SPECIAL EDITION Howard Hughes and TWA yet another TWA first . On October 19 , 1953 , Lockheed Model 1049 Super Constellation , Star of the Rhine , departed from Los Angeles , landing at New York-Idlewild on a scheduled 7-hour , 55-minute flight that actually took 8 hours , 17 minutes . The new service , complete with extra-fare sleeping berths , beat American Airlines ’ marginally faster Douglas DC-7s to the punch by just one month . With the eight-hour rule in effect , TWA ’ s service was offered eastbound only ; the scheduled 30-minute stop at Chicago on the westbound trip continued to permit a crew change .
Early in 1954 , government restrictions were lifted to make transcontinental non-stop flights in excess of eight hours ‘ legal ’. TWA and its Pilots reached an agreement on excess onduty overtime , and westbound nonstop flights began in June .
Faster 1049-G ‘ Super G ’ Connies entered TWA service in April 1955 . In September , the type became the first in the United States to offer dual First Class and Coach service , with transcontinental non-stop low-fare flights .
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The ultimate Constellations , the Lockheed 1649A Starliners , began flying coast-to-coast non-stop for TWA in May 1957 . Called Jetstreams by the airline , these ultra-long-haul airplanes were designed for overseas routes but also provided the most luxurious accommodation of the day on transcon non-stops .
However , their competitive advantage was short-lived . Within two years , Boeing 707s cut travel time in half and piston-powered airliners quickly became obsolete .
EPILOGUE
After more than three decades controlling TWA , Howard Hughes was forced to relinquish his voting rights to 78 % of the airline ’ s stock , turning the power over to a threeman trusteeship on December 31 , 1960 . The change provided muchneeded financing for the purchase of jets , which , in turn , spelled the gradual disposal of TWA ’ s propliners , including the world ’ s largest Constellation fleet .
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