Commercial aviation dates back to 1910 and has evolved over the years from early "primitive" (simple) machines to that of today's modern supersonic transport planes. On June 22, 1910 the first regular passenger-carryinging airship service began. On this day the firm of Delag operated an inter-urban (city to city) service in Germany. In 1914 the St. Petersburg-Tampa (Florida) Airboat Line operated in the United States. In Russia the II'ya Muromets flew from St. Petersburg (Russia) to Kiev and back to demonstrate the efficiency (usefulness) of a multiengined transport airplane. Passenger carrying soon became an everyday event; night flying, seaplane flying, shipboard take-off and landings, long distance flying, airmail, parachuting and the formation (beginning) of national air forces all began between 1910 - 1914. The abilitity of airplanes to carry cargo was the main driving force in the development of commercial airplanes at this time.

By 1918 the United States Post Office had established an airmail service between New York and Washington. By 1920 this same service extended from New York to California! In 1919 the first sustained scheduled daily passenger air service started in Germany. This was the Deutshe Luftreederei servicing cities in Germany. France soon followed with the first international air service with a route connecting Paris with Brussels. August 25, 1919 Britain's Aircraft Transport and Travel Ltd. set new standards of punctuality and regularity with the first continuing scheduled daily flight between Paris and London.

In 1925 the Post Office started using private contractors for their airmail service. At first 12 airlines were begun to carry the mail. Later these 12 merged into "The Big Four": American, Eastern, United and Trans World Airlines (TWA). In the 1930's Pan American Airways began international air service using "flying boats" (the Boeing 314 Clipper was the most popular). These were airplanes designed to take-off and land on large bodies of water. Pan American soon became the leader in international air service. By 1939 Pan American was flying across the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans carrying mail and passengers. At first, the carriage of mail was the driving force of early commericial air transport. But, the area of passenger travel soon supplied most of the progress and development of commercial aviation. Some of the important passenger aircraft developments:

1. 1945 - Douglas DC-7; Lockheed Super Constellation; Boeing 377 Stratocruiser
   Each could carry 100 passengers from New York City to Paris, France at speeds of 300 mph or more.
2. 1950's - Engineers in Great Britain make the world's first large commercial jet airliner.
3. 1958 - Boeing 707 jet liner begins passenger service between the U.S. and Europe.
4. 1960's - McDonnell Douglas DC-8 and Convair 880 jetliners begin passenger service Air traffic increases greatly.
5. 1970 - Jumbo jets for passengers - Boeing 747 able to carry 400 passengers. (later modified to carry less people and travel longer distances without refueling.) Other jumbo jets were developed at this same time.

As commercial aviation developed companies offered better, safer, service at lower cost. Flying had to be easy, safe and comfortable for passengers. On board passenger airplanes flight attendants serve meals, drinks and tend to the requests of passengers. Passenger airplanes have lavatories (bathrooms), galleys (kitchens), music, in-flight movies and recently, public telephones. Millions of people today depend on planes for quick, easy transportation. Businesses expect swift airmail service and safe, quick, reliable transport of merchandise every day. During the 1930's engineers made major improvements in commercial aviation. They made planes bigger, fly faster, further and higher; and to carry heavier loads than ever before. As planes flew higher, pressurized cabins were designed to make breathing at 35,000 feet as easy as at 6,000 feet. Other improvements were controllable-pitch propellers, greatly improved onboard radio equipment, automatic pilots, and more accurate navigation. Airspeeds and seating capacity increased during the 1930's.

During the 1940's jet engines were developed and improved. The world^Rs first large commercial jet airliner, the de Havilland Comet, was built and flown in 1952. The de Havilland Comet flew nearly 500 mph with little vibration or noise. But disaster struck when two exploded in flight. This caused stronger bodies for airliners to be developed. Flying times between London and Tokyo, using jet transportation, declined from 85 hours with propeller-driven airplanes to 36 hours. Another develpment was the turboprop engines. These are jet engines driving propellers. Today, these engines are used by many small airlines. They are ideal for short and medium distances. They are quieter and cheaper to build and run. Small jet aircraft can fly high, fast and smooth, but are expensive to operate. Still, many clients are willing to pay the price.

While many engineering improvements were made, some things stayed the same. The main body of the plane, or the fuselage, is the familiar tube-shape and contains the lavatories, galley, cargo bay, seating for passengers and crew and the controls. Seating is usually first class up front with the tighter packed "economy class" behind. Carry-on luggage is usually stored over the seats and larger items that are checked in are stored below in the "hold". The pilot and other crew sit on the flight deck at the front of the plane. The wings are located near the middle of the fuselage and are angled backwards. Each wing supports one or two engines. Other features of the plane are a passenger door, cargo door, nose wheel and landing gear and hydraulic system (operates flying control surfaces, cargo doors, landing gear and brakes). There are usually backup hydraulic systems in case of failure.

Safety is a top priority. There is little room for error when an airplane is flying hundreds of people through the sky at over 500 miles per hour. Some of the safety features are:

1. Emergency chutes (tubes)- for passengers to slide down off the plane
2. Oxygen masks - if the air gets too thin to breathe these drop down in front of the passengers.
3. Life-jackets - for flights over the ocean, in case of a water crash.
4. Luggage and trays are tightly secured so they won't fly around in the cabin
5. Emergency doors
6. Lighted exit signs
7. Seat belts
8. Flight attendants to give assistance.

There are about 200 major airlines worldwide. They carry more than 800 million passengers every year. To get an idea of the volume of traffic this represents think about the Chicago International Airport. This one airport has over half a million take-offs and landings every year. This represents an average of more than one take off or landing every minute, 24 hours a day! Look how far commercial airlines have come since the early days of Orville and Wilbur Wright. There is little doubt that commercial aviation is here to stay.

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Last modified: Sun Jun 15 18:35:31 PDT 1997

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