SPECIAL EDITION TWA – What ’ s in a Name ?
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The combination train / plane service lasted until October 1930 , when completion of a fullylighted airway and installation of navigation aids allowed for night flying . In the meantime , TAT had merged with Maddux Air Lines , permitting direct connections at Los Angeles ( Glendale ) with flights to and from the San Francisco Bay Area ( Alameda ).
WAE
In 1926 , Western Air Express ( WAE ), founded by Harris “ Pop ” Hanshue , had been awarded the lucrative contract to fly mail from Los Angeles , via Las Vegas , to Salt Lake City , where connections were made with the transcontinental air mail route between San Francisco , Chicago , and New York .
WAE expanded its network with passenger-only flights to
2 Vol . 1 , No . 7 of Transcontinental Air Transport ’ s ( TAT ) publication Plane Talk describes the inaugural operation of TAT ’ s combination plane / train service across the USA . Note the logos of both the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Atchison , Topeka and Santa Fe Railway ( Santa Fe ) displayed along with TAT ’ s insignia . // DAVID H . STRINGER COLLECTION
3 Lindbergh is prominently featured in the centerspread of this TAT-Maddux timetable , which also shows a route map of the cross-country service . // DAVID H . STRINGER COLLECTION
4 X12292 became NC12292 , the only example of a Northrop Delta to fly for TWA . The carrier employed Northrop Alpha , Delta , and Gamma aircraft in the early 1930s . One of the Northrop Gammas was used by TWA to research highaltitude flight , a feat finally made practical with introduction of the Boeing 307 Stratoliner in 1940 . // BOEING CO . PHOTO
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