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As the airline industry grew in the late 1940s-50s, construction of a new terminal @flySFO began in 1951. Designed in the International Style, the 7-story building employed an innovative, dual-level layout that separated departures from arrivals. #SFO1954
This tweet was posted on May 25, 2021.
The Boeing 377 Stratocruiser was considered the most luxurious airliner aloft when introduced by Pan American World Airways in 1949. #WingWednesday
This tweet was posted on May 12, 2021.
With nineteen windowpanes, the cockpit of the Boeing 377 offered one of the highest degrees of visibility of any airliner. #WingWednesday
This tweet was posted on May 12, 2021.
Developed by the Glenn L. Martin Company, the Martin 2-0-2 was intended to supersede the DC-3. Although early orders placed in 1945 were canceled due to production delays, the 2-0-2 was introduced into service by Northwest Airlines in October 1947. #WingWednesday #avgeek
This tweet was posted on April 28, 2021.
Though only 47 were built, the Martin 2-0-2 was flown by airlines such as Northwest Airlines, Pacific Air Lines, Trans World Airlines, and Allegheny Airlines. #WingWednesday #avgeek
This tweet was posted on April 28, 2021.
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aircraft information: Northwest Airlines, Martin 2-0-2; c. 1947
postcard: Northwest Airlines, Martin 2-0-2; 1949
Gift of Thomas G. Dragges
2015.160.613 & 2015.166.1129
TWA (Trans World Airlines), Martin 2-0-2; c. 1950
Gift of M.D. Klaas
2018.112.0890 & 2018.112.0891
This tweet was posted on April 28, 2021.
Well, would you Wookiee at that! Two years ago, United gave away Star Wars branded amenity kits to their Polaris-class passengers.
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amenity kits: United Airlines; 2019
Gift of Vincent Ma
2021.020.0885-0888
#MayTheFourth #StarWars #PaxEx
This tweet was posted on May 04, 2021.
It's National Parks Week! The wonder, beauty, and magnificence of our country's national parks make them popular imagery in airline advertisements, even going back to the 1930s. #NationalParkWeek #AvGeek
This tweet was posted on April 20, 2021.
Introduced by United Air Lines and American Airlines in 1946, the DC-6 was the first new American-designed airliner to operate during the postwar years. #WingWednesday #avgeek
This tweet was posted on April 21, 2021.
One of the most economical large propliners to operate during the postwar period and beyond, over 700 Douglas DC-6 were built and added to airline fleets worldwide. #WingWednesday #avgeek
This tweet was posted on April 21, 2021.
The Douglas DC-6 was initially conceived of as a military transport but its design was changed to a civilian airliner following the end of WWII. It was fundamentally an updated, enlarged, and pressurized DC-4 built to compete with the Lockheed L-049 Constellation. #WingWednesday
This tweet was posted on April 21, 2021.
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United, American, Douglas DC-6 ceremony; c. 1946
Gift of United Airlines Archives
1999.047.255
Pan Am, DC-6B “Clipper Liberty Bell”; c. 1950
Transfer
1993.03.07
American, DC-6B, @flySFO; 1953
Gift of William T. Larkins
2000.026.001
This tweet was posted on April 21, 2021.
📸 2/4:
United, DC-6; c. 1950
Gift of the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
2008.060.009
United, DC-6A; c. 1950
Gift of United Airlines Archives
1999.047.158
Northern Air Cargo, DC-6B-ST; c. 1970
Gift of the Pan Am Association
2000.058.0472.040
This tweet was posted on April 21, 2021.
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TWA (Trans World Airlines), Muir Woods; early 1950s
Gift of TWA Clipped Wings International
2002.113.497
TWA (Trans World Airlines), Yosemite; c. 1950
Gift of Thomas G. Dragges
2014.110.375
timetable: National Parks Airways; 1936
Purchase
2000.055.006
This tweet was posted on April 20, 2021.
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United DC-4E; c. 1939
Gift of Jane Luna Euler
2013.106.026
United DC-4E; 1939
Gift of Frank A. Norick
2013.075.015
Colonial Airlines, DC-4 over New York City; c. 1946
Gift of M.D. Klaas
2018.112.0121
MATS, Douglas C-54; c. 1945
Gift of the Pan Am Assoc.
2000.058.0472.028
This tweet was posted on April 07, 2021.
Designed in secret under the leadership Clarence "Kelly" Johnson, and with direction from Hughes, the renamed L-049 Constellation evolved into an extremely fast, revolutionary large-capacity airliner with a unique dolphin-shaped fuselage and distinctive tripletail. #WingWednesday
This tweet was posted on April 14, 2021.
In the late 1930s, Lockheed was developing a high-speed pressurized airliner, designated the L-044 Excalibur. Howard Hughes, who, in 1939, had acquired a majority share of TWA, requested that the airliner be redesigned and developed to his specs...
#WingWednesday
This tweet was posted on April 14, 2021.
Operated by numerous airlines on domestic and transatlantic routes, the airliner played a major role in advancing long-range commercial aviation during the immediate postwar era. #WingWednesday
This tweet was posted on April 14, 2021.
Passengers at San Francisco Airport in the 1930s-40s might have had luggage labels like these affixed to suitcases. Free advertisement for the airlines, the labels, which could be quite elaborate, were souvenirs that bestowed bragging rights to their owners. #TravelTuesday
This tweet was posted on April 13, 2021.
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TWA (Trans World Airlines), Lockheed L-049; c. 1950
Gift of Thomas G. Dragges
2014.095.142
Pan American World Airways, Lockheed L-049; late 1940s
Gift of John J. Dunne
2002.108.050
Pan American World Airways, Lockheed L-049, @flysfo; late 1940s
Transfer
1993.03.02
This tweet was posted on April 14, 2021.
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Transcontinental & Western Air (TWA); c. 1940
Purchase
1996.35.056
Pan American Airways; c. 1940
Gift of Elsa Cameron
1997.54.04.01
United Air Lines; c. 1935
Gift of United Airlines Archives
1999.047.558
Boeing System; c. 1930
Gift of United Airlines Archives
1999.047.561
This tweet was posted on April 13, 2021.
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Pan American World Airways, Lockheed L-049; c. 1946
Gift of M.D. Klaas
2018.112.0671
TWA (Trans World Airlines), Lockheed L-049; c. 1950
Gift of Charles Loomis
2005.062.012 a
lighter: Lockheed L-049; late 1940s
Gift of Thomas G. Dragges
2003.065.108
This tweet was posted on April 14, 2021.
By late 1945, #PanAm realized the superiority of the DC-4 over the Boeing 314 flying boat and began to operate the airliner on both transpacific and transatlantic routes. #WingWednesday #avgeek
This tweet was posted on April 07, 2021.
Deemed too complicated and expensive to operate, its design was changed to a smaller, unpressurized airliner with a single tail, which became the DC-4. #WingWednesday #AvGeek
This tweet was posted on April 07, 2021.
In the late 1930s, United Air Lines asked Douglas Aircraft to develop a large-capacity, long-range, pressurized, four-engine airliner. The DC-4E featured a tripletail and a nose wheel, then unique to large passenger aircraft, and first flew in 1938. #WingWednesday #avgeek
This tweet was posted on April 07, 2021.
Extra seats let the Lodestar compete economically with the DC-3, but many U.S. airlines had fully committed to the DC-3. The first Lodestar was acquired in 1940 by Mid-Continent Airlines, which operated throughout the Midwest and was acquired in 1952 by Braniff. #WingWednesday.
This tweet was posted on March 24, 2021.
Most sales of the Lodestar were to foreign airlines or to the U.S. military, as improving air strength was a priority leading up to World War II. After the war, many were converted into private or executive aircraft with a sleek, club-style interior. #WingWednesday
This tweet was posted on March 24, 2021.
World War II circumvented the DC-4's civilian use, and most were appropriated for use as C-54 Skymaster military transports. After the war, Douglas converted many to airliners and continued production until 1947. #WingWednesday #AvGeek
This tweet was posted on April 07, 2021.
From every personal snapshot, video clip, and diary entry of an airline employee emerges a series of experiences supporting the broader story of commercial aviation. These unique perspectives can offer an alternative take on the official account of an airline. #AvGeek
This tweet was posted on March 30, 2021.
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Continental Air Lines, Lockheed Lodestar; 1940s
Gift of Thomas G. Dragges
2015.166.0552
Mid-Continent Airlines, Model 18 Lockheed Lodestar; c. 1941
Gift of M.D. Klaas
2018.112.0217
Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar; c. 1940
Gift of M.D. Klaas
2018.112.1017
This tweet was posted on March 24, 2021.
In 1934, Boeing began design studies for a four-engine bomber in conjunction with a four-engine civil airliner. The bomber version became the B-17 and was produced in large numbers. The civil airliner version emerged as the Model 307. #WingWednesday
This tweet was posted on March 31, 2021.
These days, it's common for planes to cruise at altitudes of 35,000 feet. But back in 1940, when the first pressurized commercial airliner, the Boeing 307 Stratoliner, was introduced, it was a marvel to fly above most weather disturbances at 20,000 feet. #WingWednesday
This tweet was posted on March 31, 2021.
The DC-3 proved aerodynamically superior to other planes, highly reliable, safe, easy to maintain, and for the first time, enabled carriers to make a profit from passenger services. More than four hundred DC-3s were initially ordered by most major airlines. #WingWednesday
This tweet was posted on March 10, 2021.
The Douglas DC-3 was arguably the most significant commercial airliner introduced prior to WWII. Introduced in 1936, it incorporated many advancements, including a strong, streamlined, all-aluminum, semi-monocoque fuselage, and a low-drag wing design. #WingWednesday #avgeek
This tweet was posted on March 10, 2021.
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DC-3, late 1930s
Gift of United Airlines Archives
1999.047.231 a
@flySFO, DC-3, 1938
SFO Museum Collection
1997.52.050
DC-3 cutaway, late 1930s
Gift of the family of Raymond B. Klinke, Sr.
2019.080.074
DC-3, 2014
Photo by & Gift of Alexis Esguerra
2014.138.002
This tweet was posted on March 10, 2021.
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photo: #PanAm, Lockheed 10 Electra, late 1930s
SFOM Collection
1993.03.09
photo: Eastern Air Lines, Lockheed 10B Electra, 1936
Gift of M. D. Klaas
2018.112.0172
postcard: Wisconsin Central Airlines, Lockheed 10 Electra, c. 1940
Gift of Thomas G. Dragges
2014.095.186
This tweet was posted on February 24, 2021.
























