John Hill
John Hill - Assistant director of aviation at the SFO Museum
|
How was Trippe an able leader? What risks did he take and why?
[. . .] Trippe’s abilities as a leader were manifold. First his ability to conceptualize made him a true visionary. He was a multi-dimensional thinker who could see the big picture and anticipate needs and problems that were not readily obvious to others. He was able to marshal talent and attract other important contributors who shared the vision of what commercial aviation could become, i.e. Lindbergh, Leuteritz, Sikorsky, etc. [. . .] He was a skilled and patient negotiator with a calm and courtly demeanor that, perhaps, masked a steely resolve and calculating mind not prone to sentiment when to came to business decisions; this coupled with a flinty conservatism and utter lack of need for ostentatious self-aggrandizement. [. . .] |
Why did Trippe invent tourist/economy class? How did it affect his competitors?
Post-WWII, Trippe was essentially the lone voice that wanted to reduce air fares. Oddly, his fellow competing airline CEOs and government regulators, weren’t interested in fare reduction ideas and wanted to keep air travel somewhat exclusive, which it was because only a small segment of the population was flying and could afford it. Trippe believed two things; he saw lower prices/higher volume as a better business model, and, I believe and as his speeches of the time profess, he had a genuine desire to democratize the airways and deliver air travel to the average salary earner and the global community. Trippe saw air travel as a great stimulator of trade and cultural exchange and as such a real force for good, and of course a projection of US interests, which suited his sense of patriotism. He persevered and did introduce economy programs. This of course accelerated greatly in later years, particularly during deregulation, and airplane tickets are one of the few things that have trended downward in cost over the years.
Why did Trippe still believe in jets, despite the initial failure of the first commercial jet (de Havilland Comet)?
He knew jets were coming and wanted to be out ahead of their first successful commercial application. He clearly saw jet engine technology, coupled with pressurization, as a “next level” step in the airline industry.
How was Pan Am involved in the development of the 707 and 747?
In 1955, Pan Am was the first to place an order for jet airliners from Boeing. Boeing already had an existing prototype based on military technology. Pan Am’s order rocked the industry (they simultaneously ordered twenty-five DC-8 jetliners from Douglas) and they would eventually receive approximately 130 Boeing 707 variants. All these aircraft had to meet the specifications of Pan Am’s planning team. The jet was a huge success and it reduced operating costs dramatically. (RPKs, an industry benchmark for how much it costs to transport one Revenue Passenger one Kilometer plunged 5- to 6-fold. This savings enabled the airlines to reduce fares and it was largely the affordability, along with the speed, that dramatically increased passenger loads as the jet age opened.)
When Pan Am placed an order for twenty-five 747 jet airliners, Boeing had no such wide body jet. This was purely Pan Am's initiative and as such the airline pioneered the wide body era. The goal was simply for added capacity per operation on intercontinental routes and thus added operating economy. For the 747 development program, Pan Am engineers were partnered with Boeing personnel to create an airliner meeting the airline's needs essentially from scratch. This joint innovation put Pan Am and Boeing at the leading edge once again and changed the face of commercial aviation.
Overall, what were Pan Am’s greatest contributions to the aviation industry?
When thinking of Pan Am it is important to realize that it was not just another airline. Pan Am invented long-range, over-water transport flying in fixed wing aircraft (heavier-than-air). The aircraft, avionics, and operating methods that Pan Am introduced became a blueprint for the commercial aviation industry and the foundation upon which today's global air system was built.
How was the 747 project risky for both Pan Am and Boeing?
The capital outlay and commitment Pan Am made to Boeing in ordering the 747 was a risk in that a successful 747 development program would then rely to a great extent on other airlines wishing to compete following suit by placing subsequent orders and thus adequately financing the program. Needless to say, such orders were placed in rapid succession.