Dating to the 1940s, this silent 16mm home movie shows a flight aboard TWA and American Airlines DC-3s. It’s unclear where the flight originated, possibly somewhere in the Southern USA aboard a TWA aircraft (see below for notes about this plane NC28310). The rest of the film seems to show American Airlines DC-3 Flagships. There are several stops shown in this film, including in Washington, D.C. and New York City. At :50, the shadow of the plane is seen as it travels at fairly low altitude. The airport seen at 2:21 and 3:04 appears to be Washington National, in Washington, D.C. which was newly built at the time this was shot. At 3:01 what appears to be a United Airlines livery is shown. At 4:22 the island of Manhattan is seen from the window, and at 4:29 a massive freeway interchange. At 4:45, the terminal of LaGuardia Airport in New York is visible.
Interesting note: at :43, the tail number of the DC-3 is briefly seen: NC28310. This aircraft first flew for TWA in 1940. Tragically, an on-line record of the plane indicates it crashed in 1944 with a loss of 24 persons near Hanford, California, while flying through a thunderstorm.
Designed to meet an American Airlines requirement for an enlarged version of the DC-2, the DC-3 was first flown on December 17th, 1935. Capable of carrying 24 passengers at a cruising speed of 180 mph, the DC-3’s speed and long range revolutionized commercial air travel in the 1930s and 40s, when it carried 90 percent of the world’s air travelers. Early DC-3s used Wright R-1820 Cyclone engines, but Pratt & Whitney R-1830 Twin Wasp Radials were fitted to later versions; these engines had better single engine performance and allowed the DC-3 to fly at higher altitudes.
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