This short film produced by Academy Films (most likely in the early 1950s) serves as an informational film for those who have never flown on a commercial flight before. The film follows the Martin family as they arrive at the airport (00:10) for their flight to New York—TWA flight 376, aboard TWA’s Constellation airliner (the Lockheed Constellation is a propeller-driven, four-engine airliner built between 1943 and 1958). The film reveals the passenger experience, as well as behind-the-scenes airport logistics, to ensure new travelers will be comfortable with much of the commercial flight process (however, the film does not cover landing, de-boarding, or baggage retrieval). The film teaches viewers about TWA’s skycap service (00:42); weight limits for luggage; locating departure gates and times; how luggage is checked (03:16) and then transported to the plane on baggage carts pulled by tugs (03:40); and inflight food service (04:31, 06:00). The film also provides an overview of the flight crew and their respective roles. The hostesses check that the cabin is ready for passengers, then they greet the passengers as boarding begins, review flight times, destinations, and safety requirements (10:26), prep food trays (14:00) and serve food, and ensure the passengers are as comfortable as possible. The Captain and First Officer board the Constellation (07:53) and go through the safety chart in the cockpit (09:00), before firing up each engine individually (11:35) prior to takeoff. The Flight Engineer checks the plane’s exterior for any problems and verifies that pre-flight tasks—such as refueling from a Shell fuel truck (08:15)—have been completed. The film concludes with a shot of the Constellation flying above the clouds (15:46) on its journey to St. Louis, then Chicago, and finally New York.

We encourage viewers to add comments and, especially, to provide additional information about our videos by adding a comment! See something interesting? Tell people what it is and what they can see by writing something for example: “01:00:12:00 — President Roosevelt is seen meeting with Winston Churchill at the Quebec Conference.”

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