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Highlands Today

Musing About Pan Am On The Eve Of Big 3 Misery

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By ROB MIXON

Guest Column

Published: December 8, 2008

"They blazed trails across the skies, flying over oceans, opening airport "stations" in far-flung lands and greeting presidents and celebrities onboard Clipper jets," wrote Ina Paiva Cordle on Pan Am, who began flying in 1927 and ceased operations liquidating in the last part of 1991.

Pan Am went to our government to initiate a domestic route network to compete with those domestic carriers who were beginning to fly international routes. Pan Am was turned down.

Pan American Airways System, as it was originally called, was required to fly outside of the U.S., as an "International Carrier," so it could not make domestic flights within the U.S. without going to a foreign country first. Domestic carriers began to fly internationally as well as domestic, which cut into Pan Am's profits. There was intense competition from both U.S. and foreign carriers. It was much less expensive to fly from Miami to New York without having to go outside of the U.S. to get there.

The original "flying boats" were based at Dinner Key, Fla., and it was from there, in 1931, that Charles Lindbergh piloted Pan Am's "American Clipper" to Cienfuegas, Cuba, and to Panama and other points in Central American and the Caribbean to explore more air routes. Pan Am's aircraft were named after the old majestic sailing Clipper ships.

The world was coming out of the economic depression in the 1930s when Pan Am's "flying boats" symbolized elegance and luxury. According to much written about Pan Am's history, the rich and famous experienced adventure and romance on these majestic "clippers," transformed from their hard working, tall-masted sailing ship namesakes.

What is now Miami City Hall was the Coconut Grove terminal for Pan Am. I remember standing on the observation deck, with my mother, watching the "Clippers" water taxi to the "Terminal Building" to unload passengers. I would watch my father, the plane's flight engineer, as mother pointed him out to me and he walked toward the terminal in his white military styled hat and dark blue uniform.

There was a large globe of the Earth located in the center of the terminal that rotated ... a huge and awesome sight for a young child to watch! The Globe of the Earth now resides in the Miami Museum of Science.

It is amazing to realize that the U.S. government did not come to the aid of our U.S. flag carrier, Pan Am, after all the airline did to help Americans, both civilian and militarily. Pan American Airways initiated most of the firsts that we see as common place with air travel. A few of these accomplishments were the first American airline to employ cabin attendants and serve heated meals while in the air. They also developed a complete aviation weather service and the construction of a worldwide airport system for international flights.

There has been much speculation about the consequences of not bailing out our three large auto manufactures. Perhaps a lesson from history is best written by Jim Boland in his "Requiem For The Clipper:"

"Requiem for the Clipper"

Aye, tear her once proud ensign down

Long has it flown on high.

For many an eye has danced to see

Clipper ships in the sky.

Beneath her flowed the frenzied waves

Above the big jets roar.

The Clipper of the ocean air

Shall sweep the clouds no more

The Clipper flew to Wake and Guam

And had its day at Pearl

And Lindy pioneered the routes

That grew around the world

Her boats were seen in Shanghai's ports,

No more will fly the wide-eye child

Nor hope-filled refugee

For the harpies of the shore shall pluck

The eagles of the sea.

So give her routes to foreign flags

Her ships to rot and ruin

Her people to the jackals

Who fax fat on the Clippers doom

The better that the shattered fleet

Should sink beneath the wave,

Her engines shook the mighty deep

And there should be her grave

Fix to her side her country's flag

Set every wing and tail

And give her to the God of Storms

The lightning and the gale.

Rob Mixon

lives in Lake Placid

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