This film “Routes of American Airlines” is one of a series made by the company in the late 1960s / early 1970s. Despite it serving as promotional material for the airline, the company is only mentioned a few times in the nearly 14-minute film. The film provides an overview of three American cities — Detroit, Boston, and Los Angeles — and the features and attractions in each one. At the conclusion of each city’s section, the narrator connects an element of the city to American Airlines’ presence at that city’s airport. For example, when concluding the section on Detroit, he mentions that while the city revolves around the wheel because of the auto industry, nonetheless “when the wheels fall off,” people can take American Airlines flights out of the city’s airport. Similarly, while Boston is a historic city, its airport is modern and American Airlines operates flights from Logan International Airport. The Brown Derby is an established Los Angeles institution and similarly, so are American Airlines flights from the city.

(00:00:10) Title: Routes of American Airlines

(00:00:32) Detroit skyline

(00:01:24) Footage of Detroit office building exteriors

(00:01:58) People play with model boats

(00:02:42) New Plymouth cars are manufactured at the Chrysler plant in Detroit

(00:03:16) Cars are washed

(00:03:52) Passengers board a large riverboat

(00:04:38) The narrator mentions that American Airlines operates out of the Detroit airport

(00:05:01) Aerial view of Boston’s Back Bay and the Charles River

(00:05:19) A cobblestone road in Beacon Hill

(00:05:49) The site of the Boston Massacre

(00:05:58) A monument of Paul Revere riding his horse, Old North Church can be seen in the background

(00:06:26) The new Prudential Tower, built in 1964

(00:06:42) People walk around downtown Boston

(00:06:46) Merchants sell food

(00:07:14) View of Boston Harbor

(00:07:24) A train crosses the Charles

(00:07:44) People enjoy the Swan Boats in Boston Public Garden

(00:08:07) Children feed ducks

(00:08:44) The narrator mentions that Boston has one of the most modern airplanes and American Airlines serves the airport

(00:09:34) View of Los Angeles on a smoggy day

(00:10:46) A congested freeway

(00:11:15) New neighborhoods are built on nearby hills

(00:12:08) People enjoy a backyard pool

(00:12:40) Residents enjoy the beach and Pacific Ocean

(00:13:27) The Brown Derby, a Los Angeles landmark

(00:13:45) The narrator concludes by mentioning that American Airlines operates out of Los Angeles as well

During the 1960s, American Airlines was a major airline and remains so today. Overall, the 1960s were an important decade for the airline industry as several airlines, including American, began flying jet aircraft which helped business grow and make travel more pleasurable for those flying. Jet planes were faster and smoother than propeller-driven planes and could seat more passengers. This technology helped expand American Airlines’ route network, meaning that the three cities featured in the video, Boston, Detroit, and Los Angeles, were no longer as distant. It was now increasingly possible for American to consider flying to the cities they learned about in this film.

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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com