Flight 1

“Travel makes one modest. You see what a tiny place you occupy in the world.”
Gustave Flaubert - French novelist

My Early Days, and Early Enthusiasm, for Jet Travel

I share how my boyhood wonder with flying has never lessened over the decades.

I have always loved the sense of adventure and freedom that comes with boarding a plane and flying off to some, not necessarily exotic, location on the other side of the world. And one of the most remarkable aspects of having spent forty-eight years in the maritime industry has been the opportunity to travel the world and to witness dramatic changes in flight over that period. From the planes themselves to the seats and their configurations, to flight-based audio and video entertainment systems, to aircraft food and airport lounges, and, of course, airplane tickets, all have changed dramatically—and almost all for the better!

My first trip aboard an airplane was in 1958, at the age of five. Together with my parents and my three-year-old brother, we flew from Montreal to Quebec City on board a Trans-Canada Air Lines (the precursor to today’s Air Canada) Viscount—the first turboprop-powered airliner. The aircraft was built by Vickers in Britain and had four Rolls-Royce jet engines. In the early 1950s, piston-driven airliners dominated civil aviation, but they were noisy and the pistons caused significant vibrations. The turboprop was a revolutionary step forward because it is a jet turbine whose engines power the propellers and drive the aircraft. The major benefits of a jet-powered engine over a piston engine were fuel economy and virtually no vibration, which made pouring drinks on board so much easier.

The airlines used the Viscount for range, speed, economy, and four-engine reliability to fly less-traveled routes. The passenger comfort benefitted from a pressurized cabin. Instead of flying through weather at 10,000 feet to 13,000 feet, the aircraft was able to fly above weather at about 200 mph, with windows much larger than those most of us experience today on modern commercial jet aircraft. There were nine windows on either side of the aircraft and forty-eight seats—two seats on the port side and three on the starboard side.

I was introduced to the Jet Age in August 1958 at the embryonic stage of jet aircraft. I returned to Montreal by air with my parents from England after a five-week trip that included, on the way over, a seven-day Atlantic crossing by sea. I recall vividly the excitement of arriving at London Airport for the flight home. To a young boy, the terminal seemed immense, and there was a mad crush of people. It seemed so noisy and yet thrilling. London Airport was always unofficially known as Heathrow because of its location—the village of Heath Row was demolished to make way for the construction of the airport. It was not until the 1970s that the name was officially changed to Heathrow.

The four of us were scheduled to return to Montreal on one of Trans- Canada Air Lines’ Lockheed Super Constellations, known affectionately within the industry as the “Connie.” The Super Constellation was a four-engine propeller-driven aircraft, and it was instantly recognizable because of its triple-tail design. As we were checking in and having our luggage weighed, I recall a commotion between my parents and the check-in attendant. The flight was oversold, not that I knew what this meant at the mature age of five years. Back then, there were no computer terminals at the counters, so how airlines kept track of the loads in those days is a mystery to me. The Trans-Canada attendant explained that two individuals in our party would be able to board the plane, but that two of us would have to fly back to Montreal via New York. My mother was not at all happy, but given the situation, there were no alternatives. In those days the number of aircraft traveling across the Atlantic was probably no more than 1/100th the number that today make the same trip every day.

My younger brother stayed with my mother, and once they had checked in, we said our goodbyes and off I went with Dad to the check-in counter for Pan American Airways, otherwise known as Pan Am, for our flight to New York. Once we boarded, I recall looking out the window from our economy seats and asking my father why there were no propellers on the wings. He explained the plane had jet engines and told me we were flying one of the first Boeing 707 jet airliners, not the first commercial jet airliner, but the one widely credited as the plane that ushered in the Jet Age. 

In addition to jet engines, a new and significant difference between the Boeing 707 and all other propeller-manufactured aircraft were the swept-back wings on the 707. All swept-winged aircraft tend to migrate into something called a Dutch roll. This is a flying characteristic that manifests itself with the plane’s wings rolling up and down, while at the same time the plane is yawing. “Yawing” means the direction the nose of the plane is heading moves to the left or the right of its direction of motion.

Truly, the combined motions do leave one thinking that the pilots are not in control of the plane! Many pilots who flew the first swept-back–winged jet aircraft had no experience with this phenomenon because they were transitioning from straight-winged propeller-driven aircraft, such as the Lockheed Constellation. About an hour out of New York, we experienced a Dutch roll on our Pan Am flight. As a young boy, I was left terrified. I thought we were going to fall out of the sky! (I have to admit, though, that as a young boy, I was also somewhat exhilarated.) Luckily, I had youth on my side, and this would be just the first of many airplane trips and unexpected adventures around the globe.