This Week in Business Travel History – 15 January 2012

In 1493, one of the first transatlantic business trips came to an end.  Columbus set upon his return trip to Spain, after crossing the Atlantic westward in 1492.

In 1942, Winston Churchill became the first British prime minister to take a transatlantic flight.  Churchill flew in a BOAC Boeing 314 flying boat from Bermuda to Plymouth.

On January 19, 1937, Howard Hughes set a transcontinental air record.  He flew his custom-built monoplane from Los Angeles to Newark, N.J. in 7 hours, 28 minutes, and 25 seconds.

In 1991, Eastern Air Lines shut down.  The airline stopped flying on January 19 at midnight.

In 2005, Airbus unveiled the A380 superjumbo in Toulouse, France.  The A380 continues to be the largest passenger aircraft in operation.

In 2009, US Airways flight 1549 made history as the first water landing without loss of life.

And if you are in the mood for an in-flight beverage, keep in mind that January 16, 1919 was the first day of Prohibition, as the 18th Amendment to the Constitution, prohibiting the “manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors for beverage purposes,” became the law of the land.  (Prohibition was repeated in 1933.)