Frigid tempuratures, loud noise, sickening turbulence, and constant danger to boot.
Hey sign me up!
Nah, all that used to be part of a luxury only the most well-to-do people could afford.
No it’s not glamping -- I’m talking about air travel.
Getting on a plane to go somewhere today is almost as simple as catching a train or a
taxi.
But a century ago it was way more complicated.
If you look at photos of aircraft passengers from the 30s, they’re rarely seen without
their jackets or coats on.
That wasn't just for the sake of fashion.
It was really chilly inside, since heated cabins were still rare back then.
There were some things you couldn’t fix just by donning an extra layer of clothing.
Remember those vomit bags that are still present on most jets, even though hardly anyone ever
needs them anymore?
They originated from a time when not puking during the flight was a real challenge.
(Um, what seat would you prefer – in the puking or non-puking section.
Um, puking please.
I just had lunch.
Very well…)
Flying at high altitudes, just like climbing up a mountain, can trigger a few different
health problems.
The low pressure at high altitudes makes it more difficult for the body to absorb oxygen.
Air travelers felt queasy and found it hard to breathe.
Today, every aircraft is pressurized inside.
In other words, it’s filled with compressed air, which provides a more comfortable atmosphere,
similar to one you’d feel at just 8,000 feet.
But the first commercial plane with a pressurization system didn’t emerge until 1938.
It’s no wonder that before that, most passengers had no choice but to use paper bags, or special
bowls that were kindly placed under their seats.
Another drawback of not having the normal pressure on board was turbulence.
Without pressurization, pilots couldn’t rise further than 15,000 feet from the ground.
Again, flying even this high was hard enough.
It meant that the planes had to cruise right through wind and rain instead of slipping
above the weather like they do now.
And sometimes they would swoop down hundreds of feet in mere seconds!
This already shaky and nervous journey was pretty noisy too.
In the 1930s, many aircraft had either weak or no soundproofing at all.
So people onboard had to deal with the sound of wind blasting by, and roaring engines.
For instance, the blare of the famous Tin Goose, or the Ford Tri-motor, during take-off,
reached up to 120 decibels.
Just so you know, that’s louder than a rock concert.
All that noise was actually really harmful to people's hearing.
But that doesn’t mean the poor passengers had to just tough it out.
Flight attendants (called Stewardesses back then) handed out little cotton balls to lessen
the truly deafening sounds.
They also had megaphones to make announcements; because using your normal voice in these circumstances
was clearly not an option.
You could say, “Well it couldn’t be so bad since a flight took just a couple of hours,
right?”.
I hate to disappoint you, but in the past, planes were way more sluggish than the modern
ones.
During the 30s, one air trip from New York to Los Angeles took about 25 hours!
The same trip today will only set you back 6 hours tops.
And it definitely wasn’t a non-stop experience.
To get from one point to another, aviators needed to make over a dozen stops, as well
as refuel a couple of times.
Passengers had to change both planes and airlines to make it to their final destination.
I guess now I understand where the phrase “time to spare, go by air” came from.
One way that planes definitely beat any other form of transportation was long-haul tours.
Crossing the ocean to fly to another continent required lots of layovers, and the overall
route could take about a week and a half.
But that was nothing compared to a month-long odyssey by ship.
On the bright side (and we are), lengthy flights with multiple stops gave travelers the opportunity
to visit more beautiful countries, and ultimately see more of the world.
On one condition though – if they could afford it.
In the 30s, air travel was still a relatively new and costly technology, which only recently
tilted toward commercial service.
You may not know this, but the first airlines, including Pan Am, were founded not to transport
people, but rather to carry mail, which accounted for most of their profits.
It may seem strange from today’s perspective, but it was only logical back then.
If the early planes had to pick between bringing a bunch of letters on board or only one or
two passengers – well the choice was obvious.
Especially given that postcards and parcels didn’t demand any amenities, unlike people.
But when companies finally began ferrying men and women by air, it was an extremely
expensive service.
Just imagine, in 1938 you’d have to pay $243 for a week-long bumpy trip from London
to Brisbane, Australia.
That’s about $17,000 in today’s money!
Domestic routes weren’t a lot cheaper.
The price of a flight from one coast to another in the US was almost $4,000 in today’s money.
For the record, you could add one or two times this amount of money, and it would be enough
to buy a whole new car.
It’s no exaggeration to say that aircraft had a good deal of faults and flaws back in
the day.
And yet the 20s, and especially the 30s, were dubbed the golden age of flight, and for a
reason.
After all, it was an era when a wide range of people learned first-hand what flying was.
Of course, they paid a fortune for it, but in return, they got a pretty extravagant experience.
Since the first airway customers were mostly wealthy people, including film stars and politicians,
technically there was only one category of passengers for a while; the one that we now
consider first class.
They had big and comfortable seats, and passengers could gaze out windows that were much more
similar to train windows than the tiny plane ones we’re used to today.
The cabins were pretty spacious, and allowed for several inches more legroom than we have
currently.
Another great feature was excellent food.
Passengers enjoyed lavish meals, which sometimes included up to five different courses, a bar,
and of course, an afternoon tea.
All of this was served by flight attendants.
Apart from bringing snacks and drinks, they gave out envelopes, postcards, and paper,
so that those who wanted could write letters to their loved ones right in mid-air.
If you thought that's as luxurious as it could get, imagine traveling on a flying boat.
These huge machines could fly just like planes, but they could also land on water.
This was especially useful for long-distance transatlantic treks.
The most glorious example of a seaplane of the 1930s was Pan Am’s Clipper.
Basically, it was a flying five-star hotel with roomy compartments, dining rooms, and
lounge areas.
The voyagers ate at real tables while their food was served on fine china dishes.
It’s hard to imagine, but these ships also had separate bathrooms for women and men,
and even bunk beds for sleeping.
This era was most likely dubbed the golden age of flight not only because of the incredible
service, but also due to the various improvements made in aviation during this time.
Until then, most planes were made out of fabric and wood.
In the 30s, they were replaced by the metal ones, which made them stronger and less susceptible
to weather.
They also became faster than ever before.
If the average cruise speed in the 1920s hovered around 100 mph, a decade later they could
fly at about 200 mph.
Back then, not only the flight itself was different, but so were the procedures before
the takeoff.
There might not have been as many security measures as now, but the airports had some
other quirks.
For instance, some of them demanded that passengers had to weigh both their luggage and themselves
in front of other passengers.
Not to mention that with such a small number of people traveling by air, there was no need
to arrive at the airport hours before the departure.
The lack of modern traffic was another contributing factor.
The check-in was quick; they'd just go through your passport and tickets, and ten minutes
later, you’d already be boarding.
Aw, those were the days!
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