BLUEGRASS AIRLINES

August 2006

Boeing 247 Air Mail Flights by Allan Lowson

The Boeing 247

On June 12, 1933, the 247 made its first transcontinental commercial flight, flying from Newark Municipal Airport to San Francisco in only 21 hours. On its return flight, it set a record for flying coast-to-coast, reaching Newark in just 19 hours 45 minutes, cutting travel time eastbound by seven hours.

The all-metal, low-wing 247 combined a retractable landing gear, two supercharged air-cooled engines, and, in later models, controllable pitch propellers, with totally new standards in passenger comfort. The ten passengers and three crew members enjoyed excellent soundproofing, a low vibration level, plush seats, and, for the first time, cabin air conditioning.

The twin-engine Boeing 247 made the three-engine airplane obsolete and gave an enormous boost to the U.S. airline industry. United Air Lines, a member of the holding company United Airlines and Technology Corporation (UATC), purchased 60 of the planes and soon outdistanced all of its competitors. The remaining 15 went to other customers including Col. Roscoe Turner and Clyde Pangbourne, two air race competitors, and Germany's Lufthansa airline.

At the time UATC included the Boeing Aircraft Company, so it was effectively an in-house order. More importantly, UATC initially refused to supply the aircraft to rival airlines. As we will see, this led to Boeing losing the lead in the market to Douglas. They would not get the lead back until the jet era.

Company conflict accompanied development of the 247. Boeing's chief engineer R.J. Minshall had called for a plane no larger than the planes in current production, claiming that pilots liked smaller planes and a larger plane would create problems such as the need for larger hangars. Fred Rentschler of Pratt & Whitney Engine Company, a member of the UATC, as well as Igor Sikorsky, who had been building large planes for years and also a member of UATC, favoured a larger plane and claimed that it would offer more comfort to their passengers on long flights. Those in favour of the smaller plane won, and performance prevailed over comfort. Extra headroom was added, though, to try to make it easier for passengers to get around the wing spar that protruded across the cabin aisle.

Disagreements also ensued over whether to have a co-pilot, which would increase passenger safety and comfort but would also add to the weight. The co-pilot was added. The propeller was also a source of controversy. Frank Caldwell's two-position variable-pitch propeller had already been perfected in 1932. But Boeing argued that the device weighed too much, and decided to use a fixed-pitch propeller. Nevertheless, with some foresight, the plane was designed so that there would be sufficient propeller clearance if a variable-pitch propeller was added later. This turned out to be a smart decision, since the 247D switched to the newer propeller.

United ordered its 60 planes at $52,700 each. Production problems delayed delivery and Boeing was forced to increase its workforce to 2,200, working in three shifts, to complete the planes. The inexperienced work force created additional problems, and the cost per plane to Boeing rose from the original $45,000 to $77,000 for the first 10 planes. Final costs per plane for the 60 that United had ordered came to $68,000. Boeing figured it would just break even.

The first 247 didn't fly until February 8, 1933, a year later than planned. It went into service with United on March 30, and most of the first 25 planes were delivered during April and May.

The modern twin-engine 247 demonstrated new aerodynamic qualities. It was a low-wing, all-metal monoplane with retractable landing gear and powered by two 550-horsepower (410-kilowatt) Pratt & Whitney Wasp radial engines. Lightweight alloys reduced its weight. It had enough power to climb on one engine with a full load, and it was also the first airliner to use wing flaps. Its final version, the 247D, had variable-pitch propellers and improved performance at higher altitudes to compete with the Douglas DC-2. It had room for 10 passengers, two pilots, and a stewardess (as flight attendants were then called), plus mail and baggage.

When the plane's rollout finally occurred, some 15,000 visitors came to watch. It was an outstanding plane—capable of cruising at 150 miles per hour and flying 485 miles before needing to refuel. The passenger cabin had soundproofing, a lavatory (although no mirror or running water), individual air vents and reading lights, and heating and cooling that were thermostatically controlled. Its navigation instruments included an autopilot and two-way radio.

On display at the 1933 Chicago World's Fair, it was estimated that 61 million people viewed it.

Ironically, the inability of other airlines to obtain the 247 caused Boeing’s loss of the market, for Trans World Airlines went to Douglas for a competitive aircraft. The result was the famous DC series, which made the 247, in turn, obsolete.

The original 247 had a top speed of 182 mph and cruised at 170 mph compared to the 115 mph of the Ford Tri-motor then in general use. Boeing attempted to match the Douglas aircraft by creating the 247D, an improved version with a 200mph top speed and 189-mph cruise. Earlier 247s were modified to 247D standards, but the airplane did not have the necessary growth potential to compete and was soon relegated to shorter route segments and smaller airlines.

United Airlines

United Airlines was one of the “Big Four” airlines in the United States that dominated commercial travel for much of the 20^th century and has remained one of the major U.S. airlines. It was originally formed by United Aircraft and Transport Corporation, a partnership between Boeing Airplane Company and Pratt & Whitney. The larger corporation officially established an operating division known as United Air Lines on July 1, 1931. At the time, the company advertised United as the “World's Largest Air Transport System.”

In 1934, after the Air Mail Act of 1934 stipulated that all existing aviation holding companies had to break up, United Aircraft and Transport Corporation split into its three parts, Boeing, United Aircraft, and United Air Lines. By the time of this split, United Air Lines could boast complete coast-to-coast service across the country, from New York to San Francisco and Los Angeles (with major stops in Salt Lake City, Omaha, Chicago, and Cleveland). Soon after, on March 30, 1933, United took the lead in introducing what many consider the world's first modern civil airliner, the Boeing 247. In June 1933, United began flying coast-to-coast using this aircraft in a flight that lasted just under 20 hours. Within four months, United was operating as many as 11 round trips daily between New York and Chicago.

Western Air Express

To meet the provisions of the Air Mail Act of 1934, WAE pulled out of TWA in December of that year. A new Western Air Express Corporation was formed with Alvin P. Davis as president. And so, when Western Air Lines used to state that its heritage went back to 1926 that was not strictly true, since the company which was formed after the original WAE merged with TWA was not the same one, and merely a resurrection of the old name. Anyway, Davis recognized that his only chance for survival was to be associated with, and linked to, an airline with a transcontinental contract. He therefore made an arrangement with United Air Lines for through ticketing, the sharing of facilities etc. In fact, so intense was this cooperation that the travelling public was often confused as which of the two lines they were flying! The Boeing 247 was at first leased, and then purchased from United in 1935. On 1 Aug 1937 WAE acquired National Parks Airways. This acquisition not only gave it a route from Salt Lake City to Great Falls, but also augmented its Boeing 247-D fleet, since NPA also operated the type.

National Parks Airways

National Parks Airways were a small operator with routes through Utah, Idaho and Montana. Unfortunately for them, at the time the Postmaster General controlled the issuing of Airmail contracts and preferred to give them to companies that had routes connecting major cities. This effectively limited their ability to grow, as the Airmail contracts were a major source of income and the economic viability of routes and airlines frequently depended on this support.

The Airmail Routes

We will be flying three of the Airmail routes from 1936 that were flown by the Boeing 247. Route AM-11 was flown by United, AM-13 by Western Air Express, and AM-19 by National Parks Airways.

While I was researching the routes, I remembered that I had a coloured map of the US Airways that closely matched the routes of the Airmail contracts for ’36. This turned out to be part of a package about the Civil Airways system by Mark Thomas at DC3 Airways. This awesome piece of work covers 304 flights along the Amber, Blue, Green and Red airway systems.

Mark has kindly agreed to allow me to use the waypoints from the routes along Amber 1 & 2, Blue 10 & 16, and Green 2 & 3. These routes form 90% of the Airmail routes below. I can thoroughly recommend you to go to DC3 Airways and look under the routes section to find Mark’s full set of Civil Airways flights.

Obviously any mistakes or errors in the following tables are down to me and not Mark.

1936 Airmail route AM-11 Seattle – San Diego

Contractor : United Air Lines Transport Corp.

Heading	Distance	City Name	State	ICAO	NAV	Freq.
-	0	Seattle	WA	KBFI	-	-
166	19	Tacoma	WA	KTIW	-	-
-	0	Tacoma	WA	KTIW	-	-
160	101	Portland	OR	KPDX	PDX	111.8
-	0	Portland	OR	KPDX	PDX	111.8
178	92	Eugene	OR		EUG	112.9
153	105	Medford	OR	KMFR	OED	113.6
-	0	Medford	OR	KMFR	OED	113.6
158	62	Fort Jones	CA		FJS	109.6
145	85	Red Bluff	CA		RBL	115.7
154	62	Williams	CA		ILA	114.4
113	38	Sacramento	CA	KMCC	MCC	109.2
-	0	Sacramento	CA	KMCC	MCC	109.2
199	68	Oakland	CA	KOAK	OAK	116.8
-	0	Oakland	CA	KOAK	OAK	116.8
209	9	San Francisco	CA	KSFO	SFO	115.8
-	0	San Francisco	CA	KSFO	SFO	115.8
073	67	Modesto	CA		MOD	114.6
113	70	Clovis(Fresno)	CA		CZQ	112.9
129	8	Fresno	CA	KFAT
-	0	Fresno	CA	KFAT
147	83	Bakersfield	CA	KBFL	EHF	115.4
-	0	Bakersfield	CA	KBFL	EHF	115.4
145	89	Los Angeles	CA	KLAX	LAX	113.6
-	0	Los Angeles	CA	KLAX	LAX	113.6
101	37	Santa Ana	CA		ELB	117.2
141	59	Mission Bay	CA		MZB	117.8
128	4	San Diego	CA	KSAN	-

1936 Airmail route AM-13 San Diego – Salt Lake City

Contractor : Western Air Express Corp.

Heading	Distance	City Name	State	ICAO	NAV	Freq.
-	0	San Diego	CA	KSAN	-	117.8
320	62	Santa Ana	CA		ELB	117.2
281	38	Los Angeles	CA	KLAX	LAX	113.6
	0	Los Angeles	CA	KLAX	LAX	113.6
007	45	Palmdale	CA		PMD	114.5
060	76	Daggett	CA	KDAG	DAG	113.2
032	97	Las Vegas	NV	KLAS	LAS	116.9
-	0	Las Vegas	NV	KLAS	LAS	116.9
031	60	Mormon Mesa	NV		MMM	114.3
046	38	Enterprise	UT		OZN	109.8
016	48	Cedar City	UT		CDC	117.3
350	34	Milford	UT		MIL	112.1
009	61	Delta	UT		DTA	116.1
001	92	Salt Lake City	UT	KSLC	-	-

1936 Airmail route AM-19 Salt Lake City – Great Falls

Contractor : National Parks Airways, Inc.

Heading	Distance	City Name	State	ICAO	NAV	Freq.
-	0	Salt Lake City	UT	KSLC	-	-
342	25	Ogden	UT	KOGD
-	0	Ogden	UT	KOGD
328	63	Plymouth	UT		MLD	117.4
336	44	Pocatello	ID	KPIH	PIH	112.6
-	0	Pocatello	ID	KPIH	PIH	112.6
016	41	Idaho Falls	ID	KIDA	IDA	109.0
-	0	Idaho Falls	ID	KIDA	IDA	109.0
336	36	Dubois	ID		DBS	116.9
036	59	West Yellowstone	MT	KWYS	-	-
-	0	West Yellowstone	MT	KWYS	-	-
284	69	Dillon	MT		DLN	113.0
346	43	Butte	MT	KBTM	CPN	111.6
-	0	Butte	MT	KBTM	CPN	111.6
013	44	Helena	MT	KHLN	HLN	117.7
-	0	Helena	MT	KHLN	HLN	117.7
009	57	Great Falls	MT	KGTF	-	-

Flight Simulator Files

The Boeing 247 by Jens Kristensen is available from www.avsim.com and www.flightsim.com sites as b247d_10.zip. Mark’s Civil Airways package of flights is at www.dc3airways.com

1936 Timetables

The actual timetables are reproduced below. As a number of the flights were at night, and part of the fun of flightsim is to see the passing scenery, you could always translate the pm times to am. Also you should remember that fs airports are not always in the same locations as the airports of 1936, so some flight times may not be achievable.