ERA | PAN AM TAKE-OFF
Pan Am 1933: "90 Years Ago" month-by-month by Eric Hobson. PAA's formative work, people, aircraft & far-flung destinations.
Racing down the South American East Coast: Starting on the "Lindbergh Trail," the new route became the foundation for Pan Am's spectacular growth.
A Mysterious Frying Sound: Ferris W. Sullinger's unique challenges installing direction finder apparatus in Jamaica during Pan Am's early days.
The 1928 loss of a passenger during the crash of Fokker "General Machado" from Havana to Key West marked the start of Pan Am's radio navigation. PDF
Uncovered history shows PAA ops in Key West as much as a decade after the company moved to Miami in 1928!
Chili & the Generalissimo. Pan Am/CNAC pilot Chili Vaughn's adventure with William Bond & Chiang Kai-shek: 1940s aviation diplomacy in China PDF.
January 16th, 1928 was a very auspicious date for Pan Am. For the very first time, people would pay to ride a Pan American Airways plane.
The Battle for South American routes: Pan American Airways and the New York, Rio and Buenos Aires (NYRBA) line, in 1930.
Pan Am|1932 from the 90 Years Ago series, traces development of Pan Am personnel, bases & routes into So. America & China.
Miami and the Flying Honeymoon" - A chapter about Pan Am's early days, from Peter Leslie's book on the airline's pioneering flying boat era. PDF
Feb.1931: A royal pilot, the Prince of Wales and his brother Prince George, accepted invitations from Pan American Airways & Pan American-Grace Airways.
Lessons Learned: In the 1927 Dole Race to Hawaii, tragedy provided valuable lessons for the transpacific future of Pan American Airways.
Pan Am inaugurated “express” shipping by air in Latin America, expanding by 1936 to carry shipments across the Pacific.
1929, A challenge to archeologists: On PAA's first mail flight over the Yucatan, Lindbergh saw pyramids jutting through dense, unmapped jungles PDF.
Ralph O'Neill's Magic Carpet: The Once and Future Commodore by Doug Miller.The story of Pan Am's Consolidated Commodores. PDF.
April 1931, the story of PAA Radio Operator, Hans Frederick “Fred” Due, who worked on the expedition into Brazil’s western frontier, Matto Grosso.
Lindy Gets Pan American Airways Rolling: Lindbergh's Sikorsky S-38 airmail flight from Miami to Cristobal, Panama Canal Zone, in February 1929.
Pan Am's Base at Brownsville, during the early years. Gateway to Mexico and laboratory for instrument flying techniques.
