Pan Am and China

In 1935, Pan Am got the mail delivery contract from San Francisco to Guangdong, China.

subsequently, pan am airlines opened a Pacific route, and passengers going to China can transfer to China airlines (CNAC) route network operated by pan am airlines to other cities in China.

"flying shears"

Pan Am named most of its planes "Clippers", and the word "flying shears" was taken from clipper ship, a high-speed sailing ship in the 19th century. These planes were the only passenger planes capable of intercontinental flights at that time.

In order to compete with cruise ships, Pan Am provides passengers with first-class seats, and the crew will wear formal navy clothes, instead of wearing leather coats and scarves like pilots who deliver mail. The general boarding procedures are also adopted when boarding.

flying shears were used in wartime

During World War II, most flying shears were requisitioned by the army. Pan Am planes often cross the mid-Atlantic and around the world to support some military operations. In that era, Pan Am took the lead in crossing West Africa and Central Africa to Iran, and in early 1942, it first opened a global route. In January 1943, American President Roosevelt flew from Miami to British Gambia on Pan Am's Boeing 314 named Dixie Clipper, becoming the first incumbent American president to go abroad by plane.

The opening of global routes

After World War II, Pan Am's fleet was upgraded to faster Boeing 377, Douglas DC-6 and Lockheed Constellation aircraft. Pan Am has monopolized all westbound routes for 4 years. Flight 1 departs from San Francisco and stops all over the world, including Honolulu, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Kolkata, Delhi, Beirut, Istanbul, Frankfurt and London, and finally arrives in new york (46 hours). And flight 2 is flying around the world eastward. Shortly after the launch of the round-the-world airline in 195, Pan Am began to study the concept of economy class.

in p>195, Pan Am was renamed Pan American World Airways. In the 195s, Pan Am's business became more and more diversified, including the establishment of intercontinental hotels and the purchase of commercial aircraft, participation in the South Atlantic missile tracking system and the operation of a nuclear engine laboratory in Nevada.

fierce competition

although pan am strives to improve its status as an international airline, its advantages are decreasing year by year. American Overseas Airlines took the lead in breaking the monopoly of Pan Am, and then more and more airlines joined the competition, such as Trans World Airlines, Braniff International Airlines and Northwest Airlines, which competed for markets in Europe, South America and East Asia respectively. Facing the competition, Pan Am began to innovate, including purchasing DC-8 and Boeing 77 jets, which were put into operation in 1958. During the Vietnam War, Pan Am took American soldiers to Hong Kong, Tokyo and other Asian cities for vacation.

Extended Services

Pan Am ordered "PANAMAC" from IBM in 1962. PANAMAC is a large computer used to reserve seats and hotel rooms, and there are a lot of information about cities, countries, airports, planes, hotels and restaurants. PANAMAC occupies the entire floor of the fourth floor of the Pan American Building in Manhattan, new york. Pan American Airlines built a passenger terminal called Worldport at JFK International Airport in new york, which was the largest passenger terminal in the world at that time. Since 1964, Pan Am has provided helicopter service between Manhattan and new york's main airports.

the beginning of decline

in the 196s, it was generally believed that civil aviation would enter the supersonic age. Pan Am signed the option of six Concorde passenger planes in 1963, but did not buy them in the end. At last, supersonic civil aircraft was a flash in the pan because of price, operating cost, noise and other problems. Pan American Airlines ordered 25 Boeing 747s in April 1966. It was the first customer of Boeing 747 and put into operation in 197. Boeing 747 was a commercial gamble of Boeing, which was later considered to have made Boeing brilliant, but it was the beginning of the decline of Pan Am.

in the early 197s, Pan Am airlines flew to 16 countries all over the world. During the peak period, Pan Am's scheduled service covers six continents. Most of the routes are from new york to Europe and South America and Miami to the Caribbean. At that time, the brand slogan "World's Most Experienced Airline" promoted in advertisements made Pan Am more famous.

in p>1973, the world oil crisis caused the operating cost of Pan Am to rise sharply. High oil prices, reduced demand for air travel and oversupply of international flights have seriously affected Pan Am's profitability. Pan American Airlines introduced a large number of Boeing 747 to cater to the increase in passenger volume, but the actual situation was contrary to expectations.

In order to compete with other airlines, Pan Am began to try to enter the domestic market of the United States. In 1979, after the enactment of the Airline Deregulation Act, it was granted permission to operate domestic flights between its domestic hub airports. But at the same time, some airlines with domestic route networks also compete with Pan Am on international routes.

Swell's folly

In p>198, Pan Am acquired National Airlines to expand its domestic airline network. Due to competing price increases, the money paid for the acquisition far exceeds its market value. Not only did it not bring profit to Pan Am, but it made Pan Am's fleet become complicated and the route network failed to match Pan Am's route network, and the cultures of the two companies were even different. The acquisition was later called "Seawell's Folly" (then the president of Pan Am was William Swire).

In order to save Pan Am, the Pan Am Tower was sold to Metlife in 1981, and the entire Pacific route network was sold to United Airlines in 1985. The proceeds from the sale of assets were used to buy new aircraft. Pan Am also began to provide shuttle service between Boston, new york and Washington. However, Pan Am continued to lose money and went from bad to worse. The 1988 Lockerbie air crash (Pan Am Flight 13 exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland) made Pan Am even worse.