HISTORY GUEST Braniff
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a flight school operating as an International Aviation Travel Academy , which stayed in business until 2007 — long past the namesake airline ’ s demise .
Under the category of ‘ when one door closes , another opens ’, Cass ’ s father purchased the Braniff brand , copyrights , intellectual property , remaining physical assets , and archives during the Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization of 1983-84 , 1985 and 1989 . Ben received the ultimate airline geek gift from his dad .
“ It didn ’ t cost a lot of money . He did buy that for me , and said , ‘ Maybe you can do something with it one day that ’ s obviously going to have some historical value ’. At the time , I really didn ’ t think a lot of that other than wanting to just look at the stuff and read it as just a 15-yearold kid .” The elder Cass clearly had the foresight , and his son brought the passion and drive .
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15 Braniff ’ s Douglas DC-7C El Dorado , depicted in this unique model , features operating engines and position lighting . The model was found at Floyd Bennett Field Museum and was returned to the company in 2015 . Pacmin , Braniff ’ s model maker since 1952 , fully restored the DC-7C in 2019 . // CHRIS SLOAN
16 Unique Braniff banners designed for the recent Airliners International Collectibles Show at DFW airport in April 2024 . The banners feature the three key Braniff eras from 1965 to 1982 . // CHRIS SLOAN
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