TWA's Magnificent Men and Those Wonderful Flying Machines

[maldmc2]

Thank you for the TWA story. 

[flyingxk]

you know the video response is for me right?....so many good people out there..,..being the son of a TWA mechanic from the mid 40's to late 50's,..i first flew in 1958 age 3, athens rome athens.....on a super connie

much later becoming a flight engineer myself,...had my basic training in that HQ building back in 1978....thanx TWA ,thank America

[jetproppilot]

My father flew for TWA for 38 years. Started on DC-3s, thru the Connie and 707, culminated his last 10 years flying left seat 747. RIP, Pop.

[twaladybug]

@jetproppilot - your father was a lucky man. He was really part of aviatin history. DC-3, Connie, 707 and the grand dame of them all the 747. What was his last name if I might ask? I flew international mainly the 747 the last 20 years of TWA.

[jetproppilot]

@twaladybug His name was Ed Eaton...retired in 1981

[jetproppilot]

My father flew for TWA for 38 years. Started on DC-3s, thru the 707, culminated his last 10 years flying left seat 747. RIP, Pop.

[RealtorTimo]

I was part of it for 30 years till the bitter end.

[RealtorTimo]

I was part of it for 30 years till the bitter end.

[knowledgecompletion]

Oops, a Delta CV-880 at 2:40. Nevertheless very dramatic.

[Natural86Justice]

Pan Am sucks.

[nedarc]

My Father Glenn J. Craden joined TWA as a salesman in april 1935 & worked under Jack Frye, after the war in 1948 he was promoted to Cairo, Egypt as DSM. Then in 1952 took over LON. both airport and downtown until 1959, when he was transfered to PHL. He died just after his 35th aniversary with TWA. They always put me in 1st class when they saw the 35-1 on my anual pass. I logged over 120k miles on connies alone. God I miss those days !!!

[scorpionsanford]

Dad would have loved it!

[twaladybug]

@scorpionsanford - what a wonderful tribute to your father. I copied all of your story and posted it on a TWA flight attendant bulletin board - I know they will love reading about your father. We all loved TWA. We all miss TWA.

Kaye (Ladybug)

[scorpionsanford]

Before the "Devil from Dallas" took over TWA, dad went to the counter at SDF and took home a bunch of bag tags...Well I bag tagged his casket...the funeral director asked me why I did that....I said..."well if you loose him between here and the cemetery at least we can find him at the baggage claim office" ...he almost passed out laughing....Well thought I would share a story....God bless you all and LETS NEVER FORGET TRANS WORLD AIRLINES!!!!!!

[DeserTBoB93535]

@scorpionsanford TWA was a fabulous airline, a world leader...until that idiot from Texas screwed the whole works up in order to make a little extra profit. If you want to mess anything up, just give it to a Texan...they'll kill it in record time! My wife used to work at Lockheed in Burbank, birthplace of the Connie, in Bldg 304. What a fabulous aircraft Kelly Johnson came up with for Hughes!

[scorpionsanford]

....in addition Dad LOVED the CONNIE....several years ago I saw a globe with a stainless steal Connie on top...got it...My cousin is a florist and made beautiful arrangement around it...saying GONE WEST.

[scorpionsanford]

...I am 40 now but as a kid I have climbed through the cargo hold of a DC9...laughing...Dad passed away this past January. Gave him a great send off.....Copied a 1958(That is the year he started....was great YEAR for me when traveling on a pass) boarding pass I found online....photo shopped it..to look like the old grease pencils that were used....wrote in the following....Flight: 001 Time: 5:20 Destination: GLORY...Gone WEST....Placed the boarding pass in his hands in his casket...

[scorpionsanford]

This is a great dedication to a GREAT airline! I speak as a child of this airline. My dad, Bob Maskalick retired from it. I grew up living it and loving it. The airport was a baby sitter sometimes....laughing...back before all the security of today. I have sat on a tug as it pushed the planes away from SDF. I remember sitting in the Operations area talking to Pilots...there were big green chairs and clocks on the wall telling the different time zones of the world...

[SFConifer]

TWA certainly had the pantheon of American flyers

[yahlen]

What a beautiful tribute to a by-gone era and to our Airline. I would like to embed this on our 2010 TWA Reunion website. Thank you, ladybug!

Mary O'Neill

JFK-I Flight Attendant

[twaladybug]

of course. I really need to revise it - but be please my guest.

[MrJamiedodson]

THX TWA Lady Bug I remember a great airline and you portrayed well - loved yje music! Jamie

[dudamaraba]

muito bom

[mrjeff316]

I like this video

[vargas37]

There still is an L1011 in full TW livery @ IGM.

[twaladybug]

Where???????

[vargas37]

IGM-Kingman,AZ

[twaladybug]

I've seen that plane. A few years ago there were two L1011's. We were looking at them with the idea of making a documentary about TWA's flight 843. One of the planes was in pretty good condition. the man in charge told me that the interior was just like it was the day it arrived - you could almost start boarding.

thanks for the update.

[DennyAlbert]

I always wished I could have been a flight attendant on TWA.

[anitaalan]

Kay,

I love it!

What a journey back in time--through time!

Hugs for the hard work.

Keep 'em flying!

Paula Anita Walling 1960-71

(Anita Alan)

[tuffy2342]

Wonderful video. Really enjoyed the nostalgia. Thanks!!!

[eduardalet]

They should have stuck to the logo of the 1960's , the 700 billion wasted on the banks should have been used to bring back TWA, Eastern and Pan AM. That would generate more jobs and the managers should be the employees.

[flyingxk]

HELLO ladybug, my first flight on a plane was in 1958 TWA connie from athens greece to rome italy.....my father was an employee, ground mechanic at athens, from 1947 till 1960,...i have, never seen pics ,of the connie in athens,...also i have the golden prop with the 10 yrs marked in the center ,for the button hole? that they gave at these times......im.willing to post them shortly

[twaladybug]

I was just working on my documentary about TWA '24 - '49 and writing about the Connie. Trivia - do you know why the Connie had three tail fins instead of the normal one?

[nubbie1944]

So it could fit into the existing hangers at the time.

[varigdc10]

Other planes like the DC6-7 had a single tall stabilizer (fin) Airlines wanted to use existing hangars to maintain the planes. Existing hangars would have to highten doors for entry. So, Lockheed designed the L1049 with lower fins, but for airworthiness they had to compensate with 3 lower ones instead of 1 tall one. Sounds like a joke, but true story !

[GTAstuntman101]

because one is not enough for connie

[ollieproductions1]

wish I could have flown on a TWA plane

[tonightwefly]

Yet another great Trans World Airlines video, I miss Trans World so very much and when my children are older i shall tell them this wonderful story....

[thibaulthalpern]

I've always found the TWA livery very ugly.

[vermontviking]

which one?

[thibaulthalpern]

All of them.

[rhblakeman]

Wow the white and red Constellation at 2:21 brought back the 60's in Chicago with the traffic from Midway over our house back to me. I loved those planes - quiet yet powerful and they looked like they should be flying unlike many of the gigantic heavy jets now.

[Jobafan08]

i only remember being on a twa plane once, when i was 3, lol but i loved every second of it :D, too bad todays airlines suck

[scubawrestler]

TWA is a brand that needs to be brought back.

Remember Royal Ambassador Service?  I do.

[eltfell]

Better not. What would it look like?

A small fleet of 319/320s or 737s, low budget, serving the route St. Louis to Miami.

Better keep the great TWA in good memory.

[mbazell]

That CV880 was a real screamer. That Super "G" was very hi-tech for its time...and very comfy for over the pond trips.

[willyboi708]

Once again, thanks for another magnificent video!!! Bravo!!! TWA's Constellations, and I say TWA's because without Howard Hughes and TWA, the Connie may have never gotten off the ground, were the most beautiful planes to grace the skies. William

[panamcunard]

Thanks to my father having a friend who worked for TWA I got to take a tour of a TWA Boeing 747 in 1997, it was the only time I got to step on a TWA plane.

I like how the music pick up when the 747 photos start showing.

[vargas37]

727,baby!!!

[duckylick]

i love that you end with the L1011 in the sunset!!!

[whizbang47]

Days of "Woodie the Chin" and "Teenie Weenie." A

unique and wonderful experience until it was done in by Icahn. Hiss here.

[bosgrrl]

Great video(s). Keep creating them and sharing them. I miss traveling on TWA.

[crazybobtoo]

This video is just what I needed to perk me up. It is great,albeit, short tribute to the greatest airline in our history. TWA employeees were by far the best and most truly loved the airline.

I literally grew up with TWA. My dad flew for them for 35 years. He had many "firsts" while flying and was one of the first to fly the 747.

Thankfully he left a collection of short stories that I can now make in to a book.

I will dedicate it to all of you, as he surely would have.

God Bless

[Twayred]

As a former TWA F/A it really stirred my heart to see these great pictures. I am a Lockheed Brat so was raised around the Connie - sadly enough I never got to fly them. Great job putting this together. Thx for the memories - ^jj^ ;o))

[jfktw75]

WOW!! as a former FSM based at JFK-1, TWA was the best airline to work for!! I sure miss everyone!! Great work here!!! Thanks for the wonderful memories!!!

Robert JFK FSM 016779

[twastew50]

This is awesome. You are truly talented and devoted. Thanx, Doll.

Pam

[twaladybug]

Me too! Someday I hope to create a documentary about the grand history of TWA, something we can all look back on with the pride we all shared.

[twawasthebest]

Awesome cant say anymore than that except that i miss TWA so much