Catalog - Boeing 314 "Yankee Clipper", Pan American Airlines

Length: 14 1/8"
Wingspan: 19 5/8"
Scale: 1/90
Includes desk stand.
The Boeing 314 (known also as the Clipper or Super Clipper, after the name given by Pan American World Airways) was a long-range flying boat produced by the Boeing Airplane Company between 1938 and 1941 and is comparable to the British Short S.26. One of the largest aircraft of the time, it used the massive wing of BoeingÕs earlier XB-15 bomber prototype to achieve the range necessary for flights across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Twelve Clippers were built for Pan Am, three of which were sold to BOAC in 1941 before delivery.

The 314 was a response to Pan American's request for a flying boat with unprecedented range capability that could augment the airline's trans-Pacific Martin M-130. Boeing's bid was successful and on July 21, 1936, Pan American signed a contract for six. Boeing engineers adapted the cancelled XB-15's 149 foot (45.5 m) wing, and replaced the original 850 hp (640 kW) Pratt & Whitney Twin Wasp radial engines with the more powerful 1,600 hp (1,194 kW) Wright Twin Cyclone. The first flight was carried out with a single, conventional tail before experiments with twin tail and triple tail configurations led to Boeing settling on the triple tail to provide more rudder area for controllability. Pan Am ordered an additional six aircraft with increased engine power and a larger carrying capacity of 77 daytime passengers as the Boeing 314A. The first prototype of the series flew on March 20, 1941.
Internally, the 314 used a series of heavy ribs and spars to create a robust fuselage and cantilevered wing. This sturdy structure negated the need for external drag-inducing struts to brace the wings, something other flying boats of the day could not boast. Boeing addressed the flying boats' other drag-inducing issue, stabilizing pontoons, by incorporating Dornier-style sponsons into the hull structure. The sponsons, which were broad lateral extensions placed at the water line, on both the port and starboard sides of the hull, served several purposes: they provided a wide platform to stabilize the craft while floating on water, they acted as an entryway for passengers boarding the flying boat and they were shaped to contribute additional lift in flight. With weight an extremely sensitive concern, passengers and their baggage were weighed, with each passenger allowed up to 77 lb free baggage allowance (in the later 314 series) but then charged $3.25 per lb for exceeding the limit. To fly the long ranges needed for trans-Pacific service, the 314 carried 4,246 US gallons (16,100 L) of gasoline. The later 314A model carried a further 1,200 US gallons (4,540 L). To quench the radial enginesÕ thirst for oil, a capacity of 300 US gallons (1,135 L) was required.
Pan Am's "Clippers" were built for "one-class" luxury air travel, a necessity given the long duration of transoceanic flights. The seats could be converted into 36 bunks for overnight accommodation; with a cruise speed of only 188 mph (300 km/h) (typically flights at maximum gross weight were carried out at 155 mph), many flights lasted over 12 hours. The 314s had a lounge and dining area, and the galleys were crewed by chefs from four-star hotels. Men and women were provided with separate dressing rooms, and white-coated stewards served five and six-course meals with gleaming silver service. Although the transatlantic flights were only operated for three months in 1939, their standard of luxury has not been matched by heavier-than-air transport since then; they were a form of travel for the super-rich, at $675 return from New York to Southampton, comparable to a round trip aboard Concorde in 2006. Most of the flights were transpacific with a one-way ticket from San Francisco, via to Hong Kong, via the "stepping-stone" islands posted at $760 (or $1,368 round-trip).
Equally critical to the 314's success was the proficiency of its Pan Am flight crews, who were extremely skilled at long-distance, over-water flight operations and navigation. For training, many of the transpacific flights carried a second crew. Only the very best and most experienced flight crews were assigned Boeing 314 flying boat duty. Before coming aboard, all Pan Am captains as well as first and second officers had thousands of hours of flight time in other seaplanes and flying boats. Rigorous training in dead reckoning, timed turns, judging drift from sea current, astral navigation, and radio navigation were conducted. In conditions of poor or no visibility, pilots sometimes made successful landings at fogged-in harbors by landing out to sea, then taxiing the Clipper into port.

Here are other models you may also like:
	Boeing 314 "Dixie Clipper", Pan American Airlines Price: $178.00 AM582-BR
	Martin M-130 "China Clipper" Pan American Airlines Price: $178.00 AM582-CR
	Sikorsky S-42 Flying Boat, Pan American Airlines Price: $178.00 AM581-AR
	Mini Martin M-130 China Clipper Price: $72.00 SM582-CR
	Boeing 737-200, Pan American Airlines Price: $158.00 AM468-FR

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