“Across the Pacific” Pan Am Documentary is Here!

19 May 2020 2 Comments

Pan Am Historical Foundation Announces a New TV Series about the Birth of Transoceanic Air Travel

On 22 November 1935, nearly 85-years-ago, Pan American Airways’ brand-new flying boat, a Martin M-130, named the China Clipper, took off from San Francisco Bay and flew over the then unfinished Golden Gate Bridge heading west to its final destination, Manila, over 8,000 miles away. This event, as noted by the late R. E. G. Davies, noted author and former curator for air transport at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum, was “one of the most noteworthy and historic dates in the history of transport”.

China Clipper passing unfinished Golden Gate Bridge (Pan Am Historical Foundation)

Before then, the only way to reach Asia from the US was by ship, a trip that took weeks. With the China Clipper, that all changed. Martin M-130s and later the Boeing 314s, would cross the Pacific in only five days, making overnight stops in Honolulu, Midway Island, Wake Island and Guam. Below is the flight schedule from the June 1940 timetable:

Pacific flight schedules from June 1940 timetable (Author’s collection)

Crossing the Pacific was a revolutionary advance in global transport. But operating an airline across the vast ocean expanse posed lethal hazards. Many thought the idea was reckless, even foolhardy. It was nothing short of a breath-taking, win-or-lose all technical and commercial gamble.

On 18 May, American Public Television begins distribution of “Across the Pacific”, a new three-hour documentary series about this aviation milestone, and the trailblazing events that led up to it. The just-completed program is the work of Moreno/Lyons Productions, an independent Boston-based media company, working in association with the Pan Am Historical Foundation, Inc. (PAHF), the premier source of authoritative information about Pan American World Airways. Virginia Public Media, the program’s presenting PBS station, will premiere the series on May 21st.

How did Juan Trippe, the young visionary who led Pan Am from its start in 1927, manage to achieve this aviation breakthrough? It is a gripping story, replete with political intrigue and high-stakes financial gambles, of technological innovation and masterful organization, and of barriers overcome and dreams achieved. Trippe enlisted top talent to pull it off: A brilliant radio engineer; a gifted aircraft designer; and a small cadre of dedicated aviation professionals, including Charles A. Lindbergh. It is a remarkable story.

It had taken only eight years for Pan Am to grow from a tiny three-plane operation with a single 90-mile route to become the world’s largest and most dynamic airline. But bridging the mighty Pacific with an airline route confronted Trippe and Pan Am with a challenge much greater than any that had come before. A failure would mean disaster and the whole world was watching, spellbound.

Crossing the Pacific, however, was not the original intent of Juan Trippe in his desire to cross an ocean. It was the Atlantic. However, the geopolitical situation coupled with technological limitations made that option impossible. In a nutshell, the path to Europe was through Newfoundland. Unfortunately, negotiations between Juan Trippe, Britain, Canada and Newfoundland in 1932 did not provide the access desired, although some understanding was achieved between Pan American and Britain’s Imperial Airways regarding traffic rights. Because Newfoundland appeared to be in doubt, Trippe looked south. Unfortunately, the political situation in Portugal made it difficult for Pan American to negotiate for traffic rights there as well. In addition, a survey trip made by Charles Lindbergh in the summer of 1933 brought into question the feasibility of using flying boats for regularly scheduled trans-Atlantic service.

Any hope for trans-Atlantic operations, however, was dashed when, in April 1934, the British government demanded reciprocity with the United States over traffic rights. The British government represented the British airline Imperial Airways and believed that the issue should be settled with the US government. Juan Trippe had overestimated his diplomatic skills and his “go-it-alone diplomacy” was not working. He admitted that he did not see much future for Pan American in the North Atlantic. In addition, the British, in 1934, had nothing like Pan Am’s Sikorsky S-42, then the most advanced aircraft in the world, or the coming Martin M-130 and until Imperial Airways possessed an airplane of similar capabilities Pan Am would be unable to operate to or from Britain and its crown colonies.

The focus thus switched to the Pacific. After a “great circle” trans-Pacific route through the north was ruled out due to issues between the US and the Soviet Union, it was decided to take the route that represented the longest distance between the US and the Orient: the mid-Pacific.

Here, the issue of traffic rights was not a problem for Pan Am. The route involved stops at Honolulu, Midway, Wake and Guam, terminating in Manila, all of which were under US jurisdiction. At Guam and the Philippines, the US Navy had established bases on the pretext of potential confrontation with Japan. Midway was being used by the Navy for war games staged in the area. This left Wake, a tiny island, discovered by Juan Trippe in the New York Public Library, and, according to Robert Daley, in his book An American Saga – Juan Trippe and His Pan Am Empire, “for a brief time – only the blink of an eye as history is measured – it was one of the most famous places in the world”.

The tiny island of Wake, an uninhabited coral atoll, was to become one of the most important way points on the route west to the Orient. It lay over 4000 miles from the US mainland in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and was a minor trophy of the Spanish-American War. Inside was a lagoon with surface water smooth enough to handle landings of flying boats, but the presence of coral heads made landings impossible. Its location, however, made it a critical point for the trans-Pacific flight. Juan Trippe eventually got permission to use the island as a base, and on 27 March 1935, the S.S. North Haven, a cargo ship, sailed west with provisions to set up bases for Pan American at Midway and Wake. At Wake, an entire village was built, including a hotel for passengers en-route to or from the Orient.

The Martin M-130 was the intended aircraft for the new trans-Pacific route, however it was not due for delivery until the end of 1935. Survey flights were needed, and Juan Trippe would not wait. The West Indies Clipper, an S-42 then being used in Latin America, was selected for the duty. It was renamed the Pan American Clipper and was stripped of all passenger accommodation and fitted with extra fuel tanks, giving it an endurance of 21 1/2 hours and a range of 3000 miles. The key, and most important flight segment of the trans-Pacific trip was California-Honolulu. The ability to fly this critical segment meant there would be no barrier to the eventual establishment of trans-oceanic flight. That was achieved. The Pan American Clipper departed San Francisco on 16 April 1935 for Honolulu and returned on 22 April. On 12 June it surveyed the Honolulu-Midway segment; on 9 August, Midway-Wake; and on 5 October, Wake-Guam. On 24 October, the US Post Office awarded Pan American the trans-Pacific mail contract, the day the Pan American Clipper arrived back in San Francisco from its survey flights across the Pacific.

S42 Pan American Clipper off Diamond Head April 1935

Pan American Clipper off Diamond Head en-route to Ford Island (PAHF)

S42 arrives at Ford Island 1935

Pan American Clipper arrival at Ford Island (PAHF)

Finally, on 22 November 1935, the Martin M-130 China Clipper flew from San Francisco to Manila with stops in Honolulu, Midway Island, Wake Island and Guam. The 8,210-mile trip took 59 hours and 48 minutes flying time, with stops in Honolulu, Midway Island, Wake Island and Guam.

In addition to its historic importance, the event was one of the most publicized ever. Described in detail by Daley, the celebration included lunches, speeches by VIPs and “crowds on the docks, crowds on the rooftops and crowds aboard the extra ferries that had been added on”. In addition, the inaugural ceremony was broadcast both in the USA as well as in Europe, South America and the Orient and included speeches by Postmaster General James Farley and Juan Trippe. Trippe concluded matters with the command, “Captain Musick, you have your sailing orders. Cast off and depart for Manila in accordance therewith”. Receptions greeted the Clipper in Honolulu and upon arrival in Manila between two and three hundred thousand Filipinos jammed together along a jetty to welcome the ship. In addition, was an enclosure with two thousand prominent guests as well as people in the streets and on rooftops. A flotilla of military fighter planes flew out to escort the Clipper through its splashdown and landing. There followed a reception, banquet and parade. Later, Captain Musick presented a letter from US President Roosevelt to Philippine President Quezon commemorating the flight. It was indeed an important event in aviation history.

In later years, Pan American Airways was synonymous with the advent of global jet travel and airline luxury and glamour. In the 1930s though, the world was in the midst of the Great Depression and drifting towards global war, Trippe was betting the destiny of his company and his vision of the future on the venture.

The producers of “Across the Pacific” went to great lengths and over five years, to craft this story for public television, skillfully using dramatic recreations of carefully researched historical events, complemented by insightful interviews with authors and historians. They uncovered long-lost archival photographs, recordings and motion pictures that had been locked away for decades. Writer/Producer Stephen Lyons (“The Mystery of Matter”) brought together a talented and experienced team to create the series, including Emmy-award winners Lisa Wolfinger of Lone Wolf Media (“Mercy Street”) who directed the dramatic sequences, and Katha Seidman (“Percy Julian, Forgotten Genius”) who managed series production design.

The PAHF is a member-supported non-profit educational organization founded in 1992. The Foundation is the premier source of authoritative information about the legendary airline, through its website http://www.panam.org, Clipper Newsletter, and other programs. The PAHF provided significant resources for Across the Pacific, complementing major support from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), and other funders.

For Information about finding Across the Pacific on a PBS station in your area, and to see a short trailer, please go to “Across the Pacific”
For further information please contact:

Doug Miller
Pan Am Historical Foundation
panamweb@gmail.com
Tel: 415-254-1686

Looking forward to seeing “Across the Pacific”?

A little background might be helpful to explain how this works in the world of public television, and how to get in touch with your local PBS station.

Across the Pacific is being distributed to all our public TV stations via American Public Television (APT), a program distribution service that allows each station the opportunity to schedule programs at their discretion. Here’s a LINK to the APT webpage regarding Across the Pacific, which includes trailers for the three different hours of the series). Note that your PBS station is free to show the series (or not show it at all) in any manner they choose.

Getting “Across the Pacific” seen as widely as possible means asking people to let their public TV station know that there is a significant constituency among their viewers who want to see the series, and preferably in a prime-time slot. This probably includes anyone who worked for, traveled on, or admired Pan Am – a group that likely includes a great many public television viewers and supporters!

You can let the decision-makers at your own public television station know that you are looking forward to seeing Across the Pacific soon, and at a time convenient to you, such as a weeknight. This is how the program is being launched by Virginia Public Media (VPM PBS), in Richmond. They’re the “presenting station” for Across the Pacific to the APT system. They’ll premiere the three hours of the program spread over three consecutive Thursday nights at 9 p.m., starting on 21 May, followed by 28May 2 and 4 June. Having the showings spread out this way helps build the biggest audience, as people spread the word over the course of the showings.

Every PBS station has their own way of receiving viewer requests, but all have a website and should have contact telephone numbers and email addresses listed, and/or sometimes online forms as well, that can provide another way to get a message through to the right people.

This LINK goes to an index of public television stations and provides an easy way to find your station’s website. Stations are listed by state (grouped alphabetically). Find your station, click through to its website and look for a link that says “Contact” or possibly “About” often at the bottom of the webpage. It might take a little hunting on your part, but it should be worth the effort. And when you find the right contact, tell your friends!

Good luck!

Filed under Airline History, Airlines, Aviation Law, Pan Am

Pan Am Series – Part XLVIV – Pan Am’s 90th Anniversary Book

8 February 2017 Leave a comment

747-cover-1

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

Ninety years ago, Pan American Airways was modestly launched with a contract to fly the U.S. Mail from Key West to Havana, Cuba. This year, friends and supporters of Pan Am will commemorate this landmark event with the publication of a special 90th Anniversary volume that looks back at the history of the airline that helped mold the international commercial airline industry of today.

Pan Am – Personal Tributes to a Global Aviation Pioneer is being published by the Pan Am Historical Foundation (PAHF). A true collector’s item, this commemorative hard cover edition measuring ten and a half by twelve and a half inches will be the perfect coffee-table book and will feature a colorful dust jacket. It will contain more than 80 stories written by former Pan Am employees and international media friends who had personal experience with many of Pan Am’s key events during its history.

The anthology will recount the history of Pan Am from its first flight to its very last. It will be illustrated with more than 300 images, many in full color, from a variety of sources including the Pan Am Historical Foundation’s unique photo library. It will also include posters, promotional brochures, timetables and baggage tags, the very essence of our industry.

This book can be purchased on eBay at https://www.ebay.com/itm/184289917388 or on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/0692820450/

Filed under Airline History, Airlines, Aviation Law, Pan Am Tagged with Airline History, Airlines, Aviation, Juan Trippe, Pan American, pan american airways, Pan American World Airways, transportation

Aviation Law Conference: Legal Aspects of Aircraft Mishaps and Disasters

25 September 2014 Leave a comment

AVIATION LAW CONFERENCE

Legal Aspects of Aircraft Mishaps and Disasters

November 10, 2014

9:00 am – 6:00 pm

American University Washington College of Law, Room 603

4801 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20016

Purpose: This conference will address the legal and organizational aspects of dealing with aircraft mishaps and disasters–not only finding causation, but how organizations should prepare for and respond to them.

Who Should Attend: Air carriers; air agencies; manufacturers; aircraft owners and operators; airport proprietors; aircraft and airline liability insurers; aircraft insurers; attorneys representing aviation concerns; plaintiffs’ attorneys.

AGENDA

0830-0900 Registration/Coffee and Pastries

0900-0920 Welcome and Introductions

Professor Andrew F. Popper, Washington College of Law

Jamie Baldwin, WCL ‘81

0920-1015 Aviation Regulations and Federal Aircraft Accident Investigations: History and Practice

Jamie Baldwin, WCL ‘81

1015-1115 Nuts and Bolts of Aircraft Accident Investigation

Matt Robinson, Robson Forensics

1115-1130 Morning Networking Coffee Break

1130-1230 NTSB Responsibilities and Recent Proposed Rulemaking Re: Accident Investigation

David Tochen, Esq., General Counsel, National Transportation Safety Board

1300-1400 Luncheon

Keynote Speaker: John Marshall, former Captain, Boeing 747, Pan American World Airways

1400-1500 Family Assistance Legislation and its Role in the Swissair/Halifax Accident and

Lessons Learned from the TWA 800 and Korean Airlines/Guam Accidents

Tom Whalen, Esq., Schott Johnson, LLP

1500-1600 Providing Legal Representation to the Operator after an Aircraft Mishap

Michael Dworkin, Esq., Michael L. Dworkin and Associates

1600-1630 Afternoon Networking Tea

1630-1730 Nuts and Bolts of Preparing Emergency Response Plan

John T. Van Geffen, Esq., Michael L. Dworkin and Associates

1730-1800 Wrap-Up and Questions and Answers

1800 End of Conference

There are no fees for this event.*

To Register for this Event Click Here.

For further information, please contact: Office of Special Events & Continuing Legal Education,

American University Washington College of Law
Phone: 202.274.4075; Fax: 202.274.4079; or secle@wcl.american.edu

* CLE Accreditation will be applied for – 5 credits. CLE registration – $275

Filed under Airlines, Aviation Law, Law Tagged with Aircraft accident investigations, Aircraft accidents, aircraft disasters, Aircraft Mishaps, AUWCL, aviation law, DC, FAA, Family assistance aircraft accidents, Family assistance legislation in aircraft accidents, Federal Aircraft Accident Investigations, Federal Aviation Administration, Legal Aspects of Aircraft Mishaps, National Transportation Safety Board, NTSB, NTSB Rulemaking, Washington, Washington College of Law

Pan Am Series – Part XLIII: Flying to the USSR – 3

18 August 2014 5 Comments

Москва Часть третья

RESUMING SERVICE TO MOSCOW

After suspending service to Moscow in 1978, Pan American World Airways resumed operations in 1986 under a new bilateral agreement with the USSR signed in January of that year. Negotiations between the US and the USSR had been ongoing prior to the signing and were most difficult due to the shooting down of a Korean airliner by a Soviet interceptor. Eventually the two parties came to an agreement with Pan American getting four flights per week (Aeroflot got two) between New York and Moscow, the right to serve Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) on the same route and a street-level office in the International Trade Building in Moscow. The agreement also gave Pan American First Freedom (overfly) rights over Soviet territory on flights between Europe and the Indian Subcontinent and also provided a revenue balancing feature whereby upon reaching a 12,000 passenger threshold, Pan American, Aeroflot or both would pay each other $350 per passenger exceeding that threshold.

In the presence of the US Ambassador to the USSR, Arthur Hartman (center) and Deputy Minister of Civil Aviation of the USSR Oleg Smirnov (right), Hans Mirka (left) cuts a red tape after the resumption of air links between the USSR and the USA at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Aiport on 29 April 1986. (Photo Boris Babanov RIA Novosti)

The route was operated by flight 74 with Boeing 747 equipment between New York and Frankfurt and a Boeing 727-200 between Moscow and Leningrad. The return was operated by flight 65, originating in Leningrad. The service, illustrated below from the October 1986 timetable, was operated twice a week.

Boeing 727-235 N4745 Clipper Invincible at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport having arrived on Pan American’s first flight from Frankfurt am Main 29 April 1986. (Photo Boris Babanov RIA Novosti)

Boeing 727-200 at Moscow, 1987. (Photo Daniel Frohriep-Ichihara)

THE BOEING 747 NONSTOP SERVICE

Pan American continued this service until a major breakthrough in 1988: the inauguration of non-stop service between New York and Moscow with the Boeing 747. According to James Yenckel in an article in The Washington Post, the new service was an unusual arrangement whereby both Pan American and Aeroflot offered non-stop Boeing 747 service using Pan American metal operated by a Pan American flight crew and were able to sell up to half the passenger and cargo space each, charging fares at their own rates. Each flight would also carry up to three Aeroflot flight attendants to assist Soviet passengers who could not speak English.

The service was hailed by an Aeroflot official as a “friendship air bridge” and came about as a result of the then improving business climate between the US and the USSR. The new nonstop service did not replace the existing narrow-body service that also included the stop in Leningrad.

On 14 May 1988 Clipper Moscow Express a Boeing 747-121 (N733PA) departed New York in the late afternoon and arrived during the morning hours the next day at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport.

The April 1988 time table listing the new Moscow service effective 14 May 1988.

Clipper Moscow Express arrives at Moscow (top) and the flight crew poses after the historic flight (bottom). (Photos from miniaviamodel.ru)

Pan American promoted the service with advertisements like the above (left). (Image from miniaviamodel.ru) In addition, a ticket office was up and running in Leningrad (right). (Courtesy of Arthur Rindner).

The Boeing 747 was popular with plane spotters in Moscow, as illustrated by the pictures from the website miniaviamodel.ru.

Clockwise from top left: Clipper Neptune’s Favorite, Clipper Fairwind, Clipper Pride of the Sea and Clipper Gem of the Ocean.

The cabin crew also enjoyed the flights (from miniaviamodel.ru):

PROMOTING THE 747 OPERATION: A PERSONAL RECOLLECTION

Elizabeth Hlinko Margulies was working in Pan American’s Public Relations Department and was involved with the initial promotion of the nonstop 747 service. She wrote about her experiences in Pan American World Airways – Aviation history through the Words of its People. Below is an excerpt from her story, “Glasnost Comes to Pan Am”:

“In 1988, Pan Am and Aeroflot joined forces on a partnership in which the two airlines jointly marketed and operated nonstop Boeing 747 flights between New York and Moscow. The Pan Am planes were staffed by Pan Am pilots and cabin crews, while Aeroflot placed flight attendants on board to serve as interpreters and provide branding for Aeroflot. To promote the service, my job was to help organize a media tour of key cities in the United States.

“This was the type of history-making project that, as a recent college graduate working in the Public Relations department, I both relished and found surprising. I use the term “surprising” because unlike my Mom who began working for Pan Am during its magnificent rise, I knew that I was working for an airline that was rapidly on its final descent and we were all holding on for dear life. * * *

“When I was first given the assignment to coordinate this project, I was gently ‘warned’ by some of our Eastern European experts that my life would likely be gone over with a fine tooth comb and that I shouldn’t be surprised if I noticed government type agents following me. I would, after all, be hosting possible Communists in the U.S. To this day I have no idea if that was a real warning or paranoia from colleagues, but since I didn’t have anything to hide the idea never really bothered me. In those days, I didn’t know if satellite media tours even existed, or if they did, I’m sure they were too costly to consider for promotional projects like this, so ours was a good old fashioned, pound the pavement series of in-person TV and radio interviews in various cities. A Pan Am flight attendant and an Aeroflot flight attendant were chosen to represent the partnership. The Aeroflot flight attendant was accompanied by her ‘escort’…a marketing executive from Aeroflot in Moscow, and I was the Pan Am organizer.

“The tour itself was a success, generating substantial media coverage for the partnership. I would like to think that the friendship between the two flight attendants from different worlds came across loud and clear during the interviews. I’d also like to think that their camaraderie helped to convince people to travel to the U.S.S.R. on this Pan Am-Aeroflot joint venture.

“The story could end here…a successful U.S. media tour, good media coverage…but it doesn’t. In the new era of open discussion and free dissemination of news and information, Aeroflot informed us that they wanted to host a similar media tour of the Soviet Union. For me, this truly was an experience of a lifetime. * * *

“Imagine my surprise when during the first press conference in Moscow, the reporters turned to me and asked questions like, ‘how much money do you make?’ and ‘are you married?’ I truly was not prepared for these questions, or for having my photo and interview appear in Russian newspapers. But, after all, this was still the early stages of a new freedom for the Russian people, so looking back now I probably shouldn’t have been surprised at some of the questions.

“The rest of the trip was both remarkable and eye opening. I remember being in a hotel room in Moscow with the Pan Am flight attendant as we discussed how much we would like to find some fresh flowers to cheer up the room. We went out for a walk, looking for flowers only to find vases with fresh flowers in our rooms when we returned. It certainly felt like Big Brother was watching!

“Another memory that’s etched into my brain is when the Aeroflot marketing executive slipped me a couple of dollars and asked me to go into one of the hard currency stores to buy film so she could take photos of us on the trip. Apparently it was illegal for Russians to have hard currency or even go into a hard currency store. Truly eye opening.

” * * *I can say is that I was extremely grateful for the fact that Pan Am operated those joint venture flights…especially the flight that carried me back to New York after my amazing Russian experience.”

Pan American continued operating the non-stop service as well as the 727 service to Moscow and Leningrad until November 1991 when Delta took over Pan American’s European operations.

THE 1990 US-USSR BILATERAL AGREEMENT

During 1990, negotiations between the US and the USSR resulted in a new bilateral air services agreement that opened new destinations at both ends and including both transpacific and transatlantic services. The new destinations included Anchorage, San Francisco, Chicago and Miami in the US and on the USSR side, the Ukrainian city of Kiev, Magadan and Khabarovsk in the Soviet Far East, Tbilisi in Soviet Georgia and Riga in Latvia.

The new agreement also provided that, after 1 April 1991, up to four additional US passenger airlines and up to two all-cargo airlines would be authorized to fly to the Soviet Union, and also provided that the USSR expand Aeroflot’s schedule or establish new airlines to compete with Aeroflot on the US routes.

PAN AMERICAN: THE “CHOSEN INSTRUMENT”

If there was any route in Pan American’s history that could be designated as a “Chosen Instrument” route, the US-USSR could be that route. Pan American was the selected airline because it was recognized as the primary US-flag carrier as exemplified by the USSR’s aviation officials making the initial contact directly with Juan Trippe. After reporting the contact to the US State Department and the Civil Aeronautics Board, Trippe was authorized to negotiate with the Soviets on key issues on an air services agreement between the two countries. However, it can be reasonably concluded that in the end, political considerations were the basis for the final agreement between the two countries and both Pan American and Aeroflot were instruments of those considerations, and therefore instruments of both countries’ foreign policy, hence, the “Chosen Instrument”.

For Pan American, a private enterprise as opposed to the state-owned Aeroflot, the operation was a money loser and the competition was not on a level playing field. Quite simply, Pan American could not sell tickets in the USSR. Under the Airline Deregulation Act, there was a provision for airlines to receive a subsidy for operating into small markets, known as the “essential air services” subsidy. Unfortunately, there was no similar provision for a US flag carrier operating at an economic disadvantage in an international market at the government’s bidding. Pan American was never subsidized and eventually suspended the losing operation but did so when US-USSR relations were souring. It was not until relations began to improve between the two countries in the late 1980s, did the service resume in 1986, crowned with the 747 non-stop service in 1988.

For additional information about Pan American World Airways:

To learn more about the history of this pioneering airline, click on the title below for preview of

Pan American World Airways – Images of a Great Airline Second Edition.

This book is available on eBay .

Another excellent book is Pan Am – Personal Tributes to a Global Aviation Pioneer, which was published to commemorate the 90th Anniversary of Pan Am’s founding. It contains more than 80 stories written by former Pan Am employees and international media friends who had personal experience with many of Pan Am’s key events during its history. It is the perfect companion to Pan American World Airways – Images of a Great Airline Second Edition and can be purchased on Amazon.

Preview Pan American World Airways – Aviation History Through the Words of its People, which is available on Amazon.

For further information about the history of Pan American World Airways, visit: Pan Am Historical Foundation

Filed under Airline History, Airlines, Aviation Law, Pan Am, Travel Tagged with Aeroflot, Boeing 727, Boeing 747, Glasnost, IL-62, Moscow, New York, PAA, Pan Am, Pan American, Pan American World Airways, Soviet Union, USSR

Pan Am Series – Part XLII: Flying to the USSR – 2

27 July 2014 1 Comment

Москва – часть вторая

In the previous posting, the story of how Pan American World Airways began operations to the Soviet Union were detailed from the early negotiations to the first flight on 15 July 1968. For the next ten years, Pan American operated at least a weekly flight between New York and Moscow using Boeing 707 equipment. In 1978, the service was suspended largely due to commercial reasons.

Initially, Pan American’s Moscow service was operated by flight 44 eastbound and flight 45 westbound, with Boeing 707 equipment. In the September 1969 timetable, the service was twice a week, flight 44 operating on Mondays and Fridays, and the return flight 45 on Tuesdays and Saturdays. The route included a stop in Copenhagen, although no local traffic was permitted between that city and Moscow. This service is illustrated below:

By October, 1971, the service was changed to flights 102 (eastbound) and 103 (westbound), with a stopover in London. This was a once a week rotation, with the eastbound flight departing New York on Friday and the westbound from Moscow on Sunday. No local traffic was permitted between London and Moscow. The flights were operated with Boeing 707 equipment.

This service continued through October 1973, although the timetable did not indicate any restrictions on local traffic between London and Moscow.

By 1975, the original flights 44/45 returned to the schedule, with a once weekly service between New York and Moscow, eastbound on Saturday and westbound on Sunday with Boeing 707 equipment. The stopover in Copenhagen was re-instated and there was no indication that there were restrictions on local traffic in the December 1975 timetable. Flights 44/45 also made a New York-Copenhagen-Warsaw rotation on Sundays and Thursdays, returning on Mondays and Fridays with Boeing 707 equipment.

By August 1978, the last year of operations between New York and Moscow, the service was operated by flight 66 eastbound and flight 67 westbound, using Boeing 747 equipment between New York and Frankfurt and Boeing 727 equipment between Frankfurt and Moscow. The rotation operated twice a week, Mondays and Fridays eastbound and Wednesdays and Sundays westbound. There appeared to be no restrictions on local traffic between Frankfurt and Moscow.

During this ten year period, the US and the USSR. signed an agreement on joint cooperation in the field of transportation calling for exchanges of information in areas that included the safety and efficiency of civil aviation. As a result of the pact, FAA officials and their Soviet counterparts held meetings on a variety of technical subjects. The agreement was one of a series signed by officials during a summit meeting between President Nixon and Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev. The last of these agreements, signed on 23 June 1973, provided for an expansion of direct airline flights between the two countries. Previously, Pan American and Aeroflot had each been allowed two round-trip flights per week between New York and Moscow. The two airlines were now permitted up to three flights per week, and Pan Am received authorization to land at Leningrad, and Aeroflot at Washington. The new authority was never inaugurated on a scheduled basis.

In 1978, Pan American discontinued operations in the USSR as part of a cutback on its European flights. The load factors were low and this was largely attributed to its inability to gain market share. Quite simply, Soviet citizens could not buy Pan Am tickets. In order to obtain their papers to travel abroad, Soviet citizens were required to hold Aeroflot tickets. In addition, Aeroflot would undersell Western airlines to earn hard currency.

After Pan American discontinued operations, Aeroflot continued its Moscow-New York service. However, under President Carter, Aeroflot service was reduced to two flights per week, effective January 13, 1980, as part of a response to Soviet military actions in Afghanistan.

George Hambleton was closely involved in the inauguration of Pan American’s service to Moscow. In the previous posting, he related is experiences related to the first flight. He also spent time on the ground in Moscow involved with the protocol on the commercial side of the operation. Below are his recollections, taken from his story in the book Pan American World Airways – Aviation History Through the Words of its People:

“The first New York-Moscow flights made one stop on the way – Montreal for Aeroflot and Copenhagen for Pan Am. Shortly before Pan Am’s first scheduled flight, another Pan American 707 “protocol” flight, with Government officials and VIP guests took off. I remember suggesting to New York that the person with the most impact possible to be invited as an inaugural guest would be Jacqueline Onassis. Secretly, the Russians loved John F. Kennedy. He had stood up to Khrushchev and made him back down! Jackie Onassis would have been a sensation.

“Pan Am’s initial weekly flights were 10 hours 50 minutes eastbound – 11 hours 45 minutes westbound. First class fares were $584 one way, and $1,109 round trip. Economy fares were $384 one way off season — $429 during the summer peak.

“Aeroflot’s inaugural ‘protocol’ flight was led by the Deputy Minister of Civil Aviation. The Russians had taken our inaugural guests to the Bolshoi in Moscow, so we felt obligated to reciprocate. Finding forty seats to the ballet in New York was not easy. We arranged for dinner at a very nice restaurant near the Lincoln Center. The restaurant had made a major effort to look old fashioned – bare brick walls, with gas lights protruding from the walls. When the Russian Deputy Minister saw the gas lights, he said, ‘In Moscow we have electricity!’

“Pan Am’s operation, very efficiently led by Airport Manager, Walter Nelson, at Sheremetyevo, had a much greater impact than its relatively low initial schedules would have indicated. An analysis of the flights to Moscow by themselves could show a money losing “National Interest” route, but if incremental trans-Atlantic traffic, connecting over other gateways, was added, the Moscow operation was quite successful. Most connecting passengers would not have called Pan Am if we had not been serving Moscow.

“In spite of constant ‘stealing’ of our passengers by rank and file Aeroflot employees, we managed to generate more Moscow originating trans-Atlantic traffic than other western airlines. Aeroflot would not help pending passengers until the long exit and entry visa processes were completed. The wife of the US Consul came to work for Pan Am, giving us access to visa applications. We were able to help Russian passengers early in the visa process. Many of them had prepaid tickets, paid for by relatives in the U.S.

“All tickets had to be issued by Aeroflot’s Moscow reservations office. It was called the Central International Agency – until I pointed out that was ‘CIA’ They changed the name!

* * *

“No advertising signs were permitted on the outside of buildings in Moscow in those days. Our corner office on the second floor of the turn of the century Metropol Hotel had two huge bay windows. We ordered two large signs (white squares, with huge Pan Am blue balls, some seven or eight feet across), and mounted them on the inside of the large bay windows, directly across a square from the Bolshoi Ballet, in the center of Moscow. With no other advertising signs, and, particularly, no other American signs, in the center of the city, this caused quite a stir.

“Moscow city officials were bemused, but chagrined. We were not advertising on the outside of the building in violation of their regulations, and they empathized with this ‘manipulation of the system.’ ‘We see what you’re doing!’ Moscow bureaucrats did not know much about New York. We assured them, if they let us keep our signs, we’d make sure that Vladimir Samaroukov, Aeroflot’s manager in New York, would be permitted to put up Aeroflot signs there! We waited a month or so before turning on the lighted Pan Am signs. By then it was clear to all that an American Company was firmly ensconced in the heart of Moscow – unheard of until that time. To help cement the arrangement, we may have asked the bureaucrats to help us distribute a few boxes of Pan Am calendars.

***

“As a symbol of confidence, Pan Am had a custom of bringing the entire Board of Directors, with the wives or husbands, on the same airplane for board meetings at different locations around the world. The Board decided to come to Moscow. Preparations were exhaustive. We even had my good wife, Janet, do a survey of ladies’ rooms in areas we planned to take the Board. Intourist was helpful, but, as the Russians say, the reason Napoleon failed in Russia was because his plans were made by Intourist!

“We arranged a private meeting between Minister Loginov and Juan Trippe. I was privileged to attend. Although nothing had yet leaked to the press, Mr. Trippe confided to Marshal Loginov that Pan Am had decided not to go forward with supersonic operations, but, instead, to develop widebody aircraft. Loginov was stunned. Aeroflot and the Russians had clearly put all their emphasis into developing their version of the supersonic Concorde. Suddenly, they feared being left behind by the airlines of the world following Pan Am with wide-bodies.

“In spite of continuing tight controls of the Breshnev era – small cracks in the Kremlin walls – (hardly noticeable at the time) – were beginning to appear. Alya Andersen, wife of New York Times bureau chief, Ray Andersen, worked in the Pan Am office. She said quietly one day that her father, who lived in Ryazan, a closed area south of Moscow, had devoted his life to this great cause, communism, which he thought was the answer to everything. In his late forties, he began to realize it was not working – it was all a big mistake. Alya said he was totally frustrated – he was afraid to discuss it with anybody – but felt he had wasted his life. There must have been millions of others like him, waiting for glasnost and perestroika, which did not come until Gorbachov, a couple of decades later.”

A young George Hambleton at Moscow with a Pan American 707

Once the flights were started, there was a requirement for Russian-speaking flight attendants (then, stewardesses). Ilona Duncan, a flight attendant from that era, was one who was sent to Moscow for a four week course in Russian. Not only did she learn Russian, but also about the Soviet society at the time. Her story also appears in the book Pan American World Airways – Aviation History Through the Words of its People, excerpted below:

“The afternoon of January 12, 1971, as the Pan Am Clipper flight 44 makes its final approach to Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport, I glance down at snow-covered fields framed by dark lifeless bushes and trees. Here and there I can make out a house forlorn in the vast wintry Russian landscape exuding the melancholic mood of the Russian soul so often described in the works of Tolstoy and Pushkin. Tired from an all-night flight starting in New York via Copenhagen, a sense of excitement drives away my feeling of drowsiness. I am one of 31 Pan American stewardesses, who signed up for a Russian language course in Moscow. To alleviate the shortage of Russian speaking cabin personnel since Pan Am started operating flights to the Soviet Union in 1968, Pan American arranged this 4-week program at minimal cost of hotel and meal expenses to us, while we agreed to an unpaid leave-of-absence. Within our group of eleven nationalities, (French, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Israeli, Yugoslavian, Argentinean, Honduran, Uruguayan, Dutch and American,) I am one of the few with a background of studying Russian at Hunter College, in the hope of eventually adding it to the other four languages (French, Italian, Dutch and German) I am qualified to speak on board. Federal Air Regulations required at least one person to be able to communicate in the language spoken at the destination country of every flight.

“We arrive at the Hotel National in time for dinner, served from 6:30-7:30 p.m. A babushka (grandmother) who occupies a desk on every floor hands me the room key and, as we observe from then on, notes down every one of our movements, an outcome of the ongoing Cold War. My room, which I share with my Swedish friend, consists of two single beds separated by a table. Heavy curtains hide the view from the window. A single light bulb dangles from the high ceiling and gives off enough light to reveal the cracks in the lime green walls. When I go to take a long bath, I discover no stop in the tub, and a shower head is non-existent.

* * *

“Our daily schedule allows for little idle time, starting with breakfast between 9 and 9:45, lessons at the department for foreign students at Moscow State University from 10 to 1, followed by lunch from 1:30-2:30, and excursions on most afternoons. Bus transportation is provided by Moscow’s Intourist Office. Every second day drivers are exchanged for fear we might become too friendly with them.

“We attend a fashion show where we get an authentic taste of life in the Soviet Union, where Russian models present lackluster and unappealing outfits. We visit Moscow’s Wedding Palace to witness a line-up of grooms in dark suits and brides in frilly white dresses ready to take their vows. We sleep in bunk beds on a night train for a weekend in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) and wonder what is so important to hide from our view, that the windows had been boarded shut.

* * *

“Although interchange with Russians is strongly discouraged, we attract the curiosity of young people. Among the drab colors worn by everyone in Moscow we stand out in our fashionable attire .

* * *

“Others want to practice their foreign languages with us. After meeting students at a café, I suggest: ‘Why don’t we all go to my hotel and sit in the lobby?’

“The minute we climb the stairs to the main hall, two men emerge, grab the young students by their arms, shouting in Russian: ‘Rusky nyet’ (No Russians).

“’All we want to do is talk,’ I plead.

“’No Russians allowed in this hotel.’

“One afternoon, my roommate and I walk up to the roof-top terrace on the 23^rd floor of the Russia Hotel for a postcard view of Saint Basil‘s Cathedral and Red Square. Raising my camera for a photo, a male voice screams from behind: ‘Stop, or you will be arrested.’ In a frenzy we make a run for a lady’s room where I quickly remove the film before a uniformed man enters. Terrified we endure a tirade of reprimands. Finding my camera empty he lets us go. I had forgotten that we are never to take photos from high places.

* * *

“Despite some anxious moments, the highlights of our stay are the cultural events. Every evening we occupy the best seats at one of the theaters or concert halls. During intermission at the Bolshoi or Kremlin Theatre we savor dishes of mushrooms in cream sauce or ice-cream topped with loganberries. Never again will I see a performance rising to the level of perfection and beauty as at the Bolshoi Theater.

“On our last day of school we receive a certificate of attendance. Our teacher has tried her utmost to drill some basic Russian into our brains. But without prior knowledge most of the students have trouble understanding her and reading the alphabet. Back in New York, a few months later, I become qualified as Russian speaker on Pan Am flights thrilled to return to Moscow.”

Ilona Duncan at the Aeroflot Flight Academy

In the next posting, Pan American re-instates its Moscow service in 1986 and introduces a 747 nonstop rotation in 1988.

For additional information about Pan American World Airways:

To learn more about the history of this pioneering airline, click on the title below for preview of

Pan American World Airways – Images of a Great Airline Second Edition.

This book is available on eBay .

Preview Pan American World Airways – Aviation History Through the Words of its People, which is available on Amazon.

For further information about the history of Pan American World Airways, visit: Pan Am Historical Foundation

Filed under Airline History, Airlines, Aviation Law, Pan Am, Travel Tagged with Aeroflot, Air Services Agreements, bilateral, Boeing 707, Boeing 727, detente between the usa and ussr, Jimmy Carter, Leonid Brezhnev, Moscow, New York, PAA, Pan Am, Pan Am Clippers, pan am flights to moscow, pan am flights to russia, Pan American, Pan American World Airways, president carter and aeroflot, president carter and soviet union and Afghanistan, President Nixon, Russia, salt talks, Soviet Union, us-ussr agreement 1973, us-ussr bilateral

Pan Am Series – Part XLI: Flying to the USSR – 1

19 July 2014 3 Comments

Москва

One of the major accomplishments of Pan American World Airways was its involvement in opening an airline route between the United States and the then Soviet Union (USSR). Of all the routes operated by Pan American, this would probably be the one route on which the airline actually operated as the “Chosen Instrument” or indeed as an instrument of American foreign policy.

The first flight from New York to Moscow was 15 July 1968. However it took years to finalize the arrangements that led to the inauguration of regular airline service between the two Cold War rivals. During this time, relations between the United States and the Soviet Union ranged from friendly to confrontational and included numerous events that were major news makers during that era.

The first instance of Pan American interest in entering into an airline service agreement occurred during the 1930s when Juan Trippe held discussions with the Russians. These discussions, however, were thwarted by politics. In 1945, the US Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) awarded American Export (AOA) authority to serve Moscow by extension from Helsinki. Pan American inherited this authority from the AOA merger, but the authority lay dormant due to the Cold War.

About ten years later, during the Geneva Summit in 1955, US President Eisenhower proposed an exchange of airline service agreement with USSR. That year, the USSR concluded bilateral treaty with Finland, its first.

President Eisenhower (left) and Soviet Premier Khrushchev (right) in 1959

In 1956, the USSR concluded bilateral treaties with the Scandinavian countries for routes to Copenhagen with “beyond” (Fifth Freedom) rights to London, Brussels, Paris and Amsterdam. In addition, the Soviet Embassy in Washington, DC approached Juan Trippe and Pan American about opening a route between the US and the USSR. Trippe reported the contact to the U.S. State Department and the CAB and was authorized to continue discussions (in effect to revert to his old-style diplomacy), even though the opening of the route would be subject to a bilateral agreement between the USA and the USSR.

Based on this authority, Trippe went to Washington and met with Yevgeny F. Loginov, Minister of Civil Aviation and director of Aeroflot. Talks focused at the start on technical matters such as maintenance facilities, radio navigation, fuel storage and baggage handling. Negotiations were protracted. During this time, Trippe also visited Moscow.

By 1958, both nations had agreed to exchange airline service and the US-USSR cultural exchange agreement of 1958-59 contained promises that an air pact would be signed in due course. During that time, Khrushchev accused the U.S. ambassador to the USSR of “foot-dragging” in the negotiations.

In 1959 Trippe accompanied US Vice President Nixon to to Moscow and met with his Aeroflot counterpart. The Aeroflot chief later accompanied Khrushchev to the US and suggested the US attempt to persuade the Scandinavian countries to give the Soviets overflight (First Freedom) rights on its route to New York. This suggestion however, was in conflict with NATO policy of “confining” Soviet international aviation and insisting on strict reciprocity. These talks, however, were postponed to a more suitable time due to the U-2 incident, the abortive Paris summit meeting and the shooting down of a USAF RB-47.

U-2 aircraft (left); Khrushchev looking at wreckage (right)

Things eased when President Kennedy was sworn in as President and talks resumed. However, the FAA Administrator warned Secretary of State Dean Rusk that a standard bilateral agreement (modeled on Bermuda) should not be used with Russia, otherwise Pan American would be at a disadvantage compared with Aeroflot. Both countries, however, finally agreed on text, and Pan American and Aeroflot agreed on inter-carrier matters.

Unfortunately, however, the Soviets’ building of the Berlin Wall and the Cuban Missile Crisis intervened, causing President Kennedy to decline to sign the air agreement.

Building the Berlin Wall (1961)(left); President Kennedy at the Berlin Wall (1961)(right)

Cuban Missile Crisis (Credit: Bettmann/Corbis)

In 1963, President Kennedy advised Soviet Premier Gromyko that the US is ready to move forward on the airline agreement. There were still issues to be resolved, however, and it was not until December, 1963 that President Johnson, who succeeded the late President Kennedy, instructed Najeeb Halaby (then FAA head, later president of Pan American) to solve the remaining problems with the Soviets regarding the treaty. However, there was opposition to the treaty in the US, with the fear that the treaty will allow Soviet penetration into the Western hemisphere. In addition, the Vietnam War soured relations.

By 1966, USSR and Canada had concluded a bilateral air agreement giving Aeroflot authority to Montreal. President Johnson also suggested that the old agreement should be looked at again, and on 4 November 1966, the US-USSR agreement was signed in Washington.

The agreement differed from typical bilateral agreements where agreement on the commercial aspects of air services between the two countries, including capacity and tariffs, were made subject to a prior agreement between the designated airlines (Pan American and Aeroflot) which, in turn, was subject to prior governmental approval.

According to Marilyn Bender and Selig Altschul in Chosen Instrument, the agreement was a money loser. It entailed a once a week round-trip for each airline and the Russians prohibited Pan American from drumming up business in the USSR. “Although it may have been in the national interest for an American-flag carrier to fly to Moscow, there was no subsidy forthcoming from Washington.”

In 1967, another barrier was encountered when it was discovered that Soviet aircraft did not meet noise limitations, had insufficient avionics and flew too fast for US holding patterns. Rumors were that that the Soviets did not want to share technical data because of the similarity between their commercial aircraft and their bombers.

Later, the Soviet-Canadian agreement was amended to give Aeroflot beyond rights to New York. A new Soviet plane, the IL-62 began making test trips to New York and other U S airports.

On 15 July 15 1968, Aeroflot’s inaugural flight arrived at New York’s Kennedy Airport; on the same day a Pan Am 707 took off for Moscow on its inaugural flight to the Soviet Union.

Aeroflot IL-62 preparing for departure in Moscow (top)

Pan American 707 departing New York for Moscow (middle)

Pan American 707 arrival at Moscow (bottom)

All photos from http://www.miniaviamodel.ru

George Hambleton was sent by Juan Trippe to Moscow to develop good relations with Marshal Loginov, the Minister of Civil Aviation and director of Aeroflot. He wrote about this assignment in the book Pan American World Airways – Aviation History Through the Words of its People. Excerpts from his story are below:

“Juan Trippe had sent me to Moscow from Helsinki in the mid 1960’s to develop good relations with Marshal Loginov, Minister of Civil Aviation, in an effort to persuade Aeroflot to join Pan Am in developing an InterContinental Hotel in Russia. The contracts had been signed in Helsinki. Mr. Trippe told me not to tell anyone about the Russian hotel proposal – not even my own boss in Pan Am. Relations with the Ministry and Aeroflot developed favorably, but a hotel agreement was never concluded. The favorable relations, however, set the stage for eventual introduction of scheduled services between New York and Moscow.

“During the early negotiations, I remember, with some amusement, our US technical team telling Aeroflot that the FAA required both DME and transponders on all aircraft entering New York airspace. This was long before GPS. The Pan Am team said with these two instruments pilots could know their exact location. The answer from Aeroflot was, “Soviet pilots always know their exact location!” However, if one had looked closely at the belly antenna of the Russian IL-62, after service began, one would have seen the insignia, ‘RCA’ (Radio Corporation of America).

“In the Cold War decade of the 1960’s, after Sputnick, the Cuban missile confrontation, and the Kennedy assassination, life in Moscow was grim. The city was bleak, drab and grey. There was no lighting or advertising signs on the sides of buildings – no color printing – only some faded reds and blue. The terror of the years of Stalinist purges had diminished but fear was still pervasive – particularly among older people. The attitude of many was, ‘We have always been at war – with the Germans – before that with the French – the Swedes – and the Tartars. Our memories are all of sadness.’ * * *

“Into this world I walked as a relatively young man, with a young English wife, two young children, and a Labrador puppy. How to cope with this system, and have an efficient Pan Am operation off to a successful start was the question. Given Pan Am’s strict worldwide policy against bribes and corruption, it seemed almost impossible, until we remembered a clause in the bilateral air agreement. Aeroflot was permitted to distribute advertising material in the United States – and Pan Am was permitted to distribute advertising material in the Soviet Union.

“Here was our incredible secret weapon. There was nothing in Russia like the Pan Am calendar, with its large, beautiful color pictures of worldwide destinations. People who had no other color pictures would frame them to hang in their otherwise drab and crowded apartments. I was told that Pan Am calendars would sell for the equivalent of some twenty or thirty dollars on the black market. During communist days, the Soviet Poet and playwright Vladimir Mayakovsky wrote ‘Without a piece of paper you’re an insect – with a piece of paper you’re a man!’ We had a piece of paper that made it legal for us to distribute these valuable items – a box of a hundred calendars was a pretty handsome gift – It was advertising material.

“Eventually service began.

“On July 14, 1968 Richard Witkin wrote in the New York Times:

‘At Pan American World Airways’ second floor sales office in the Hotel Metropol, 15 sons and daughters of American Embassy officials spent much of the rainy Moscow Sunday putting 16 kopek’s worth of stamps on 22,000 envelopes marking the inaugural flight…. The letter will be flown to New York on the… Pan American flight, and delivered to stamp collectors and others with special interest in the start of the route.

‘The (Pan Am/Aeroflot inaugural) flights will culminate a diplomatic effort that had its fragile beginning in the first Soviet-American cultural exchange agreement in 1958. It also will be another in a series of recent signs that relations between the two countries are being selectively improved, despite strains imposed by the Vietnam War.’

* * *

“In the early 1960’s, Mr. Khrushchev had been saying the Soviet Union would soon “overtake and surpass” the United States. Speaking at a ceremony celebrating Pan Am/Aeroflot service in the late ‘60’s, Ambassador Llewellyn Thompson said there was one field in which he would welcome the Soviet Union overtaking and surpassing the United States – that was in the number of visitors from Russia to the United States overtaking the number of visitors from the United States to Russia.”

The September 1969 timetable (above) illustrates the Pan American Moscow service that was operated for ten years. In the next posting of the “Pan Am Series” will be a description of the operation during this period.

For additional information about Pan American World Airways:

To learn more about the history of this pioneering airline, click on the title below for preview of

Pan American World Airways – Images of a Great Airline Second Edition.

This book is available on eBay .

Preview Pan American World Airways – Aviation History Through the Words of its People, which is available on Amazon.

For further information about the history of Pan American World Airways, visit: Pan Am Historical Foundation

Filed under Airline History, Airlines, Aviation Law, Law, Pan Am, Travel Tagged with Aeroflot, Air Services Agreements, Aviation, aviation bilaterals, Boeing, Boeing 707, Cold War, Juan Trippe, Moscow, New York, PAA, Pan Am, Pan Am Clippers, Pan American, Pan American World Airways, President Kennedy, Russia, Soviet Premier Khrushchev, Soviet Union, USA-USSR air services agreement, USSR

Aircraft Leasing Workshop – 14 November 2014 – Washington, DC

15 July 2014 Leave a comment

The “Nuts and Bolts” of Aircraft Operating and WET Leases

Aeropodium’s Law Aviation Workshop Series is holding its highly informative workshop, Legal Aspects of Aircraft Leasing and Financing on 14 November 2014 in Washington, DC.

The workshop is hosted by the Washington offices of Cozen O’Connor and includes speakers with decades of experience in negotiating and managing all aspects of aircraft leases.

CLE and CPD Credits Available.

Register Now! Limited Spaces Available!

Thomas J. Whalen, Attorney at Law, Schott Law Associates & Former Member of the US Delegation to the Cape Town Convention and Participant in the Drafting of the Agreement.

Senior Vice President, Technical

Avitas

Mark Atwood, Member, Cozen O’Connor

Jamie Baldwin, Lecturer, Author and Consultant on Air Transportation, Adjunct Instructor, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

Don Kenny, Senior Vice President, Falcon Insurance Agency

WORKSHOP THEMES
Introduction to Aircraft Leasing

Contract Law Refresher

Hear about the principles of the Law of Contracts that work together to create an airtight and fully enforceable aircraft finance or lease agreement.

– Offer / acceptance / agreement / performance / discharge / breach / remedies

– Applicability to aircraft lease agreements

Operating Leases (“Dry”)

Learn the ins and outs of the operating lease and how to get the best deal while avoiding the pitfalls. Hear about and discuss current trends and the outlook for the future.

– Bargaining the Terms and Conditions

– Operations and Maintenance Considerations

– Dealing with Trade Sanctions

Cape Town Convention

Hear from the former US Delegate to the Convention, Tom Whalen, Esq. Learn how to protect your interests in aircraft and engine lease and finance agreements

– History and practical application

Technical Lease Language

How technical lease language can ensure maintenance and return of the asset while retaining its value

Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance & Insurance (“WET”) Leases

Learn how and why “Wet” leases are used by the airlines to meet their operational commitments. Hear how these leases work and how to get the best deal.

– How they differ from Dry Leases

– Bargaining the Agreement

– Duties of the Parties

Aviation Insurance

Learn what every Lessor or Lessee needs to know about adequate insurance coverage.

– Insurance protections available to aircraft operators and financial institutions engaged in aircraft transactions

For More Information or to Register, click here.

Filed under Aviation Law, Law Tagged with acmi leases, aircraft crew maintenance and insurance, aircraft dry leases, Aircraft finance, Aircraft lease, Aircraft leasing, aircraft operating leases, aircraft WET leases, aviation contract law, aviation law, contract law, Dry leasing, WET leasing

Pan Am Series – Part XL: Round-the-World Flight

29 June 2014 10 Comments

Pan American’s Round-the-World Services

John T. McCoy’s painting of Clipper America arriving at San Francisco, completing the first commercial airline round-the-world flight, 29 June 1947.

Setting the Stage

With the Fifth Freedom rights granted by Britain in the Bermuda Agreement of 1946, the United States obtained the authority for its international air carriers to pick up passengers in Britain (and in British colonies such as India and Hong Kong) to beyond points in Europe and Asia. What this meant was that Pan American would be able to launch a “round-the-world” service.

At the time, with World War II ended, the U.S. international air transportation system was taking on a whole new complexion. Prior to the war, Pan American Airways was the de facto U.S. flag international air carrier. This was achieved largely by Juan Trippe’s ability to (1) win Foreign Air Mail contracts and (2) negotiate landing concessions with countries of interest. This worked very well in Latin America because for all intents and purposes, Pan American’s activities in the region were in line with the U.S. desire to keep the Germans from establishing any presence there.

With the end of the war, however, as a result of their support to the war effort, the Civil Aeronautics Board awarded the likes of TWA, Northwest, United and American Export (AOA, later acquired by Pan American) international routes, much to the chagrin of Pan American. Juan Trippe had fought tooth-and-nail to be the designated U.S. flag international carrier (the “Chosen Instrument”), but was thwarted along the way by politicians and his competition. This story and its political intrigue is covered in detail in The Chosen Instrument, by Marylin Bender and Selig Alschul and An American Saga – Juan Trippe and His Pan Am Empire, by Robert Daley.

Nevertheless, Pan American had the beyond authority as granted in the Bermuda Agreement and on 17 June 1947, Juan Trippe departed on the inauguration of Pan American Airways’ round-the-world service, the first for a scheduled commercial airline.

The aircraft used was a Lockheed Constellation model 749, Clipper America, powered by four 2.200-horsepower Wright engines, with a cruising speed of 260 miles per hour and a pressurization system that permitted flying at altitudes between 18,000-20,000 feet.

Clipper America departed from New York’s LaGuardia airport and stopped in Gander, Shannon, London, Istanbul, Dhahran, Karachi, Calcutta, Bangkok, Manila, Shanghai, Tokyo, Guam, Wake Island, Midway, Honolulu, San Francisco and Chicago, arriving back in New York on 30 June. The journey entailed 22,170 miles. Not having domestic authority, the flight between San Francisco and New York was a “ferry-flight” and thereafter all of Pan American’s round-the-world flights departed from one coast of the U.S. and terminated on the other.

The round-the-world service was a fixture in Pan American’s timetables from then on, until the final round-the-world flight in October, 1982. During this time, the iconic round-the-world flights 1 and 2 represented the summit of Pan American’s power and glory.

Pan American’s Round-the-World Schedules

Below are descriptions of Pan American’s round-the-world service from selected timetables over the years. While a variety of flight numbers operated on the route, flights 1 and 2 were a constant and are focused on here.

Initially the Constellation and the DC-4 were employed in the round-the-world service, as shown in the June 1948 timetable. On the eastbound flight 2, the Constellation operated from New York to Calcutta and handed over to the DC-4 to continue the route to San Francisco. In the timetable, flight 2 departed New York on Saturday and arrived in Calcutta the following Tuesday, with stops in Gander, London, Brussels, Istanbul, Damascus, Karachi and Delhi. Flight 2 continued its journey to San Francisco, departing Wednesday evening and arriving in San Francisco on Thursday with stops Bangkok, Shanghai, Tokyo, Wake Island and Honolulu. The flight gained a day crossing the International Date Line between Wake Island and Honolulu. The DC-4 from Calcutta featured “Sleeperette Service”, specially reclining seats with “curtained privacy”.

Constellation-1

Constellation (left, source unknown) and DC-4 (right, PAA postcard).

By 1952, the Boeing 377 Stratocruiser (“Strato Clipper”) was deployed into the service as illustrated in the April 1952 timetable. The westbound flight 1, a Strato Clipper, departed San Francisco on Tuesdays and Thursdays, arriving at Manila on Thursdays and Sundays with stops in Honolulu, Wake Island and Guam. The flight lost Wednesday when crossing the International Date Line. From Honolulu, “Sleeperette Service” was offered. Flight 1 changed gauge at Manila to a DC-4, leaving on Fridays and Mondays for Hong Kong, where a Constellation took over on Mondays for London via Bangkok, Calcutta, Delhi, Karachi, Basra, Beirut, Istanbul, Frankfurt and Brussels. The flight arrived in London on Wednesday morning where flight 1 was paired with flight 101 for New York with a Strato Clipper. There were optional fuel stops in Shannon or Gander on this segment.

“Strato Clipper” (right, PAA photograph).

By 1954, the Constellation was no longer operating this route and the DC-6B had been introduced, offering “Rainbow” tourist service in addition to the “President” first class service. On the eastbound route, flight 2 was paired with flight 70, a DC-6B offering “Rainbow” service and flight 100, a Strato Clipper offering “President” service, on the New York-London segment. Although the service was offered five days a week, flight two only operated on Mondays. From London, a DC-6B took over and offered both “Rainbow” and “President” service, departing on Tuesday and arriving in Hong Kong on Thursday, with stops in Düsseldorf, Istanbul, Beirut, Karachi, Rangoon and Bangkok. From Hong Kong, flight 2 continued to Tokyo where it laid over until Saturday morning when a Strato Clipper continued the flight to Los Angeles via Wake Island and Honolulu. In addition, from Hong Kong on Thursdays, a DC-4, flight 6, operated to Manila, where a Strato Clipper continued to San Francisco via Guam, Wake Island and Honolulu.

DC-6B (right, PAA photograph).

By 1956, the Super Stratocruiser and the DC-7B were operating in the round-the-world service. In the April 1956 timetable, eastbound flight 2 from New York was paired with flights 100, 102 and 64. Flights 100 and 102 were Super Stratocruisers departing on Sundays for London with the latter stopping in Boston and Shannon. Both flights arrived in London on Monday and connected to flight 2, a DC-6B, which departed on Tuesday for Tokyo via Frankfurt, Istanbul, Beirut (receiving traffic from flight 64), Karachi, Rangoon, Bangkok and Hong Kong. At Tokyo, a Strato Clipper took over for the remainder of the trip to Seattle with stops in Wake Island, Honolulu and Portland. Flight 64 was a DC-7B that operated from New York to Beirut where it connected with flight 2. The intermediate stops were Shannon, Paris and Rome. In this timetable, Pan American offered a daily round-the-world service with different flight numbers. With the exception of the service described above, the eastbound flights all terminated in San Francisco.

Super Stratocruiser (left, credit R.A. Scholefield Collection) and DC-7B (right, PAA photograph).

By 1959, the DC-7C and the Boeing 707-121 were seen in the round-the-world service. In the April 1959 timetable, westbound flight 1 operated on Saturdays with a DC-7C from San Francisco to Tokyo with stops in Honolulu and Wake Island. Flight 805, also a DC-7C, operated on Saturdays from Los Angeles to Honolulu, where it connected to flight 1. “Sleeperette Service” was available on both segments. Flight 1 arrived in Tokyo on Monday where a Strato Clipper took over for the segment to Hong Kong where the flight was handed over to a DC-6B. This aircraft continued to London with stops in Bangkok, Calcutta, Karachi, Beirut, Istanbul, Frankfurt and Düsseldorf. From London a DC-7C took over for the trip to New York, with stops in Shannon and Boston. In Beirut, flight 1 also connected to flight 115, a service to New York via Rome and Paris. From Beirut a DC-6B operated to Rome. From Rome, a Boeing 707-121 operated to Paris and then on to New York.

DC-7C (left, photo by Allan Van Wickler) and Boeing 707-121 (right, photo by Jon Proctor) at New York.

By 1966, the Boeing 707 and DC-8 were operating a daily all-jet round-the-world service. On Sundays, flight 2 departed New York in the evening and arrived in San Francisco on Tuesday via London, Frankfurt, Vienna, Istanbul, Beirut, Baghdad, Karachi, Calcutta, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Honolulu. Other stops on the route, depending on the day operated, included Belgrade, Ankara, Tehran, New Delhi, Rangoon and Saigon. By 1971, the Boeing 747 operated flights 1 and 2, between New York and Los Angeles with stops in Honolulu, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Bangkok and, depending on the day, New Delhi, Karachi, Tehran or Beirut, and then Istanbul, Frankfurt and London. After the merger with National Airlines, flights 1 and 2 continued in round-the world service between New York and Los Angeles with 747s, with stops in Tokyo and Hong Kong, and, depending on the day, Bangkok, Delhi, Bombay, Karachi or Bahrain, and then Frankfurt and London. The service also added Las Vegas to the route with a change of gauge to a 727 for the flight from/to Los Angeles.

Boeing 707-321 at New York (top left), DC-8-32 at Los Angeles (top right), Boeing 747-121 at Los Angeles (bottom). Photographs by Jon Proctor.

By the end of 1982, Pan American’s iconic round-the-world service was history. Although flights 1 and 2 continued to operate, the service was between New York and London and onward to points on the European continent. With the sale of Pan American’s London Heathrow route to United Airlines, flights 1 and 2 were removed from the timetable.

The last round-the-world flight departed Los Angeles on 27 October 1982. Merle Richmond, who worked in public relations for Pan American, and his two children were passengers on that flight. His memories of that flight, featured in the book Pan American World Airways – Aviation History Through the Words of its People are excerpted below:

“They say when French writer Jules Verne wrote Around the World in 80 Days in 1873 it was during a financially difficult time for the classic adventure novelist. Compared to Pan Am’s travails, it was no sweat. He couldn’t have been as financially bad off as Pan Am was over a hundred years later when the airline decided to end its historic Round-the-World Flights One and Two. But whether it was Verne’s novel, which I had read many years earlier, or perhaps Nellie Bly’s 1889 epic 72-day tale which she wrote for her newspaper, the New York World, I was awed by their feat and saw the last Pan Am RTW flights as my final opportunity.

“So it was on a fall evening in 1982 during dinner with my family that I announced that I was going to fly around the world that coming weekend, leaving October 27, 1982, and listened as my 14-year- old daughter Diana quickly asked if she could join me, followed later by my 12-year old son Dwight. Not sure that they understood the magnitude of the undertaking, I explained that the curtailing of Pan Am’s Flights 1 and 2, which had been operating since June 17, 1947, represented surrendering what many considered the most symbolic aspect of the airline. No other airline in the world had previously ever even attempted to make round-the-world service commercially viable. And we would be on the last flight!

“Not only we would be on the final flight, departing Los Angeles that Friday at noon, I told Diana and Dwight that if anybody in recent history had boarded Flight 1 and remained with the plane for the entire duration of the flight until it landed at JFK in New York on Sunday afternoon, I and others I queried, were unaware of such a back-breaking marathon.

“With the advent of jet service in 1958 with the Boeing 707, Pan Am switched departure city of Flight 1 from San Francisco to Los Angeles. Thus the route of the flight would be Los Angeles-Tokyo-Hong Kong-Bangkok- Bombay-Dubai-Istanbul-Frankfurt-London-New York on a Boeing 747.

“And so on Friday, October 28, 1982, with Capt. Carl Wallace in the left hand seat, we joined the world of Verne and Bly. * * * For Diana and Dwight, the RTW trip was an unparalleled emotional and educational experience.

“Some two full days after takeoff in Los Angeles we landed in New York on a brilliant sunny fall day. We had made it in one piece after 56-hours of flying. We had eaten the best airline food in the world (more breakfasts than dinners when you fly west to east). . . [a]nd yes, Diana and Dwight even did some of the homework they brought with them.

“Altogether, 18,647 miles in 39 hours and 30 min. of actual flying time. And who knows how many steaks!!!! Worth every bite!”

For additional information about Pan American World Airways:

To learn more about the history of this pioneering airline, click on the title below for preview of

Pan American World Airways – Images of a Great Airline Second Edition.

This book is available on eBay .

Preview Pan American World Airways – Aviation History Through the Words of its People, which is available on Amazon.

For further information about the history of Pan American World Airways, visit: Pan Am Historical Foundation

Filed under Airline History, Airlines, Aviation Law, Pan Am, Travel Tagged with Airline, Airline History, Aviation, Boeing, Boeing 377, Boeing 707, Boeing 747, DC-4, DC-6, DC-6B, DC-7C, DC-8, Douglas Aircraft, Flight Attendant, flight one, flight two, Hong Kong, Honolulu, Juan Trippe, London, New York, PAA, Pan Am, Pan Am Clippers, Pan Am round the world flight, Pan American, pan american airways, Pan American World Airways, round the world commercial flight, Round-the world flight, San Francisco, Wake Island

Pan Am Series – Part XXXIX: The S-42

8 June 2014 3 Comments

Sikorsky S- 42 – Drawing by Mike Machat in Pan Am – An Airline and Its Aircraft. Pictured left, Captain Edwin Musick, pilot-in-command of the China Clipper’s historic transpacific crossing, who lost his life in Pago Pago in a deadly fire in a S-42 after a survey flight and initial South Pacific service.

The Airliner that Changed Aviation History

To say that the Sikorsky S-42 is the “Airliner that Changed Aviation History” undoubtedly will spark debate. However, its role with Pan American World Airways presents a very strong case. Indeed, in Pan Am – An Airline and Its Aircraft, author Ron Davies noted that it [was an] airliner . . . whose effects and influence on the world of air transport were more immediate”, compared to the DC-2, which went into service about the same time. First, the airliner epitomized Juan Trippe’s “Nautical Airline” (see Pan Am Series Part V, “The ‘Nautical Airline'”). Secondly, the airliner was a chess piece in Juan Trippe’s trans-oceanic ambitions. And finally, because of its superior capabilities, the S-42 might have very well sowed the seeds for the Chicago Convention of 1944, which created the political environment and regulatory scheme under which all airlines operate today.

The Aircraft

On 19 November 1931, on board a Sikorsky S-40 flying boat during lunchtime, pilot Charles Lindbergh turned the controls over to Basil Rowe and went aft into the passenger cabin to sit down next to the most important passenger on board, Igor Sikorsky. The meeting between the two would characterize this flight as, according to Robert Daley in An American Saga – Juan Trippe and His Pan Am Empire, “one of the most important flights in the history of aviation”.

What Lindbergh and Sikorsky discussed was “the next step”, according to Daley. What Lindbergh wanted was a “really new airplane, something completely clean in design, with no external bracing, no outriggers, no fuselage hanging from the wing by struts, no engines stuffed amid the struts like wine bottles in a rack. All those struts and bracings only meant wind resistance to Lindbergh, and wind resistance meant loss of range and speed”. Sikorsky countered saying that what Lindbergh wanted was “two steps ahead in development, and Sikorsky wanted to take one step at a time . . . because lives were at stake . . . [and] [t]they could not afford to make mistakes.” Therefore what was the next step? Both men began to work it out while eating lunch. Lindbergh drew something on the menu. The S-42 was conceived.

Juan Trippe, had a similar vision of an aircraft able to span oceans. The new design provided for an increased lifting capacity to carry enough fuel for a 2,500 nautical miles (4,000 km) nonstop flight against a 30 mph (48 km/h) wind, at a cruising speed far in excess of the average operating speed of any flying boat at that time. Based on these requirements, Glenn Martin drew up plans for such an aircraft. However, Sikorsky’s S-42 was to be delivered first, as the Martin M-130 was still almost a year away from completion.

The S-42 made its first flight on 30 March 1934 and, according to Davies, “incorporated many technical refinements such as large wing flaps, extensive flush riveting, engine synchronization indicators (also on the S-40), propeller brakes and automatic carburetors. Its wing loading was higher than any previous airliner and was not exceeded by any other type until 1942, eight years after it went into service. Had it been a land-plane, concrete runways would have been needed at airports (then normally grass, gravel or cinder strips) to support the wheel loads.”

The S-42 could carry a full payload of 32 passengers over a range of 750 nautical miles, permitting non-stop trans-Caribbean flights to Colombia and omission of several en-route points on the Brazil route. Said Davies, the S-42 could “carry almost twice as many passengers as least as fast and twice as far as the DC-3”.

The first S-42 delivered: NC 822M Brazilian Clipper

The “Nautical Airliner”

When in full passenger configuration, the S-42 truly epitomized Juan Trippe’s “Nautical Airline”. The passenger windows were round, like a ship’s portholes and the interior furnishings resembled the trappings of a luxury passenger liner or yacht, as illustrated below:

An advertising brochure also highlighted the nautical nature of the service (below). Note the use of the term “cruises” and depiction of the flight-deck, which appears like the bridge of a ship.

Pan American inaugurated passenger service with the S-42 in 1934, operating out of Miami to Colombia and down the East Coast of South America to Rio de Janeiro (passengers traveling to Buenos Aires were transferred to either a DC-2 or DC-3).

This service continued into the late 1930’s as shown in the September 1939 timetable below:

In 1935, the S-42A entered service, with improved aerodynamics and a slightly longer wingspan. The engines were also upgraded, permitting a longer range. These aircraft were used in the Caribbean and South America.

Sikorsky S-42A (Ed Coates Collection).

In 1936, the long-range S-42B entered service. On 18 June 1937, the Bermuda Clipper inaugurated service between Baltimore and Bermuda. The S-42B also started service to the South Pacific on 23 December 1937. Sadly, however, the service was temporarily suspended when the Samoan Clipper, another S-42B, commanded by Captain Musick, suffered a deadly fire resulting in the death of him and his crew. The S-42B was also used on the Manila-Hong Kong route in 1937 and the Seattle-Juneau route in 1940.

Sikorsky S-42B – Samoan Clipper

Survey Flights

The S-42B, because of its range, was also used extensively on survey routes for Pan American. In 1937, Pan American Clipper III made five survey flights in the Atlantic, originating in New York. The first was a round trip to Shediac, New Brunswick, followed by a round trip to Botwood, Newfoundland. The next two trips were to Southampton, England, via Foynes, Ireland (the northern route). The last trip was the southern route to Southampton via Bermuda, the Azores, Lisbon and Marseilles.

However, the most important of all surveys was the transpacific survey in 1935.

Juan Trippe’s Trans-Oceanic Ambitions

As described in Pan Am Series Part XIV, “Crossing the Pacific”, Juan Trippe initially sought to inaugurate trans-oceanic operations across the Atlantic to England. As it turns out, at least prior to 1937, it was not to be. There were a variety of reasons, largely political, as outlined in “Crossing the Pacific” and described in great detail in Daley’s An American Saga and in The Chosen Instrument, by Marylin Bender and Selig Altschul. One important reason was the S-42, then the most advanced aircraft in the world. According to Bob Gandt in China Clipper, the British had nothing approaching the technical superiority of the S-42. And that superiority for all intents and purposes, blocked Pan American from inaugurating transatlantic service to the United Kingdom. The British would not let the United States (Pan American) display its technical superiority until they (the British) had an aircraft of similar capabilities.

The S-42, however, was not the aircraft designed for transpacific flight. It was designed for the Atlantic, with “its British-held stepping stones”, according to Bender and Altschul. With thirty-two passengers, a crew of five and 2500 pounds of mail and cargo, the S-42 could make 1,250 nautical miles; not enough for the Pacific.

Unfortunately, the Martin M-130, slated for Pacific duty, was not yet ready for delivery, and Juan Trippe wanted to start operations in the Pacific “now”. It was thus decided to use the S-42 for the survey flights, and NC 823M, the West Indies Clipper was sent back to the factory, stripped of its interior and fitted with extra fuel tanks to give it a range of 3000 nautical miles. The airliner, renamed Pan American Clipper, flew off to San Francisco for its historic assignment. The critical element of the assignment was flying the California-Hawaii sector, which, according to Davies, “was and still is the longest significant air route segment in the whole world. Any aircraft that could perform adequately on this critical leg could fly any commercial overseas route”. The Pan American Clipper accomplished this.

Clipper_NC_823M_S-42 Nick grant adventures com

S-42 NC 823M Pan American Clipper over the yet to be completed Bay Bridge in San Francisco (nickgrantadventures.com).

The British finally developed an airliner that could compete with the S-42, the Shorts S.23. With that, the door was opened to Pan American for Atlantic services on which the S-42B conducted the survey flights, detailed above. Atlantic services were inaugurated in 1939 with the Boeing 314.

S-42 NC 16734, Pan American Clipper II/Samoan Clipper and Shorts 23 in Auckland

Sowed the Seeds for Chicago?

While it might be considered an overstatement to claim the S-42 sowed the seeds for the Chicago Convention of 1944, it should be remembered that because of its superiority, the British balked at allowing Juan Trippe access to the United Kingdom during the early 1930s. As mentioned above, the British were not going to let the United States (Pan American) display its superiority in air transportation on its soil until they had an aircraft of similar capabilities.

Another important point is that Juan Trippe was doing the negotiating for the landing concessions (as he had done in the past). In this case, he was dealing with Imperial Airways (the predecessor of BOAC and British Airways), which was a creature of its own government as opposed to a private enterprise, as was Pan American. In a sense, Trippe was negotiating with the British government. And this prompted the question from the British as to why the U.S. government was not doing the bidding for Pan American. This opened the door to U.S. government involvement in negotiating with foreign governments for landing rights, ending Juan Trippe’s role as a “shadow foreign minister for aviation”. Government-to-government negotiations for landing rights became U.S. policy toward the end of World War II.

As the war was winding down,there was no doubt that the United States was by far the strongest aviation power in the world, prompting significant worries from the British. This could have been made possible by an agreement between the U.S. President Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Churchill during the war, whereby the U.S. would focus on development of long-range bombers and transports while the Allies focused on fighters and light bombers. As a result, at the end of the War, the U.S. had a decided advantage in capacity and range. What the British had, however, was control of one end of a large number of international journeys, something of great interest to Pan American, who had visions of operating flights to the European continent and Asia. Nevertheless, the U.S. was in a position similar to the proverbial elephant, who, while dancing through a chicken yard, cried, “everyone for himself!”

As the war was winding down it became increasingly clear that a meeting be held to resolve issues of international aviation and most importantly the issues between the U.S. and the British. Eventually, the U.S. sent out invitations to the Allied Nations and the neutral countries of Europe and Asia to meet in Chicago on 1 November 1944.

And all of this, because of an airliner created during a Pan American flight on the back of a menu by Charles Lindbergh and Igor Sikorsky: The S-42.

As a postscript, it should be noted that at the end of the Chicago Convention, economic issues, largely issues between the U.S. and Britain, were still unresolved. The U.S. (Pan American) wanted authority to pick up passengers in Britain for travel beyond (“beyond rights” as provided for in the 5th Freedom of the Air, promulgated at Chicago) and the British balked. Finally this was resolved with the U.S. (Pan American) getting the coveted beyond rights in the Bermuda Agreement of 1946 an air services agreement between the U.S. and Britain that also became the model for future air services agreements the world over.

For additional information about Pan American World Airways:

To learn more about the history of this pioneering airline, click on the title below for preview of

Pan American World Airways – Images of a Great Airline Second Edition.

This book is available on eBay .

Preview Pan American World Airways – Aviation History Through the Words of its People, which is available on Amazon.

For further information about the history of Pan American World Airways, visit: Pan Am Historical Foundation

Filed under Airline History, Airlines, Aviation Law, Pan Am, Travel Tagged with Bermuda Clipper, Brazilian Clipper, Charles Lindbergh, Chicago Convention, China Clipper, Edwin Musick, Igor Sikorsky, Imperial Airways, Juan Trippe, Pan Am, Pan Am Captain Ed Musick, Pan Am transatlantic, Pan Am transpacific, Pan American, pan american airways, Pan American Clipper, Pan American South America service, Pan American survey flights, Pan American World Airways, Ron Davies, S-42, Samoan Clipper, Sikorsky, Sikorsky S-42

Pan Am Series – Part XXXII: Technical Assistance Like No Other – 2

16 April 2014 1 Comment

Technical Assistance for Tajik Air – 1993

Part Two

Pan Am’s spirit is alive in a unique Technical Assistance Project

Acceptance and Inaugural Flights of Tajik Air’s Boeing 747SP

The acceptance flight is a critical part of the delivery process of an aircraft to an airline. Once the aircraft is accepted and delivered, anything that is discovered wrong with the aircraft becomes the responsibility of the airline. Inspections and the acceptance flight should ensure that this does not happen. The Boeing 747SP was flown to London by a United Airlines supervisory pilot and crew. Upon arrival, Captain Carr and his crew met the aircraft and began the task of inspecting the aircraft and its logs and maintenance records and carrying out the acceptance flight. The aircraft looked great with a fresh paint job with Tajik Air livery. Once everything was signed off, and the walk-around inspection complete, the aircraft was pronounced airworthy and Captain Carr and his crew boarded the aircraft to begin the flight.

However, once on board, there was a surprise awaiting them: The aircraft was full of people! Normally such a flight involves the necessary minimum crew members. Not this one. The press was on board, as were Tajik Air officials, the Minister of Aviation of Tajikistan and management staff. In fact station personnel and baggage handlers were also on board!

From Captain Carr:

“[I had] a quiet conversation with the [Minister of Aviation] to make sure that carrying all these people on a test flight was okay. I learned that wonderful Russian phrase: ‘kharasho’ (‘no problem’). Since he was the law for our Tajikistan operating certificate, it was like getting the word directly from God.

“I climbed into my seat in the cockpit. The United pilot looked really nervous and seemed a few shades deeper red than normal. He indicated his concern about all these people on board, and I said ‘kharasho’, took the clip board from him and signed as Pilot in Command. He looked relieved. I reminded him that United was still responsible for any maintenance items until I signed the aircraft acceptance form. The flight went smoothly, the aircraft was perfect and everyone enjoyed the tour of the English countryside as we put the airplane through its paces. We returned to Heathrow and I made my first landing in a real 747 in about a year and a half. As we came in on final approach, I realized that we had almost all the top brass aboard, the new crew-members and a whole planeload of people who had never been on a 747 before.

“If you’re are flying a 747 correctly, on speed and according to ‘the book’, it normally makes a very nice landing. Once in a while, when conditions are just right and you are very lucky, the touch down is so smooth that you don’t realize you are on the ground until the speed-brake handle comes up as it automatically reacts to a micro-switch on the landing gear as the wheels touch ground. This was one of those landings.

“It is a Russian custom to applaud after a landing. But I didn’t think this applause was for landing, rather giving thanks to be alive. However, during the flight we kept the door open for the bigwigs to view the cockpit and after landing I heard the cheers and applause from behind. Winning an Oscar for an actor couldn’t feel any better than how that landing and applause felt to me. As we all left the aircraft my new bosses kept congratulating me as though I was the greatest pilot in the world. What could I say? I just smiled and secretly thanked Boeing.”

Gunilla Crawford, having arrived in London to handle flight service, also had a look at the 747SP prior to delivery:

“The day came when we were to see the plane for the first time. It was a rainy overcast day, but there she was as beautiful as ever, sitting on the wet tarmac. We inspected the galleys, the equipment and planned the last details, now that a few months of training and planning had come together and the real adventure was to begin. ‘Starving’ for flying since the demise of Pan Am . . .we were all raring to go, as this would be the ‘real’ thing………..or so we thought.”

It was now time to get ready for operations. Ticket sales and crew scheduling were at the top of the agenda.

With the acceptance flight completed and the aircraft ready to start operations, management and staff got into full gear. Tickets were sold, crews scheduled and plans were made for launch activities. At the London Headquarters on Kensington High Street, tickets sales in both the Delhi, India and Karachi, Pakistan markets was brisk and flights sold out very quickly. However, ticket sales in the Dushanbe market was slow due to very little western business activity in the country, and what little passenger traffic there was, was largely government in nature. Thus, selling seats in the beyond markets was necessary. As described in Part One, this “Sixth Freedom” operation enabled a profit on what would have been money losing flights. In fact, over 90-95% of the booked passengers were booked on flights to Delhi or Karachi. Deeply discounted advance purchase excursion tickets offered through local travel agents in the ethnic neighborhoods of London resulted in a huge response.

The Kensington High Street Headquarters served as both a ticket office and operations base with constant activity, day and night. This was punctuated with welcome and frequent visits by the Pan Am and Tajik flight crews.

While ticket sales and preparations for the inaugural flight were progressing, Gunilla Crawford and her team of flight attendants set about to organize crew scheduling and rotations. This was no easy task!

Cabin crew scheduling was a challenge for Gunilla. With no computers available, some creativity was required:

From Gunilla Crawford:

“We went across the street from the hotel to a gas station and bought four dinosaur-shaped erasers in four different colors. Each dinosaur represented a crew. And each crew consisted of two ex-Pan Am flight attendants and the rest Tajik. On a large poster board we plotted the four destinations, London, Dushanbe, Karachi and New Delhi. By moving the dinosaurs between the destinations we made sure nobody was scheduled from London, when in fact the crew member was in New Delhi!”

When Gunilla arrived in London, she was in for a surprise. In addition to heading up the cabin crew, there was another responsibility as well: Catering. She handled that in pure Pan Am fashion.

“We made appointments with Catering at Heathrow airport, we picked china for the First Class Service, silver ware, serving dishes, baskets and linens. The ‘old’ Pan Am training came back in force and we would do the service in the name of that classic carrier.”

The food service to be offered was superb.

In First Class departing London, “Royal Doulton Service” included during the drinks service a choice of Hot Canapes including Chicken Kebab, Mushroom Cream Vol-au-Vent, Spring Roll, Basil Cashew Parmesan Tartlets and Asian Canapes of mixed pakoras and samosas. The Hors d’oeuvres offered a choice of Poached Salmon Medallion on Oakleaf lettuce with Diced Pepper and Cucumber Salad, or a Tomato Cup filled with Mayonnaise Lemon garnish or a Smoked Chicked Breast on Radicchio with Mandarin Orange and Cucumber or a Radish and Mixed Peppers Julienne, all with a Mixed Leaf Salad with Vinaigrette. For the entree, the choices were Curry Prawn Jalfrezi with fresh chopped Coriander, Rack of Lamb with Herbs and Fresh Rosemary Sprigs or Chicken Shirin Polo accompanied by Basmati Rice with Zereshk or Potato Sesame Croquettes and a choice of vegetables including Broccoli au Gratin Mornay or Steamed Mixed Vegetables with Baby Sweetcorn, Turned Carrots and Mange Tout.

For desert Gateau Chocolate Roulade with Orange Zest was followed by a cheese plate that included Camembert, Port Salut, Feta, Stilton, Brie with black grapes, black and green olives and celery batons. Ending the meal was a fresh fruit basket.

Prior to landing in Dushanbe the pre-arrival “hot breakfast was just as posh…It was like working the Pan Am Clippers again”, according to Vince Rossi one of the ex-Pan Am flight attendants.

As the day approached for the first revenue flight from London to Dushanbe and onwards to Karachi, the crews began assembling in London to prepare. For Gunilla, it was a happy reunion with the Tajik flight attendants who greeted their ex-Pan Am counterparts with “squeals and shouts of joy”. For the inaugural flight four ex-Pan Am were to work the flight, Robert Stewart, Tania Anderson, Linda Morehouse and Linda Oja. In the flight deck were Captain Ed Olasz, First Officer Jim Donahue and Flight Engineer Carl Meixal. In addition, two qualified captains were assigned to the flight.

Preparations for departure went into high gear. Nothing was overlooked. Everything was covered, from the accuracy of the manuals to training to CRM (crew resources management) with the Tajik flight attendants. Anything that could possibly happen, even the unpredictable, was discussed and thoroughly prepared for.

The excitement of flying again did not escape the ex-Pan Amers who were taking part in the operation. The 747SP’s first flight coincided almost to the date of the demise of their beloved Pan Am, some two years prior.

From Tania Anderson:

“I happily scribbled away in my diary, gushing about the thrill of flying with my cosmopolitan colleagues again. A few fondly remembered having flown with this particular 747SP before. Some of my co-workers had not flown since Pan Am’s demise. It had been nearly two years to the day that I had been on my last flight, a White House Press Charter, when we learned that we were bankrupt for good. Now as we gathered in the lobby of our London hotel for the first flight to Dushanbe, we all noted the sad anniversary coupled with the excitement of exploring a new airline together.”

At 2215 hrs on the date of the inaugural flight, Tajik Air’s Boeing 747SP, designated flight 7J801, departed London Heathrow for Dushanbe. The spirit on board was one of joy and happiness.

From Tania Anderson:

“During the flight, I quickly noted that many of the passengers, who were going onto Karachi, were much less frenetic than the ones we used to fly on Pan Am. They were elated to be going home, either for a visit or permanently, for a reasonably priced airline ticket. One passenger actually asked if he could kiss me, and I reluctantly replied, “Well, Ok, but on my cheek!” I also noted in my diary that we were flying across Russian airspace which may not sound like a big deal but to someone who grew up during the Cold War when the former USSR was our mortal enemy, it was intriguing to me.

“The multi-national crew also bonded quickly. The Tajik flight attendants loved the fact that my name was Tania. Naturally assuming that I was Russian with a name like Tania, one actually commented that I spoke good fluent English for a Russian. Some of the Tajiks were dark with olive skin and Middle Eastern looks. Most were Muslim. Others were the opposite end of the spectrum with white skin and light eyes. They were usually Russian Orthodox.

“Among the Tajik flight attendants, there were three Irenas on the flight. Any time I said ‘Irena’, all three would whirl around simultaneously to see what I wanted. The Tajik flight attendants were absolutely delightful and so easy to get along with. They were also thrilled to have secured a job such as this with the opportunity to explore a bit of the world, especially London. Many of them had no transportation from their homes, so they simply walked miles to the airport to work these extraordinarily long flights. They went out of their way to tell us how their country was still in a lot of upheaval economically. In addition, Afghani insurgents were coming over the border to make trouble, and they wanted none of it. ‘Tania, we just all want peace and to be able to live our lives’, one told me.”

After a long flight into the night, the 747SP landed in Dushanbe.

From Tania Anderson:

“It was a cold, wintry, snowy day when we landed in Dushanbe to a zealous reception on the tarmac. After all, we were the first western aircraft to ever land in somewhat remote Tajikistan. I distinctly remember applause in the cabin upon our touchdown, but the local hoopla outside just about had me abandoning my jump-seat.

“With a dramatic back drop of steep snow-encrusted mountains, dozens of well-wishers had gathered on the tarmac in their traditional brightly-colored clothes. There was a band playing Russian instruments complete with long-nosed horns and big drums. Tajik national TV was there with their ancient equipment to record every single minute of the ceremonies and our arrival.”

From Tania Anderson:

“Once on the blocks, the ground people enthusiastically boarded the plane, not only to welcome us, but to ask for a quick tour of the 747SP. Descending the spiral staircase, our pilots were given handsome home-made colorful robes to wear over their uniforms. Now that the door was open, I could observe the entire scene. Our pilots were quickly ushered down the stairs and off to the terminal for a reception including some local culinary treats whose identity was left to the imagination. Later one of them told me that the Tajiks had insisted that they shoot some vodka—maybe local moonshine—to celebrate the day. A bit horrified, our pilots made certain that the officials knew we still had another leg to fly to Karachi, but the general response was like, ‘So what?’

“Linda Oja and I stayed on the plane watching everything from L-1. Then something happened I shall never forget. As Linda squealed, ‘Oh, No!’ I saw some Tajiks dragging a sheep across the tarmac towards the Snow Leopard. It struggled the entire way, right up to the staircase, just as if it knew something lousy was about to occur. As they do in many countries, they sacrificed the sheep at the bottom of our stairs, directing the blood from his neck into a bowl. In the west we christen ships and airplanes with champagne, but now we were half way around the world in a land with customs very different than our own.

“Not long afterwards, the entire crew along with the ground people gathered in front of the aircraft for a memorable photo. Each of us was festooned with garlands of deep red-colored roses. They were velvet to the touch and their fragrance was heavenly, even against the cold blast of mid-winter.

“Standing there on that frosty winter day, I felt a true sense of pride about our latest “operation.” In true Pan Am fashion, we had pulled ourselves up after the bankruptcy and were on the other side of the planet helping the struggling Tajiks with their burgeoning airline, begun with one beautiful 747SP.

“Flying on [Tajik Air’s 747SP] was another wonderful Pan Amigo adventure to add to my memoirs.”

When the flight arrived at Dushanbe that morning, Tajikistan was in the midst of an economic crisis along with a civil war. Bread was being rationed but at the same time the country was trying to turn the page into a new chapter of their existence, emerging from the era of Soviet rule to an independent and free nation. The arrival of this beautiful 747SP representing their national airline stoked both great pride and happiness among its citizens.

This unique “Technical Assistance”, from the beginning, was the story of a revolutionary idea that should have been hugely successful. Who would have thought that a remote country in the former Soviet Union would have a Boeing 747 operation linking it with the West? It actually happened – and it could have continued. Unfortunately the fates would not allow that and countless hours of devotion to a noble project went to waste. If there is blame, it is not worth dwelling on. Everyone wanted the right outcome. Unfortunately, it was not to be.

The timing was just not perfect for starting such an operation. The infrastructure within Tajikistan’s Civil Aviation Authority had not matured enough to take on the financial and political burden of a complex Sixth Freedom operation, requiring bilateral agreements not only with the United Kingdom, but with India and Pakistan as well. Thanks to the London management, the UK agreement and slots at Heathrow were secured. Unfortunately, the negotiations to secure the agreements with India were still incomplete when the operation started and that presented barriers and resultant revenue losses. Had the start of the operation been delayed until the negotiations were completed there might have been a different result. That will never be known. However, the Boeing 747SP operation proved that it could be done, and for four short months, Tajik Air’s Boeing 747SP proudly flew the skies between London, Dushanbe and Delhi/Karachi.

Tajik Air’s Boeing 747SP, Manufacturer’s Serial Number 21649, Serial 373 was first delivered to Pan American World Airways on May 11, 1979 registered as N540PA and named Clipper White Falcon. It was renamed Clipper Flying Arrow on August 1, 1979 and later renamed Clipper Star of the Union on January 1, 1980. One year later, on January 1, 1981, the aircraft became China Clipper.

On February 12, 1986, as part of Pan Am’s sale of its Pacific Routes, N540PA was acquired by United Airlines. The registration was changed to N149UA on June 1, 1986. It was under this registration that the aircraft operated for Tajik Air. After the aircraft was repossessed by United Airlines, it was bought by the Brunei Government and re-registered as V8-JBB. It was then bought by the Government of Bahrain on December 24, 1998 and registered as A9C-HMH. Today the aircraft is owned by the Las Vegas Sands Corporation, registered as VQ-BMS. She is still in operation.

EVENT REMINDERS:

Aircraft Accident Workshop, 31 May 2014 in San Francisco.

Click here for info or registration.

Pan Am’s Worldwide Family Reunion

31 July – 3 August 2014

New York/Long Island City

Click here for info and registration.

For additional information about Pan American World Airways:

To learn more about the history of this pioneering airline, click on the title below for preview of

Pan American World Airways – Images of a Great Airline Second Edition.

This book is available on eBay .

Preview Pan American World Airways – Aviation History Through the Words of its People, which is available on Amazon.

For further information about the history of Pan American World Airways, visit: Pan Am Historical Foundation

Filed under Airline History, Airlines, Aviation Law, Pan Am, Tajikistan, Travel Tagged with 747SP, aircraft accident investigation, Aircraft accidents, Airline, Airline History, Aviation, aviation law, Boeing, Boeing 747, Boeing 747SP, dushanbe, Flight Attendant, Karachi, London, PAA, Pan Am, Pan Am Clippers, pan am flight attendants, Pan Am history, pan am pilots, pan am pursers, Pan Am Reunion, pan am stewardess, Pan Am technical assistance, Pan American World Airways, Tajik Air, tajikistan, Tajikistan civil aviation, transportation

Malaysia Flight 370: What Didn’t Happen.

17 March 2014 1 Comment

The JetHead Blog

Speculation on what happened to Malaysia 370 now runs rampant across the world media, just as it always does after any airline disaster. But as usual, most of what the “informed sources” hypothesize is unfounded or at least, not based on fact. That’s because whether the “experts” popping up on broadcast media want to admit it or not, there are few facts; and for all the wrong reasons in this case, there are fewer than ever.

That in itself is significant and, in my judgment from the perspective of one who makes a living piloting Boeing jets, a major factor largely ignored in the media. Specifically, what didn’t happen to that Boeing 777 holds the key to what did.

First, let’s start with the most obvious clue, which basically is the common denominator in one major risk factor that affected everyone who boarded Malaysia flight 370: the two travelers…

View original post 881 more words

Filed under Airlines, Aviation Law, Travel Tagged with Aircraft accidents, aircraft communications, airline accidents, lost aircraft, malaysian air

The Pan Am Series – IV: The Karachi Hijacking

18 September 2013 Leave a comment

Recollections of Bill Lange who ran the Pan Am Emergency Command Center during the incident have been added. Very interesting and compelling.

JPB TRANS CONSULTING, LLC

Pan Am Flight 73, a Boeing 747-121, N656PA, Clipper Empress of the Seas, was hijacked on 5 September 1986 while on the ground at Karachi, Pakistan (“KHI”) by four armed men of the Abu Nidal Organization. The aircraft, with 360 passengers on board, had just arrived from Mumbai, India, and was preparing to depart for Frankfurt and continuing on to New York.

The incident began as passengers boarded the aircraft. The four hijackers were dressed as Karachi airport security guards and were armed with assault rifles, pistols, grenades and plastic explosive belts. At about 6:00 a.m., the hijackers drove a van that had been modified to look like an airport security vehicle through a security checkpoint up to one of the boarding stairways to aircraft. The hijackers stormed up the stairways into the plane, fired shots from an automatic weapon, and seized control of the aircraft. Flight attendants were able to alert…

View original post 2,060 more words

Filed under Airline History, Airlines, Aviation Law, Pan Am, Travel Tagged with 747, 747 hijacking, Airline History, B-747, Bill Lange, Boeing, Boeing 747, boeing 747 hijacking, FBI, Hijacking, Karachi, PA73, Pan Am, Pan Am 73, Pan Am Emergency Operations Center, Pan Am history, Pan Am Karachi Hijacking, Pan American World Airways, United States

The Pan Am Series – Part III: The Cairo Hijacking

31 August 2013 10 Comments

Remains of hijacked Pan Am Flight 93, N752PA “Clipper Fortune” a Boeing 747 after being blown up at Cairo.

On 6 September 1970, Pan Am’s flight 93, a Boeing 747, departed Brussels for New York via Amsterdam. The flight never made it to New York.

During the flight’s stopover in Amsterdam, four members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (“PFLP”) attempted to board an El Al flight, a Boeing 707 bound for New York. Two got through but the other two were denied by Israeli security. These two then purchased First Class tickets on flight 93.

On the same day in Frankfurt, another group of PFLP members boarded TWA Flight 741, a Boeing 707 bound for New York; and in Zurich, members also boarded a Swissair DC-8 bound to New York as well. The Pan Am, TWA and Swissair flights were hijacked. An attempt to hijack the El Al flight was foiled by the crew and a sky marshal. The TWA and Swissair flights were flown to and eventually landed at the PFLP’s “Revolutionary Airport” at Dawson’s Field, a remote desert airstrip in Jordan, formerly a British Royal Air Force base. The Pan Am flight was flown to Beirut, where it refueled and took on board additional PFLP members. The aircraft then flew on to Cairo instead of Dawson’s Field, because the Jordan airfield was considered too small to accommodate a 747.

On 9 September, a BOAC (now British Airways) VC-10 bound for London was hijacked after it departed from Bahrain and was taken to Dawson’s Field.

This became known as the “Dawson’s Field Hijacking”.

The “Revolutionary Airport” at Dawson’s Field

The BOAC, TWA and Swissair aircraft were blown up on September 12, 1970 (below).

The Pan Am aircraft, upon arrival in Cairo, was blown up almost immediately. The late John Ferruggio was the In-Flight Director, and having been told the 747 would be blown up within eight minutes after landing, led his cabin crew team in the evacuation of 136 passengers and 17 crew-members. Everyone survived.

Nellie Beckhans was a flight attendant on that trip, her first in Europe after years working Pan Am’s Central and South America routes. Below are excerpts from her story about this event that appears in the book Pan American World Airways – Aviation History Through the Words of its People, published by BlueWaterPress.

From Nellie Beckhans:

“* * * We picked up passengers in Amsterdam. Now it was time to go home. On taxiing to the runway the plane stopped. A few minutes later I heard a commotion in the First Class section. From my assigned position at R3 door, facing the aft of the airplane, I turned around to see Captain John Priddy talking to the purser and some passengers.* * * After a short period of time the Captain made an announcement stating that he had to check some passengers and we were now ready for departure. * * *

“The airplane took off, headed for New York. About 20 minutes later when we thought we were going to start our service, the In-flight Director made an announcement that we were to remain seated. We were going to a different destination. * * * The flight attendant working First Class told me that there were two hijackers and they had a gun and grenades. They did not want anybody in First Class. She said that the Purser was taken to the cockpit with a gun at her head. * * * Thankfully the passenger load was light and everyone remained calm. * * *

“Much later I heard we were going to Beirut. * * * The hijackers wanted to go to Amman to blow up the plane. I remember flying and flying. Meanwhile a hijacker was stringing the dynamite fuses between the seats. * * * When the hijackers finally agreed to land in Cairo the In-flight Director called the crew together and informed us of the plan. * * * As soon as the plane stopped I opened R4 door and the passengers evacuated. When I was going down the chute the airplane moved and I went off the slide. * * * It was a happy moment when we heard everyone got off the airplane. We lost our possessions and our shoes but we were alive and safe.

Nelida (Perez) Beckhans was based in New York from 1967 to 1970 as a Special Services Representative and from 1970 to 1982 as a Flight Attendant. She transferred to Miami in 1982 and was stationed there through 1991. Her length of service with Pan Am was 24 years and 8 months.

To learn more about the history of this pioneering airline, click on the title below for preview of

Pan American World Airways – Images of a Great Airline Second Edition.

This book is available on eBay .

Preview Pan American World Airways – Aviation History Through the Words of its People, which is available on Amazon.

For further information about the history of Pan American World Airways, visit: Pan Am Historical Foundation

Filed under Airline History, Airlines, Aviation Law, Egypt, Pan Am, Travel Tagged with 747 Clipper, 747 hijacking, Airline History, Amsterdam, Beirut, Boeing Clipper, Brussels, Clipper hijacking Cairo, Flight Attendant, New York, PAA, Pan Am, Pan Am 747 hijacking, Pan Am 93, Pan Am Clippers, Pan Am hijacking, Pan Am hijacking Cairo, Pan Am hijacking September 1970, Pan Am history, Pan American World Airways, United States

The Story of Snow Leopard – Part One: The Aircraft and the Operation

6 August 2013 10 Comments

Snow Leopard: a moderately large cat native to the mountain ranges of Central Asia, mainly in the Pamir Mountains of Tajikistan (photograph by Steve Winter)

Part One: The Aircraft and the Operation

The Aircraft

This is the story about an aircraft named Snow Leopard, which was a Boeing 747SP that was leased by Tajik Air, the national airline of the Republic of Tajikistan, then a newly independent former Soviet Republic located in Central Asia. The aircraft was operated exclusively on the international routes of Tajik Air and gave that airline a presence in London, UK, Delhi, India and Karachi, Pakistan. The operation was controlled and managed by a management company in London, Tajik Air Limited. This is what made this operation unique. What also made it unique was that Snow Leopard was crewed by former pilots and flight attendants of Pan American World Airways, the former great airline that ceased operations in December, 1991.

The operation started with Snow Leopard’s departure from London for Dushanbe, Tajikistan in December 1993. It ended in February 1994 when the aircraft was repossessed by United Airlines, the aircraft’s owner and lessor. What happened during these three months are stories of adventure, bravery, comedy, intrigue, loyalty and teamwork. And they will be told in the following posts by those who were there, the pilots, flight attendants and the London management staff.

As background, the Boeing 747SP is a modified version of the Boeing 747 which was designed for ultra-long-range flights. The “SP” stands for “Special Performance”. Compared with its predecessor, the 747-100, the 747SP retains its wide-body four-engine layout, along with its double-deck design, but has a shortened fuselage, larger vertical stabilizer, and simplified trailing edge flaps. The weight saved by the shortened fuselage permits longer range and increased speed relative to other 747 configurations.

Known during development as the short-body 747SB, the 747SP was designed to meet a 1973 joint request from Pan Am and Iran Air, who were looking for a high-capacity airliner with sufficient range to cover Pan Am’s New York–Middle Eastern routes and Iran Air’s planned Tehran–New York route. The aircraft also was intended to provide Boeing with a mid-size wide-body airliner to compete with the DC-10 and L-1011.

The 747SP first entered service with Pan Am in 1976. The aircraft was later acquired by VIP and government customers, but sales did not meet the expected 200 units, and production ultimately totaled 45 aircraft.

While in service, the 747SP set several aeronautical performance records, including three record-setting round-the-world flights, two operated by Pan Am and the third by United.

From Captain Sherman Carr, one of the former Pan Am pilots who flew Snow Leopard:

“The airplane that was to be used for this operation was a Boeing 747SP. * * * The plane was originally developed for Pan Am to be able to operate non-stop from the U.S. to Hong Kong and be able to stay aloft for over 15 hours. It was actually a regular 747 with upstairs lounge seating but shortened by about 48 feet to make it lighter and additional fuel tanks for longer range. If it’s not loaded with full fuel for extended range flights, the aircraft actually scoots like a hot rod and will outperform any WWII or Korean conflict fighter aircraft and is a lot of fun to fly. It will roll or loop or do most of the maneuvers you see at airshows but of course this is not authorized so no pilot would ever tell you he had done those things. For Dushanbe, surrounded by mountains in all directions, it was the perfect choice due to its ability to climb quickly, safely and be on its way in a timely manner and still carry about 260 people with an extended first class.”

Snow Leopard, Manufacturer’s Serial Number 21649, Serial 373 was first delivered to Pan American World Airways on May 11, 1979 registered as N540PA and named Clipper White Falcon. It was renamed Clipper Flying Arrow on August 1, 1979 and later renamed Clipper Star of the Union on January 1, 1980. One year later, on January 1, 1981, the aircraft became China Clipper.

Snow Leopard

After the aircraft was repossessed by United Airlines, it was bought by the Brunei Government and re-registered as V8-JBB. It was then bought by the Government of Bahrain on December 24, 1998 and registered as A9C-HMH (below, left). Today Snow Leopard is owned by the Las Vegas Sands Corporation, registered as VQ-BMS (below, right, photo by Wong Chi Lam). She is still in operation.

The Operation

Starting a new service in any market requires a great deal of research and planning. There must be a suitable aircraft. Government approvals must be in place. Airport access, slots (if required), ground handling services and airport facilities (check-in desks, etc) must be obtained. On the commercial side, the new service needs to be marketed, publicized and tickets sold. Other details include setting up the ticket and operations offices, arranging catering, publishing an In-Flight magazine and printing safety information cards, timetables, paper tickets, baggage tickets, promotional materials and stationary.

For Tajik Air, however, there was one very important requirement missing: an operating base in London and sufficient infrastructure to crew and maintain a Boeing 747SP aircraft. That presented a huge problem as the civil aviation structure of Tajkistan was completely inexperienced in intercontinental operations. In fact, Tajik Air was created by the breaking-up of the Soviet Union and the then national carrier Aeroflot’s leaving of some old Russian-built aircraft (mostly TU-154s) for use by Tajik Air as the new national air carrier of Tajikistan. Setting up a London base would seem impossible to achieve given the limited resources of Tajikistan. However, through the foresight and creativeness of a few airline experts in London, the requirement was met.

To establish the necessary infrastructure so that Tajik Air could operate flights to/from London, a third-party UK management company, Tajik Air Limited, was formed. Its purpose was to operate international flights on behalf of Tajik Air. The company would obtain and maintain the aircraft and crew, organize the marketing and selling of the flights and essentially operate the flights. This would be accomplished using Tajikistan’s Air Operator’s Certificate and Tajik Air’s call-sign and airline code. Tajikistan committed to funding the new service and also obtaining the required government permissions for the operation.

How would this operation be viable and profitable? The route of primary interest to Tajik Air was the London (Heathrow) (“LHR”)-Dushanbe (“DYU”) sector. Operating that sector as an Origin-Destination route presented problems in that there was little, if any, traffic between the two points. The question was how to fill an aircraft with 260 seats? The answer: Offer service between LHR and points beyond DYU. This was to be accomplished using rights under the Sixth Freedom of the Air.

The Freedoms of the Air, established by the Chicago Conference of 1944, are a set of commercial aviation rights granting a country’s airlines the privilege of entering and landing in another country’s airspace. The table below illustrates these Freedoms of the Air:

In the case of Tajik Air, the Third and Fourth Freedoms were the operative. The former gives the “Home” (Tajikistan) country the rights to carry commercial traffic (passengers/cargo/mail, etc) to another country; the latter gives the “Home” country the rights to carry commercial traffic from that other country to home. These rights are generally agreed-to between the “Home” country and the other country in the form of a Bilateral Agreement or an Air Services Agreement. By using Third and Fourth Freedom rights, a Sixth Freedom operation can be created. It is similar to a hub operation with the home country being in the middle of the operation between two different countries.

For Tajik Air, the beyond points selected were Delhi, India (“DEL”) and Karachi, Pakistan (“KHI”) due to the large number of Indians and Pakistanis living in the UK. The schedule would work like this: Tajik Air departs from LHR with a planeload of passengers on a Fourth Freedom flight to DYU. Upon arrival in DYU, those few passengers destined for DYU disembark and the rest stay on board. The flight then departs DYU with a new flight number on a Third Freedom flight for DEL or KHI. Upon turning around in DEL/KHI, with a new planeload of passengers, the flight becomes a Fourth Freedom to DYU and from DYU, with another flight number, Third Freedom to LHR. By operating this schedule, Tajik Air could fill the seats of Snow Leopard, and compete in a highly competitive market by offering good service with low fares. In order to operate this schedule, Bilateral or Air Services agreements were required for scheduled traffic between Tajikistan and India/Pakistan in addition to the UK.

The published timetable shown below illustrates this operation. Baggage tags are also shown.

As outlined above, there were other details necessary for the operation. For the aircraft, copies of the In-Flight magazine and emergency information cards were printed and are illustrated below:

Additionally, as part of the pre-launch publicity, an article was put in a magazine for business travelers about the new service:

For ticket sales, an office was set up in Kensington, London and a general sales agent was appointed in Karachi and Delhi. In addition a large poster was printed for display at the ticketing offices with an image of Snow Leopard in the air:

The next steps in the launch of Tajik Air’s new service to London involved recruiting and training flight crews and taking delivery of the aircraft. This will be coming in Part Two of the Story of Snow Leopard.

End of Part One

Filed under Airline History, Airlines, Aviation Law, Pan Am, Tajikistan, Travel Tagged with Airline History, Boeing, Boeing 747SP, Delhi, dushanbe, India, London, Pan Am history, Pan American World Airways, Snow Leopard, Tajik Air, tajikistan, United Airlines

	Kellie Etherson on The Pan Am Series – Part…
	Pourquoi Boeing a-t-… on The Pan Am Series – Part…
	Perché Boeing ha cos… on The Pan Am Series – Part…
	¿Por qué Boeing cons… on The Pan Am Series – Part…
	Ophelia De Laine Gon… on Pan Am Series – Part XXX…

Pan Am Historical Foundation Announces a New TV Series about the Birth of Transoceanic Air Travel

Looking forward to seeing “Across the Pacific”?

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

AVIATION LAW CONFERENCE

Legal Aspects of Aircraft Mishaps and Disasters

November 10, 2014

American University Washington College of Law, Room 603

4801 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20016

Purpose: This conference will address the legal and organizational aspects of dealing with aircraft mishaps and disasters–not only finding causation, but how organizations should prepare for and respond to them.

Who Should Attend: Air carriers; air agencies; manufacturers; aircraft owners and operators; airport proprietors; aircraft and airline liability insurers; aircraft insurers; attorneys representing aviation concerns; plaintiffs’ attorneys.

AGENDA

There are no fees for this event.*

To Register for this Event Click Here.

Москва Часть третья

RESUMING SERVICE TO MOSCOW

THE BOEING 747 NONSTOP SERVICE

PROMOTING THE 747 OPERATION: A PERSONAL RECOLLECTION

THE 1990 US-USSR BILATERAL AGREEMENT

PAN AMERICAN: THE “CHOSEN INSTRUMENT”

For additional information about Pan American World Airways:

Москва – часть вторая

For additional information about Pan American World Airways:

Москва

For additional information about Pan American World Airways:

The “Nuts and Bolts” of Aircraft Operating and WET Leases

Pan American’s Round-the-World Services

Setting the Stage

Pan American’s Round-the-World Schedules

For additional information about Pan American World Airways:

The Airliner that Changed Aviation History

The Aircraft

The “Nautical Airliner”

Survey Flights

Juan Trippe’s Trans-Oceanic Ambitions

Sowed the Seeds for Chicago?

For additional information about Pan American World Airways:

Technical Assistance for Tajik Air – 1993

Part Two

Pan Am’s spirit is alive in a unique Technical Assistance Project

EVENT REMINDERS:

For additional information about Pan American World Airways:

Recent Posts

Recent Comments

Blogroll

Archives

Meta