Pan Am clipper, Vol. 16, No. 10, December 1990

              
Getting
To
Know
IUJ
by Alan Loflin
Ü

BIG MAC!
Since the beginning of the Persian Gulf crisis, Pan Am has flown more than 75 missions to Saudi Arabia for the Military Airlift Command. For the cockpit and flight service crews that work the flights it’s very special duty. Come along on a recent MAC mission to the Persian Gulf and find out why.
Story begins below with a photo spread on page 7.
Like Pan Am, United Airlines is an airline with a long history, steeped in tradition. And, although both airlines began as mail carriers, there are probably more differences between the two airlines than there are similarities.
The name, “United,” dates back to October, 1928 when a new company, United Aircraft and Transport Corporation was formed as a holding company for Boeing Airplane Company, Boeing Air Transport, Pacific Air Transport and Pratt and Whitney. In 1934, United Air Lines became a separate business entity, organized as a management company for four of the first commercial air carriers —Boeing Air Transport, National Air Transport, Pacific Air Transport and Varney Air Lines. United tracks its earliest history back to April 6,1926, when Varney Air Lines began the first continuing contract mail service in the U.S., flying from Pasco, Washington to Elko, Nevada by way of Boise, Idaho. Its first aircraft was an open-cockpit Swallow biplane.
Pan American Airways, it should be noted, was founded by Juan Trippe, who merged several fledgling airline companies in October of 1927 under the name, Pan American. The first flight was a mail run from Key West to Havana on October 28,1927 and established Pan American Airways as the nation’s first scheduled international airline company.
Despite similar beginnings, the historical tracks of Pan Am and United are quite the opposite. Aside from service to Canada, which began in 1934, United flew no international routes until 1980 when it inaugurated service between Chicago and Mexico. It was not until 1983, after more than 17 years of applying to the government for more international routes, that United began flying transpacific routes between Seattle and Tokyo. That marked United’s first scheduled international services outside North America.
Pan Am, on the other hand, branched out internationally, first flying to Latin America, then pioneering the world’s first transpacific service in 1935 followed by transatlantic service in 1939. Despite repeated requests to the U.S. government over the years for domestic route authority, it was not until Pan Am’s acquisition of National Airlines, just prior to the deregulation of the industry, that Pan Am was able to operate domestically, aside from a few transcontinental routes that were restricted from carrying local traffic. Pan Am did develop its critical New York-Miami routes prior to deregulation, however, by stopping in Nassau, technically making the New York-Miami run an international flight.
While Pan Am was developing new international routes around the world, United was similarly innovative as it sought ways to bring the North American continent closer together. In 1951, it began to fly the DC-4 on coast-to-coast flights, reducing the travel time to 14 hours.
Although Pan Am introduced the jet age with the development of the B707 in 1958, United was actually the first U.S. carrier to order jet aircraft—the DC-8—and by 1960, was flying the new jet aircraft nonstop continued on page 5
CUPPER
VOL 16 NO 10
DECEMBER— 1990 JANUARY 1991
Pan Am Files For Financial Reorganization
It’s “Business As Usual”
Pan Am’s financial reorganization plan, announced by Chairman Tom Plaskett on January 8, means that the airline will now be able to maintain normal, uninterrupted flights and customer services worldwide, even as it strengthens its financial position.
In fact, as far the traveling public is concerned, it will be “business as usual” at Pan Am.
‘We are committed to operate our full schedule of flights, honor all tickets, and maintain our relationships with travel agencies, tour operators, and our interline and other business partners around the world,” the Chairman said.
There will also be normal operating conditions for all employees; there will be no cutbacks or layoffs, no pay reductions and no changes to current benefits programs.
Plaskett emphasized the importance of maintaining business as usual, saying that only a financial reorganization that was “invisible” to the eyes of customers, as well as travel agents, tour operators and interline partners, would ensure the company’s success. He
stressed the intention of Pan Am to retain the good will and confidence of the traveling public and all others on whom the airline depends.
At a news conference describing why Pan Am decided to seek a financial reorganization in federal court, the Chairman cited severe financial pressures that have greatly hindered Pan Am’s ability to compete effectively in the ever-demanding and always changing airline industry.
In particular, he noted that several extraordinary external events — including the Persian Gulf crisis and the resulting surge in fuel prices, deteriorating economic conditions worldwide, and the terrorist bombing of Flight 103 — have made a tough financial situation even tougher.
“After a careful review of all available options, we believe this action to be the most prudent decision for all of our constituencies,” he said.
An interim loan agreement with the Bankers Trust Company for $150 million, $50 million of which represents participation by United
Airlines, will enable Pan Am to meet its liquidity requirements until it receives a payment of $290 million from United under a previously announced agreement.
“This process will allow us to restructure our financial obligations equitably and realistically in a controlled manner, while preserving jobs for our employees and high quality air transportation services for our customers,” Plaskett said.
“The basic components of our business strategy, coupled with benefits that will be achieved through the United agreement, sets forth a clear course of action which we believe will lead this airline to future profitability and strengthen its ability to compete,” he said.
The company’s long-term strategy, initially implemented early last year, calls for “rightsizing” the transatlantic operations with more efficient aircraft; streamlining operations at the major hub at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York; and continuing the development of the extensive Miami hub operation and the profitable Latin continued on page 6
Pan Am Flies in Support of Desert Shield
The Pan Am 747, “Clipper Cathay,” tail number N726PA, sat on the ramp in the early evening darkness on December 5 at Rhein-Main Air Force base, the military side of Frankfurt Airport. The sun had gone down and the temperature was dropping rapidly. Fortunately, there was no wind, which would have made the near-freezing temperatures feel only that much colder. Every ten minutes or so, the siren-like wail of the engines of an Air Force C-5 Galaxy would overpower all other sounds on the ramp, come to full crescendo and the monstrous transport aircraft would lumber awkwardly toward the far end of the field, the beginning of a flight to Dhahran or some other unnamed spot in the middle of the Saudi Arabian desert. Actual destinations and the nature of troops and equipment aboard was all classified. These were military movements in support of the Desert Shield operation.
The Pan Am 747 was there for the same
Story and Photos by Alan Loflin
reason. Activated as part of the Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF), it was assigned to operate that evening as MAC 6858, a Military Airlift Command (MAC) troop charter—the 86th such Mission assigned to Pan Am since the Department of Defense had activated the CRAF program on August 17 —and the third mission in as many days to operate from Germany to Saudi Arabia. Previously, all troop movements had originated in the United States. This was the first time that American troops based in Europe were being assigned to active duty in the Persian Gulf.
The 747 had been ferried in from Rome that afternoon after flying a mission to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia the night before. Delayed by an immeasurably dense fog in Saudi Arabia earlier that morning, the flight was running three hours behind schedule. There was time to be made up. The cockpit and flight service crews were aboard, awaiting the arrival of the German-based U.S.
Army troops. The flight that evening would stop briefly in Rome where there would be a crew change and the aircraft would be refueled and catered for the dinner service. Although the 747 could operate the flight nonstop, it was the logistics of the MAC charters that necessitated the stopover in
This was the first time that American troops based in Europe were being assigned to active duty in the Persian Gulf.
Rome. Flights could originate from any number of places in the USA or in Europe. Pan Am needed a central staging area where various maintenance, catering and crew requirements could be easily coordinated, continued on page 2