris Hargreaves, Gordon Hargis, F. A.Harland, Russ Hazelton, Myra Hendricks, Keith Horton, John Leamon, Henry Lotito (who flew The Thing), the aforesaid navigator, John Malandro, T. W. Meredith, John Morelli, Orville Olson, Norman Parmet, Neil Poppe, Tom Roberts, Frank Smith, Marc Spiegel, Michael Swift, Тепу Van Dyke (who helped the cows on their way), Constance Walker (whose late husband founded the Conquistadores), Susan. Warren, and Claudia Woeber.

I must not forget Jim Brown, who was the initial catalyst between T. W.A. and Paladwr Press, and Donna Knobbe, who took care of many of my needs. Above all, I thank Mark Abels, who was most generous in his Foreword, assisted tremendously in the review and fact-checking processes, and opened the doors to many valuable sources of T. W.A. lore. Together we share a respect for the English language which I hope has survived my efforts and his scrutiny without leaving too many scars.

Index

Notes: P = photograph;

T = tabulation; FL = fleet list;

N1 = map; MM = Machat drawing Major entries and "Machats" are in bold type

The maps and Machat drawings are also listed in the Contents, page 5

Adamson, Gary, founds Midwest Airlines, 100 ADF (Automatic Direction Finder), ploce in history, 49 Aero-car, used on TAT. air-rail service, 24, 24P, 25P Aero Corporation of Californio, 18,18P Aeromorine, pioneer airline, 8 Aerovias Brasil, T. WA affiliation, 59T Aigle Azur, French airline, buys Stratoliners, 47 Airbus A318, ordered, 104 Air Commerce Act, 1926,8 Air Express, Inc, flies express services, 37 Air Midwest, purchased by Trans State, 100 Airline Deregulation Act, 82,90 Alderman, Ralph, navigator, 49P Alexander Eaglerock, Standard Air Lines aircraft, 18P "Ambassador" service, 64 American Airlines Claim as first airline, 8 Formation, ЗО, 30M Orders Convairliner, 60

American Export Airlines, formation, Atlantic competitor, 50

American Overseas Airlines (A. O.A.), first trans-Atlantic postwar

commercial flight, 50

Army Air Corps, carries the mail, 32

Arnold, General "Hap," greets Hughes 1944,52

Atlantic Service, 50

ATR-42, commuter airline, 101ММ, 101P

ВАС – One-Eleven, competitor to DC-9,75

Bach tii-motor, West Coast aircraft, 19P

Ball, Clifford, CAM 11,8T,8M

"Bamboo Bomber," Ozark Airlines (1943), 92

Bonk of America, lends to Hughes, 73

Beech 17D Staggerwing, Ozark Airlines (1943), 92,92P, 92FL

Betts, Ed, airline historian, 26

Black-McKellor Air Mail Act, 1934,33

Boeing Air Transport, Wins air mail contract, 9,30

Boeing 40, W. A.E. aircraft, 20P,22P,22FL

Boeing 80A, United Air Unes, 30P

Boeing 95, W. A.E. aircraft, 1 IP, 20R 22P, 22FL

Boeing 204, W. A.E. aircraft, 16,16FL

Boeing 247, worid’s first modern airliner, 32,32P

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, Tested by T. W.A. 46,46FL

Boeing 2707 SST, 74,74MM

Boeing 307 Stratoliner

First pressurized airliner, 44-45, 44P, 45MM, 45FL war effort, 46,46P, 47,47P Retired, sold, used in Vietnam,47 Compared to DC-4, Constellation, 51T Boeing 367-80,65 Boeing 707

Dominates air routes, 1958, 59 T. W.A. order, Entry into service with one aircraft, 64 Full description (-100), 65,65MM, 65P, 66P, 66FL Full description (-300), 69,69MM, 68 FL Symbolizes new его, 67P, Last T. WA. flight, 89 Boeing 717, Ordered, 104 Full description, 105,105MM, 105FL, 105P Boeing 720,69,64P, 68FL Boeing 727

Full description (-100), 75, 75MM, 75P, 76FL Full description (-200), 81,81MM, 80P, 81P, 8)FL Boeing 747

Project launched, T. WA service, 82 Full description (-100 series) 83,83MM, 83P,84P, 82FL

Index

De Havilland DH-4B, W. A.E. aircraft, 11,11FL De Havillond Comet 4 First jet airliner, 1958, 59,65 De Havilland DH-121 Trident, 75 De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter With Ozark Air Ones, 98 Delta Air Ones Claim as first airline, 8 First order for DC-9,77 Denver Case, CAB. Route case, 64 Dickenson, Diaries, CAM 9,8T,8M Doolittle, Jimmy, returns home with T. WA Douglas M-2 (and ЛИ), WAE. aircraft, 11,11MM, 11 FI, 12P, 13P.20P

Douglas 0-38, flies Army Air Corps moil sendee, 32P Douglas B-7 bomber, flies Army Air Corps mail service, 32P Douglas DC-1

Historic prototype, 32P, 33, ЗЗР, 34P Brief history, 35 Brief description, 41

Comparison with other Douglas twins, 41MM Douglas DC-2,34P

Full description, 35, 35MM, 35FL, 35P,

Fuselage comparison with DC-3 (chart), 39 Comparison with other Douglas twins, 4ШМ Douglas DC-3

Development from DC-2,38 T. W.A. introduction (DST), 38,39MM, 39-40FL Fuselage comparison with DC-2 (chart), 39 Comparison with other Douglas twins, 4ШМ End of service, 60 Compared to post-wor airliners, 63T Ozork Air Lines (Challenger 250), 93,93MM, 93FL, 92P Freighter services, inc. wartime, 106,106P Douglas DST First version of DC-3,38 T. WA. introduction, 38,38-39FL Comparison with other Douglas twins, 41 MM Airport scene, 1930s, 42P Douglas C-47, military variant of the DC-3 Used by T. WA 38,40FL Comparison with other Douglas twins, 41 MM Douglas C-49 and C-53, military DC-3, used by T. WA, 40FL Douglas C-54

Introduction and testing, 46,46FI Delivery to T. WA, 50 Opens post-war Atlantic services, 106 First international height service, 106, 106P Douglas DC-4

Design specified by airlines, 46 Fleet list, 50T First alkargo service, 50 Entry into T. WA service, 50,51P Full description, 51,51MM Compared to Boeing 307, Constellation, 51T Douglas DC-9,76P(-31)

Ordered, 75

Fleet lists (-51,-14,-32), 76-77 DC-9-14, full description, 77,77MM, 77P DC-9-80 (see MD-80)

DC-9-30 (Ozork), 96-97,97MM, 97P, 98FL Eagle Nest Flight Center, Albuquerque, 46 Earhort, christens Ford Tr-Motor, 109P Eastern Airlines

Operates Curtiss Condor T-32,31 Chooses Martin 404,61 Economy Class, service introduced, 64 Embraer EMB145, commuter airliner, 100P Engineers

Maintain first Boeing 707,64 England-Australia Air Race, publicizes DC-2.38 Equitable Life, insurance giant Finances Boeing 707, 64 Lends to Hughes, sets up voting trust, 73 Erickson, Jeffrey, president of T. WA, 104

Ethiopian Airlines, T. W.A. affiliation, 59T

Eton Corporation, formation of T. W.A., 28

ETOPS, operations approved, 88

Fairbanks, Douglas, Jr., at T. A.T. inaugural, 24P

Fairchild C-82, full description, 56,56MM, 56P

Fairchild FH-227B (Ozark), 95,95MM, 95P, 95FL

Fairchild Metro III, with Midway/Ozark, 98,98P, 100MM

Farley, James A., Postmaster Gen, restores air mail contracts, 32

"Fashion archive," uniform collection by Clipped Wings, 48

Firestone, Harvey, at TAT. inaugural, 24

Fischer, Gerhardt, develops first radio compass, 14

Fitzgerald, Joseph, president, Ozork, 94

Flight Engineers, overtaken by technology, 49

Flint, Perry, comments on T. WA’s survival, 104

Florida Airways Corp., CAM 10,8T, 8M

Fokker F-7A (F-VII)

WAE. Aircraft, 14FL Standard Air lines, 18P West Coast Air Transport, 19P

Fokker F-10/10A, WAE. aircraft, 15,14FL, 15MM, 15P, 20P

Fokker F-14, WAE. aircraft, 20P, 22P

Fokker F-32,21,21FL, 21P,21MM

Fokker Universal, Standard Air Lines aircraft, 18P

Fokker F-27 (Ozark), 94-95,95P,95Fl

Ford, Edsel

Takes interest in Stout aircraft, 23 At TAT. inaugural, 24 Ford, Henry, at T. A.T. inaugural, 24P Ford Motor Company CAM 6 and 7,8T,8M Establishes airline, 23 Ford 4-AT Tri-Motor Maddux Air Lines, 26,26P, 26FL Full description, 27, 27MM Comparison with 5-AT, 27T Ford 5-AT Tri-Motor Full description, 23,23MM, 23FL T. A.T. transcontinental inaugural, 24-25,109P Maddux Air Lines, 26FL Master plan for T. WA, 28,29P Floatplane, 44P Comparison with 4-AT, 27T Used for freight services, 106P Fortune, magazine, comments on Hughes departure, 73 "Four Horsemen," Western’s pioneer pilots, 10,1 OP Freight services, reviewed, 106 Frye, Jock

President of Standard Airlines, 18,18P

Pictured with Fokker F-32,21P

At TAT. inaugural, 24P, At Port Columbus, 25P

Career with T. WA, ЗО, 29P

Sponsors Douglas DC-1,32, ("Jock Frye letter") 33

Breaks transcontinental speed record, 33P

Partner with Howard Hughes, 42P

Flies prototype Constellation, Burbank-New York, 1944, 52,

52P, 108P

Problems with Hughes, resigns, 64 First president of los Conquistodores del Cielo, 108 Gabor, Eva and Zso Zsa, fly by T. W.A., 109P Gann, Harry, ace photographer, 12 General Ait Freight, Ford Motor, 106 Gitner, Gerald, chairman of T. WA, 104 Global affiliations, 59

GPS (Global Positioning System), aid to navigation, 49 Grace, Thomas L., president, Ozork Air Lines, 94, 94P Graham, Maurie, one of Four Horsemen, 10P Grand Canyon Airlines (1935), 98,98M Grant, Cary, flies with T. W.A., 109P Gregory, T. E.C., pictured with Fokker F-32,21P Guggenheim, Daniel, promotes Model Airway, 14 Guggenheim Fund, 14,15

Gulfstream International, commuter airline, 100,101M Hall, Joel, founds Chautauqua Airlines, 100 Holliday, Bill, comments on post-war DC-3 services, 60 Hamilton, Laddie

Founds Ozark Airlines (1943), 92 Resigns, 94

Hamilton, Walter, Standard Air Unes, 18 Hanshue, Harris ‘Pop’

Promotes Western Air Express, 9,9P

Acquires Pacific Marine Airways, 16 Acquires Colorado Airways, 17 Acquires Standard Air Lines, 18,20 Builds W. A.E. network, 20,20M Founds Mid-Continent Air Express, 20 Pictured with Fokker F-32,21P First president of T. WA, 22,22R 28 Harland, Francis, navigator, 49 Harmon Trophy, won by Howard Hughes, 42 Hart, George, navigator, tragic death, 49 Hawaii Route Case, 82 Hawaiian Airlines, T. WA. affiliation, 59T Heathrow Airport, London, last T. WA. flight, 102 Hepburn, Audrey, flies by T. WA, 109P Hertz, John, part-owner of T. W.A., 42 Hicks, HA, member of Ford design team, 23 Hilton Hotels, purchased by T. WA, 82,90 Hiscock, Thorp, communications specialist, 14 Hoover, Herbert, Jr., WAE. communications specialist, 13P, 14 Hope, Bob, flies with T. WA, 109P Hostesses, memories, 48 Howard, William, chairman of T. WA, 104 Howell IV, Charles, founds Corporate Airlines, 100 Hughes, Howard

Brief biography, 42,42P; Buys T. WA stock 42

Break transcontinental speed record,42

Role in Atlantic service development, 50

Flies prototype Constellation, Burbank-New York, 1944,52,

52P, 108P

Interest in Bristol Britannia, 59 Prefers Martin 202 v. Convair 240, 61 Problems with Jack Frye, 64 Orders Boeing 707s and Convair 880s, 64 Problems with Convair 880,71 Surrenders ownership, 73 Icahn, Carl

Career background, takes over T. WA, 91,91P Purchases Ozark Air Ones, 91 Establishes Trans World Express, 101 Career with T. WA, and departure, 102 Agrees to method of debt payment, 104 In-Flight Movies, T. WA first, 91 INS (Inertial Navigation System) death-knell for navigators, 49 Interconf. Division (ICD), T. WA wortime operation, 46, 46M Intercontinental Hotels, acquired by T. WA, 90 Inter Urban Groin Belt Route, Parks Air Transport, 92 Iranian Airways, T. WA affiliation, 59T Irving trust, lends to Hughes, 90 James, Charles "Jimmy"

One of Four Horsemen, 1 OP, 11P With Hoover, Jr., 13P Jet Express, commuter airiine,100 Jetstream, commuter airline (see BAe Jetstream)

Jetstream, name for Lockheed L-1649A, 57 Jones, Floyd, founds Ozark Airlines, 92 Jones, Jesse, Sea. of Commerce, greets Hughes and Frye, 108 Joseph, Anthony F., founds Colorado Airways, 17 Kansas Gly Overhaul and Maintenance Bose, 107, 107P Fairfax airport flooded, 108P Kellett, autogyro, 1938,101 "Kelly" Air Mail Act, 1925,8 Kelly, Fred

One of Four Horsemen, 9P, 10P With Hoover, Jr., 13P

Kerkorian, Kirk, intervenes in bid for routes, 102 Keys, Clement, defines importance of ground service, 107 K. L.M. Dutch airline, DC-2 in England-Australia Air Race, 38 Koppen, Otto, member of Ford design team, 23 Kreusi, Geoffrey, develops first radio compass, 14 Larkins, Bill, airline historian, 26 Lee, John, member of Ford design team, 23 Lehman Brothers, part-owner of T. W.A., 42 Ughted Airway Ends rail-air service, 28 Place in history, 49 Lindbergh, Charles Promotes aviation, 14,107 Technical adviser to TAT., 24,24P Flies first Maddux flight, 26, 27,27P

Plans Т. А.Т. route, 28-29,29P Approves Douglas DC-1 design, 32 Influence of 1927 flight, 52 Linee Aeree Italians (L. A.I.), T. W.A. affiliation, 59T Uttlewood, Bill, recommends DC-3 design, 38 Lockheed Air Express, W. A.E. aircraft, 22 Lockheed Altair, 37FL Lockheed Vega, 37,37MM, 37FL, 37P Lockheed Orion, 37,37MM, 37FL, 37P Lockheed 14, Hughes’s round-the-wodd flight, 42 Lockheed 18 Lodestar, 50FL Lock^.,4 (Si? ..onsteiiation (and 749), 58P Compared to Boeing 307, DC-4,51T Over New York, 52P Full description, 53,53MM.53P Full fleet list, 54FL

Commentary, 59, models compared, 59T Compared to post-war airliners, 63T Lockheed 649, T. W.A. order cancelled, 59T Lockheed Super-Constellation 1049G (and 1049H), 58P Full fleet list, 55, 55AAM Commentary, 59, models compared, 59T Lockheed L-l 649A Starliner Full description, fleet list, 57, 57ЛШ, 57FL Commentary, 59, models compared, 59T Lockheed L-l Oil TriStar Full description, 87,87MM, 87P, 86P Fleet list, 86FL

L-l 011 variants compared, 87T Loening C2H Air Yacht, W. A.E. aircraft, 16P, 16FL Loewy, Raymond, designs new cheatline, 65 Lorenzo, Frank, offeers to buy T. WA, 91 Lykins, Don, flies Douglas M-2 to Washington, 12 McDonnell Douglas DC-9-82 (ММ2)

Full description, 79,79MM, 79,78R 79P, 78FL Enters T. W.A. service, 89 Ozark Air Lines, 96,97P,97FL McDonnell Douglas MD-95 (see Boeing 717)

McNary-Watres Act, 1930, 32

Maddux, Jack L., founds Maddux Air Lines, 26-27, 26P, 27P

Maddux Air Lines, 26-27

Maiden Dearborn, Stout 2-АЇ aircraft, 23

Molandro, John, navigator, 49

Marquette Air Lines, 43, 43M

Martin 202 (and 202A)

Replaces pre-war types, 47, 60, 60P Problems, 61 Preferred by Hughes, 61 Fleet list, 62FL

Compared to post-war airliners, 63T Martin 404

Full description, 63,63MM, 60P Chosen by Hughes and Rickenbacker, 61,61P Fleet list, 62-63FL Compared to post-war aidiners, 63T Ozark Air Unes, 94,94MM, 94P, 94FL Mayo, William B., directs design of Ford Tri-Motor, 23 Metro Airlines Northeast, commuter airline, 100 Metropolitan Life, sets up voting trust, 73 Mid-Continent Air Express, founded by Honshue, 20,20M Midwest Airlines

Associtoted with Ozark Air lines, 98.98P Model Airway, The, 14,14M Mohawk Airlines, trades planes with Ozork, 94 Monroe, Marilyn, flies by T. WA, 109P Moseley, Major C. C, V. P. Operations, WAE., 10P National Air and Space Museum Preserves Douglas M-4,11,12 Receives Northrop Alpha, 36 Will have Boeing 307,45 National Air Transport CAM 3,8T, 8M

Component of United Air Unes formation, 30 Navigation, history reviewed, 49 New England and Western Tpt, flies Ford floatplane, 44P New York Airways, 101 New York Helicopter, 101,101P Northrop Alpha, 36,36P.36FL Northrop Delta, 36

Northrop Gamma

Used by Tommy Tomlinson for high-altitude research, 36P, 36FL, 38,44 Northwest Airways CAM 9,8T,8M

Problems with Martin 202,61 "Ontos," (Fairchild C-82), 56 Ozork Airlines (1943), 92 Ozark Air Unes, 92-97

Begins operations, 92,92P; Map series, 96M Twin Otter service to Meigs Field, 98 Pacific Air Transport CAM 8Д8М

Component of United Air Unes formation, 30 Pacific Marine Airways, route to Avalon, 16,16M, 20M Pacific Route Case, 82 Pon American Airways Use of flying boats, 49 First Constellation service, 50 Challenged on round-theworid service, 64 Orders 707s and DC-8s, 64, Orders 747,82 Requires more range, 84 Porks Air Transport, 92

Parks, Oliver L., founds Porks Air Transport, 92

Patterson, W. R. Pat," president, United Air Unes, 30

Pennsylvania Railroad, participates in formation of T. A.T. 24-25

Philippine Air Unes, T. W.A. affiliation, 59T

Pickford, Mary, at T. A.T. inaugural, 24P

Pierson, Warren Lee, president, 1948, and 1957,64,73, 90P

Pilgrim 100A, American Airlines, 30P

Piper Twinair, 98,98M

Pittsburgh Aviation Industries Corp. (P. A.I. C.), participant in formation of T. W.A., 28

Pogue, L. Welch, chairman, C. A.B., initiates local service, 92 Polar Service, 64

Port Columbus, transfer station on T. A.T. transcontinental, 25 Portair, T. A.T. air-rail transfer station, 24,24P Ransome, J. Dawson, founds airline 101 Raymond, Arthur, designs Douglas DC-1,32 Redman, Ben, first possenger, 6P Resort Air, first name of Trans State, 99 Rhodes, Kathryn, first chief hostess, 48P Richter, Paul, Jr.

Treasurer, Standord Air Unes, 18 With TAT., 29P, Resigns, with Frye, 64 Rickenbacker, Eddie, joins Hughes in choosing Martin 404,61 Robbins, R. W.

President of T. WA, 28.29P Furloughs T. WA staff, 32 Robertson Aircraft Corp.

CAM 2,8T, 8M

Rockne, Knute, crash victim, 15 Rogers, Will, first passenger, 108,108P Roshkind, Allan, designs Martin 202,60 Roosevelt, President Cancels oir mail contracts, 32 Flies with T. WA during v/or, 46P Round-the-wodd service, 50M, 64 Rummel, Bob, tests Martin 202 ond Convair 240,61 Russell, Jane, flies with T. WA, 109P SAAB 340, commuter airliner, 99MM Ryan №1, Colorado Airways aircraft, 17P, 17FL Saudi Arabian Airlines, T. WA affiliation, 59T "SavetfConnie" organization, preserves Constellation, 59 Scheduled Air Taxi service, 98 "Secret Weapon," Constellation description, 52 Seven States Area Case, 94 "Shotgun Marriage," merger of WAE. ond T. A.T., 22 Shroeder, Major, Ford test pilot, 23 Sikorsky S-38A, W. A.E. Aircraft, 16P, 16FL Silver Wings, hostess retirement group, 48 Smith, C. R.

President, American Aidines, 30 Claims for DC-3 profitability, 38 Southern Air Transport, component of American Airways, 30 "Spoils Conferences," 32 Sportsman’s Trophy, won by Howard Hughes, 42 Standard Air Unes, pioneer airline in the v/esxt, 18,18M, 20M Stadiner, name for Lockheed L-1649A, 57

Jack Frye had joined Hanshue
when Standard Airlines merged
with W. A.E. He became president
ofT. W.A., succeeding Robbins.

Frye since Standard’s foundation.
He continued to serve as Jack’s
right-hand man for several years.

Richard Robbins, acting as
umpire between W. A.E. and T. A.T.,
was president of P. A.I. C., the
catalyst to the merger.

Charles Lindbergh was ТА. T. ’s

technical consultant and unoffi­cial chief pilot. He continued to advise T. W. A. for the next decade.

TWO TRANSCONTINENTAL AIR SERVICES DAILY

The Competition

American Airways If the T. W.A. Shotgun Marriage was difficult to negotiate, the industrial sparring that resulted in the creation of American Airways was, even without coercion from the Postmaster General, labyrinthine. The airline itself cannot trace every individual component that comprised the eventual amalga­mation of three groups, themselves the result of mergers and take-overs. Universal Aviation Corporation (the real core of the route system). Southern Air Transport, and Colonial Airways Corporation completed their multi-merger to form American Airways on 25 January 1930. United Air Lines The Boeing airplane company had always taken a keen interest in air transport, and had been one of the very first Post Office contractors, with a foreign air mail route from Seattle to Victoria, B. C., in 1919. It had won the best air mail contract in 1926, with the coveted “Columbia” San Fran – cisco-Chicago trunk route and with its own Boeing Air Transport, to which it supplied the aircraft. With the Pratt & Whitney engine company, it formed the United Aircraft and Transport Corporation on 1 February 1929, at the same time absorbing various aircraft and aviation-related manufacturing companies. Acquiring Pacific Air Trans­port, Varney Air Lines, and National Air Transport (winning the latter after a bitter boardroom battle on 7 May 1930), the lines started to operate as United Air Lines, a name that was was formally incorporated on 1 July 1931. Giants of Their Time In the developing U. S. airline world during its heady forma­tive years, some men, who had started at the bottom rung, climbed the corporate ladder to become leaders, and were to influence substantially the course of airline development. C. R. Smith, who was American’s president for twenty or more years and who was head of military air transport during the Second World War. had started as an accountant with one of Southern Air Transport’s ancestors. W. R. “Pat” Patter­son, who led United, had started in similar fashion with Pacific Air Transport. Jack Frye, who was to direct T. W.A.’s fortunes from its beginnings until after the War. had started Standard Air Lines, but stayed with Western Air Express when American Airways bought Standard on 15 July 1930. T. W.A. was now one of the most important airlines in the United States, and became known, even in official circles at the C. A.B., as one of the ‘Big Four.’

During the early 1930s, before the advent of the modem airliner, the Introduced in the early 1930s, the Pilgrim 100A was quickly competition was still using biplanes, such as this Boeing superseded in American Airlines service by the introduction of B-80A with United Air Lines. modern airliners such as the DC-2.

^New York ^Philadelphia Washington

San Francisco

Kansas City

TWA

Los Angeles

AMERICAN x/ 9" AP [Dallas

Ъ Miami

Postmaster-General Walter Brown’s grand plan came to fruition in 1930. Three transcontinental airlines, together with Eastern, came to be known as ‘The Big Four. ’ Northwest Airlines did not complete its coast-to-coast service until 1944.

Spanning an Era

Like its Douglas rivals, the Lockheed Constellation, from its first military Model C-69 to its ultimate development, the Model 1649A, was truly representative of the entire genera­tion of four-piston-engined airliners that dominated the airline scene for a dozen years after the Second World War. They had their troubles and the turbo-compound engines in the later models were a continual problem. Pan American once flew a Connie from New York to Burbank on three engines, just to change the fourth. T. W.A. kept an engine­carrying airplane in Paris for several years to service the frequent replacement needs in Europe and beyond (see page 56). But, supported energetically by T. W.A. throughout its life-span, Lockheed kept pace with technological progress, and was often the front-runner. The 1649A Starliner, or “Jetstream Starliner”, was the ultimate long-range piston – engined airliner. One version, the turboprop Model 1249A never went into service, but with a speed of 440 mph, could claim to be the fastest propeller-driven airliner ever built.

Distinguished Company

One claim for the record books, if not fame, was of an inci­dent in 1944, soon after Hughes and Frye had presented the C-69 to the Washington hierarchy. It had been flown to the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base at Dayton, the home of the Wright brothers. Orville Wright was invited to take a ride. Not only that, he spent half an hour in the pilot’s seat, thus giving the Constellation the honor of being the only com­mercial airliner to have been flown by the pioneer of flight, who first took to the air on 7 December 1903 at Kitty Hawk. North Carolina.

Constellation Models

Elegant Development

The curvaceous Connies were always a picture of elegance, even though the engineers preferred the relative simplicity of the parallel-fuselage Douglas DC-6Bs. Its performance, in speed and range, could not be surpassed. Each stage of devel­opment, with increased engine power, increased tankage, and increased all-up weight: all these permitted higher payloads, longer range, and modest increases in speed. These resulted, for T. W.A., the claim to have flown the first non-stop transcontinental scheduled service, and later, the first non­stop trans-Atlantic service on a regular and sustained basis.

The Memory

Along with the Douglas DC-7C “Seven Seas,” the 1649A began to bow out when the Bristol Britannia “Whispering Giant” came on the scene in 1957. It was bigger, smoother, and faster than any of the Constellations. Howard Hughes would have bought 20 Britannias, had he known about them sooner, and if Bristol had been able to deliver them at short notice. But the death-knell was the arrival of the jet airliners. The harbinger was the ill-fated Comet 1 in 1952-54, then the Comet 4 and the dominating Boeing 707 in October 1958. All the piston-engined propeller airliners disappeared from the world’s main air routes in an extraordinarily short time. Pan American, especially, covered the globe, and all the U. S. air­lines brought the jets into service very quickly.

But the memory remains. The Save-a-Connie Airline History Museum at Kansas City (formerly known as the Save-a-Connie Foundation) volunteer organization preserves that memory with a beautifully-restored 1049H, which is kept in flying condition, more than four decades after it was first built (see picture, page 58)

Global Affiliations

The Lockheed Constellation created an airliner dynasty. Its operational life with T. W.A. also coincided with a period during which the airline, under Hughes’s enterprising leader­ship, and Jack Frye’s and Ralph Damon’s presidencies, aspired to challenge the incumbent international Chosen Instrument, the great Pan American Airways. Pan Am’s leader, Juan Trippe, was almost omnipotent, but Howard Hughes was a worthy opponent. In addition to the technical and operational irritants with which T. W.A. Constellations constantly provoked Pan Am’s Douglases, Hughes and Frye—taking a leaf out of Trippe’s own book—expanded their operational territory and influence by either buying into, or assisting in operational and managerial support of quite a number of foreign airlines. Interestingly, the benefits for T. W.A. during those exploratory years appear to have been an early example of shareholding interests, quasi-alliances, and code-sharing agreements that are with us today.

The Big Boeing

Just as it had done in 1955, when Pan American ordered 45 jet airliners, to launch the Jet Age in earnest, Juan Trippe did it again in 1965, by persuading the Seattle manufacturer to build the Boeing 747, another airliner that was twice as big as its predecessor. Paradoxically, Pan Am was to acquire too many 747s too quickly, but having been persuaded, Boeing went on to build more than a thousand “Jumbo Jets”—and is still building them 35 years later, an amazing tribute to a great design.

On 2 September 1966 T. W.A. placed a large order for Boeing aircraft and this included 12 747s. At the time, like most large airlines, confidence was high. During that summer, service had been resumed to Bangkok, and extended to Hong Kong. On 6 April 1967 the last Constellation was retired from domestic service and on 11 May the very last of that famous airliner was withdrawn from overseas routes. T. W.A. was the first major U. S. domestic airline to become all-jet. In the same year, riding high, it acquired the Hilton Hotel chain on 9 May, and placed another multi-million dollar Boeing order on 18 October, to augment the 747 fleet to 34. T. W.A.’s Jumbo Jets entered service on 25 February 1970, on the premier transcontinental route, Los Angeles – New York, and on 18 March on the world’s most prestigious intercontinental route, New York-London.

Pacific Interlude

For several years, the Civil Aeronautics Board had been wrestling with two important issues, the trans-Pacific and the associated Hawaii Route Cases. The U. S.trans-Pacific traffic had hitherto been shared between Pan American and North­west to Asia, Pan Am only to Australasia, and Pan Am, North­west, and United to Hawaii. Now, other airlines wanted a piece of this lucrative cake, and T. W.A. was one of them. President Johnson signed the Pacific Route Case on 19 December 1968 and the Hawaii Case on 4 January 1969, just before he left office. The incoming President Nixon promptly amended the choice of airlines and routes, but T. W.A. never­theless received its share, and opened service on 1 August 1969. This enabled the airline to complete a round-the-world service, with Boeing 707s, on 31 October 1971.

The route was not as successful as expected because of strong competition and the consequent excessive capacity offered. Accordingly, T. W.A. and Pan American entered into a route standardization agi’eement on 16 October 1974, and T. W.A. suspended its Pacific route on 2 March 1975.

Capacity Sharing

The Pacific agreement with Pan Am was symptomatic of a problem that had resulted from the enormous increase in the capacity offered world-wide by the influx of the 360-seat 747s, augmented by the 270-seat Douglas DC-10 and Lock­heed L-1011 tri-jets. The problem was also acute in the U. S.A., where, for example, three airlines all offered a 9 a. m. departure from New York to Los Angeles—all at a disastrous 35% or so load factor.

On the initiative of Mel Brenner, T. W.A.’s advocate for common sense in a strictly regulated environment which was supposed to encourage competition, the C. A.B. and the Justice Department agreed, on 21 December 1970, to a capacity scheduling agreement, so that the airlines could continue to compete without cutting each other’s throats. This sensible T. W.A. initiative was appreciated on all sides, and was a har­binger of an even more liberal approach to the problem, one that was solved by the Airline Deregulation Act, signed by President Carter on 24 October 1978. T. W.A. would, in years to come, face fresh challenges, fierce competition, and threats to its very existence.(p. 90)

The Condor

The Curtiss Condor was the last large biplane built in the United States. T. A.T. put it into service early in 1929, and until the Douglas DC-2 came along, it supplemented the Fords on routes where the traffic demand was high. It was much bigger, weighing nine tons against the Ford’s six, and could carry more people with a more attractive cabin. But it was not much faster, and its life span with the United States airlines was only about three years. T. AT.’s Condor COs (also designated the Condor 18, the B-18 or the B-20) were N185H, N725K, and N726K (manufacturer’s serial numbers G-l, G-2, and G-4, respectively).

A later version, the T-32, went into service with Ameri­can Airlines and Eastern Air Lines in 1934 as a much-publi­cized sleeper transport; but by all accounts, the passengers did not get much sleep. The low-altitude flying tended to be a little rocky, and the segments were too short. In any case, the modern airliners would soon be outlasting the obsolescent Condor design. Biplanes were becoming a thing of the past.

The NlcNary-Watres Act

The spur to the spectacular growth of air transport in the United States in the early 1930s was the result of imaginative legislation, enacted after substantial persuasion by the Post­master General, Walter F. Brown. The Third Amendment to the Air Mail Act, named after its Congressional sponsors, was approved on 29 April 1930. Its far-reaching provisions gave permanence to the contracted operators, paid them according to space offered, not by the weight of mail carried, and gave Brown powers to extend or consolidate routes to improve the system. This encouraged the airlines to invest in larger aircraft, which were more economical to operate; and gave Brown almost unlimited authority to draw the airline map as he pleased.

The "Spoils Conferences"

Things went mainly according to Brown’s plan, which was to fashion a rational system of air routes that would not suffer from the excessive fragmentation he had observed in the railroad system. No single railroad, for example, ran from coast to coast. Brown’s pressure and advice to the incumbent air mail carriers resulted in three transcontinental airlines that followed different routes, but offered opportunities for competition between the main traffic-generating areas: California and the Northeast.

But to do this, he sometimes overstepped the mark in what was perceived to be selective manipulation of the exact intentions of the Air Mail Act, and even, it was alleged, a cer­tain degree of favoritism. This led to an investigation of the circumstances of a series of meetings that he had held with the airlines between 15 May and 9 June 1930, and which became known as the Spoils Conferences.

The Air Mail Scandal

Many of the small airlines felt that they had been by-passed deliberately; and although their case was not well docu­mented and of doubtful legality, it was intensively publi­cized—so effectively, in fact, that, responding to political pressure, the Senate set up a Special Committee. Its adverse report resulted in President Roosevelt taking the unprece­dented step, on 9 February 1934, of cancelling all the air mail contracts and asking the Army Air Corps to carry the mail. This it did, with remarkable success, bearing in mind the extreme difficulties of weather and inexperience with which it was faced. But some pilots were killed, mostly in training, and this led to a national outrage that forced Roosevelt to retract his decision.

A New Life

On 30 March 1934, the Post Office Department invited the airlines to submit new bids, and these were duly accepted by the new Postmaster General, James A. Farley, on 20 April. During the two months during which the Army carried the mail, the airlines struggled on the best they could. Drastic measures had to be taken, as the revenues from passengers and express were insignificant compared with the mail pay­ments—effectively a life-sustaining subsidy. In the case of T. W.A., President Richard W. Robbins sent a letter to all the staff, which began: “Effective February 28th, 1934, the entire personnel of T.& W. A. is furloughed.”