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How America s Aviation Industry Got Its Start Transporting Mail
Before carrying passengers, Americaâs most iconic airlines hauled the mail. It was one of the riskiest jobs around.
Author:
PhotoQuest/Getty Images
Before carrying passengers, Americaâs most iconic airlines hauled the mail. It was one of the riskiest jobs around.
The U.S. aviation industry got its start in the early 20
th century not by transporting people, but by moving America’s mail. At first, airmail pilots flew in flimsy open-cockpit planes through every kind of weather an experience that ranged from frequently harrowing to sometimes fatal. As routes expanded, airports proliferated and safer, more reliable aircraft were developed, the commercial air travel industry emerged, initially by piggybacking on airmail flights. The earliest passengers unceremoniously used mail bags for seats.