In Contrast to 1959

Its enlightening to contrast 1959 with today. The civilian jet era had barely begun, and the skies were still ruled by DC-7s, Connies and Stratocruisers, with Convairs and DC-3s for the short hops. Airline fares were tightly regulated and four-engine airliners stopped at a surprising number of out-of-the-way places. Yet a large majority of Americans had never flown in any kind of airplane.

Key Takeaways:

• In 1959, commercial aviation was primarily propeller-driven with regulated fares and most Americans had never flown, while general aviation featured different aircraft and planes were significantly more affordable relative to average wages.
• General aviation safety has seen substantial improvement, with the fatal accident rate dropping from 3.50/100,000 flight hours in 1959 to 1.05 in 2013.
• Early aviation regulation, under the newly formed FAA (then Federal Aviation Agency), initially focused on compliance as a proxy for safety, with modern risk management and extensive safety education programs for GA developing much later.

Key takeaways sponsored by Aviator Pro | Start Your Training ->

See a mistake? Contact us.