Martin 130 Clipper Pan Am

On November 22, 1935, the Martin M-130 China Clipper opened the first regularly scheduled air mail service across the Pacific, from San Francisco to Manila. Here, it flies over the unfinished Golden Gate Bridge. A year later, the China Clipper began the first trans-Pacific passenger service. Each Clipper flew a total of 60 hours over a six-day span, with stops at Midway and Wake islands, where Pan Am constructed its own hotels and facilities, as well as Guam. Few could afford the $799 one-way fare, so the M-130s usually carried no more than eight passengers, and often less.