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[[image - photograph]] 1927: The Boeing 40-B-2 with which UAL began first long-distance passenger, express, and mail service. [[image - photograph]] 1928: "The Tin Goose," Ford Tri-Motors, gained fame though only 135 of them were produced from 1925 to 1929. struggle, led by the eleventh million-mile veterans who are out "old-timers." May the next 50 years of powered flight show th results of the last 50, and the coming of age of the Local Service Carrier. [[image - photograph]] J. H. Carmichael President, Capital The wide-spread acceptance of air travel in the brief span of twenty-seven years testifies to the safe and dependable operation the airlines have attained during this period of time. It is, of course, well known that airline pilots have made major contributions towards the realization of this achievement. The technical advances, mechanical, operational and navigational which pilots have either sponsored or introduced have been leading factors in the development of air transportation. Not so often recognized, however, are the contributions pilots have made in the field of sales. The goal of the airline industry has been the creation of a "mass" market—a market which represents the acceptance of air transportation as a common mode of travel. In helping to build up this market, airline pilots have excelled. The assurances of safety and security which pilots have conveyed directly or indirectly to the traveling public is one of the chief reasons for the ever-expanding scope of air service. Through various means, pilots have dispelled fears or any element of mystery of flight among passengers, many of whom were reluctant to adopt a new dimension for travel purposes. In-flight visits to the passenger cabin and informative announcements over the airplane's public address system are but two methods in which this has been achieved. These, of course, are direct selling methods. But far more important in selling air transportation has been the fine record of efficient and skilled performances which the airline pilots have established throughout air transportation history to insure passengers safe, comfortable and convenient passage. [[image - photograph]] W.A. Patterson President, UAL No one can look back over the record of 50 years of powered flight without a renewed and profound respect for "the men up front" who have piloted us to fresh achievements year by year. I have had the privilege of being associated with pilots for almost a quarter of a century. Through all the years, I have come to have an increasing admiration for those who have earnestly and sincerely sought to advance the art of flying and the best interests of air transportation. Such men have made great contributions to their nation, to their industry and to their profession. The evolution of the airline pilot as we know him today has had a marked similarity to that of the airplane itself. Our first pilots were out to prove something—that the airplane could be flown from here to there with reasonable efficiency, and that it would come to have a meaningful place in our social and economic life. How well they did that job is told in the history books. Many of those men forfeited their lives in the cause of air progress. A number failed to keep up with the new techniques of flying and were passed by. A few are still with us. To that entire band of pioneers we owe an incredible debt. Back in 1943 when it appeared that there would be a surplus or airline pilots after World War II, I expressed the opinion that such pilots never would be "a dime a dozen." I said then, and I repeat now, that if pilots ever get into the category, I don't want to fly with them. The true airline pilot, as I know him, is a conscientious, skilled and thorough-going gentleman who is interested in his job, his passengers, his company and his industry. The scheduled airlines of this country and their pilots have come far together. The progress they have made has been a product of team work on the part of management, stockholders, pilots, mechanics, ramp men, cabin cleaners, stewardesses, accounting clerks—in fact, everyone connected with the business. With that kind of team work and with the pilot's adherence to the highest standards of his craft, we most certainly are going much further in the years ahead. B.T. DYKES President, Colonial On this Golden Anniversary of Powered Flight, Colonial Airlines is proud to salute its pilots on the important part they have played in Colonial's development over the years. December, 1953 Page 9
