July 8th, 1929 start-up
EVENTS of Monday July 8th , 1929 [initial transcontinental air-rail passenger service].
Saint Louis Globe-Democrat, dated Tuesday July 9th, 1929, pg 8, left column top, “First T.A.T. Planes Land at St. Louis with 18 passengers”; -- photo, three columns wide: “Crowd Greets First T.A.T. Passengers ... The ‘City of Columbus’ and the City of Wichita’ tri-motored planes inaugurating Transcontinental Air Transport air-rail passenger service, stopped at Lambert-St. Louis Flying Field at noon yesterday to refuel and allow their passengers to stretch their legs a few minutes. “ Video and Audio: Newsreel footage is included in this later TV coverage, Transcontinental Air Travel; Video, 8 minutes and 53 seconds, mostly from a 1929 “talky” movie about T.A.T.’s Air-Rail Transcontinental route:The photograph shows the crowd which greeted the planes. A refueling truck is servicing the one on the left.” http://livingstlouis.wordpress.com/2004/07/08/living-st-louis-video-transcontinental-air-travel/ [scroll down and then click on the youtube image] Anne Morrow Lindbergh appears in image 134 [GDGPS0134.JPG] post-merger photo, T.A.T. later became T&WA. Image shows the recently finished (1929) "office" at St. Louis Flying Field, http://digital.library.umsystem.edu/...c;quality=m800 One of the lesser-known makers of the industry is shown in the next photo. H.M. Bixby first "backed" the Atlantic crossing, then afterword arranged for purchase of Ford Tri-Motors to begin the T.A.T. start-up. He worked with Lindbergh at various steps during the late 1920's, and managed to exploit the famous name at each step (without much notice to his own planning efforts). http://digital.library.umsystem.edu/...c;quality=m800 Second from left is Harold M. Bixby (banker, initial “backer” who named “Spirit of St. Louis”; later Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Chamber of Commerce); man on left is Harry Hall Knight (stockbroker at Knight, Dysart & Gamble, and “backer”, and 1926 president of St. Louis Flying Club). These behind-the-scene financiers first backed the “Spirit of Saint Louis” crossing, then later set-up the first T.A.T mixed air-railroad routes (through Saint Louis), working with Clement Melville Keys (Curtiss-Wright). Oddly, H.M. Bixby left the world of finance, and after the mergers (TAT-Maddux) he had a long career with PanAm, as a Vice President. The T.A.T start-up was quickly followed by a wave of mergers (some forced by government): passenger line operated by transport companies previously competing with each other .... awarded jointly to Transcontinental Air Transport + Maddux Air Lines + Western Air Express, ... and Pittsburgh aviation industries = Transcontinental and Western Air, Here's the credit line for the above photo's: University of Missouri Digital Library. _Globe-Democrat_ Collection FROM THE COLLECTIONS OF THE MERCANTILE LIBRARY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI-ST. LOUIS. St. Louis Globe Democrat Collection Home |
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