15 mind-blowing photos of flying through the decades

15 mind-blowing photos of flying through the decades

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On a temperate May day in 1908, a young, handsome mechanic named Charles W. Furnas climbed into the open-air seat next to pilot Wilbur Wright. Together, the friends catapulted into the skies over North Carolina, flying across Kitty Hawk’s white sand beaches before touching down some 2,000 feet away. The whole trip lasted about 28 seconds and yet marked a crucial first step in aviation—one that would change the course of air travel forever. The seconds-long journey was the first-ever passenger plane ride.

Things have come a long way since. Gone are the days of passengers sitting pilot-side in open-air seats. Depending on what you’re able to dole out for a ticket, flying today can either be a luxurious experience in a first class cabin or a cramped one in the ever-shriking seats of most commercial planes. Take a gander at these images of passenger planes through the decades (click to expand to full size), and ask yourself—do you miss the days of wicker seats?

Black-and-white historical photograph of two men seated in the open cockpit of a biplane seaplane docked at the water’s edge. The man on the left wears a dark cap and a suit with a tie, while the man on the right wears a lighter cap and jacket. Behind them, the aircraft’s large fabric-covered wings are supported by struts and wires. In the background, calm water extends to a distant breakwater and a tugboat.
In 1914, the first scheduled passenger plane service took off from St Petersburg, Florida, and landed some 17 miles away in Tampa. The pilot, Tony Jannus, had little formal training, and only ran the service for four months. Later that same year, Jannus, who was nicknamed “the bird-man,” disguised himself as Santa Claus and parachuted toys out of a plane for delighted children below. Image: Public Domain
Black-and-white interior view of an early passenger airplane cabin. The cabin appears boxy with bare walls. A few passengers are seated on freestanding cane‑backed chairs arranged along the cabin, facing forward. Light filters in through small windows along the fuselage. The airplane’s structural elements—such as ribs and spars—are subtly visible behind the walls, giving a utilitarian feel. Overall, the scene evokes the early days of commercial flight.
Beginning in the 1920s, commercial flights for paying passengers started to become a common mode of transportation, especially amongst the wealthy. The advent of passenger flights is largely due to the development and release of the multi-engine Lawson C-2 airplane that was specifically designed to carry passengers. The above photo shows the freestanding cane-backed chairs used during a Lawson C-2 flight from Milwaukee to New York. Image: Bettmann / Contributor / Getty Images Bettmann
Black‑and‑white photograph of a group of early 20th‑century air passengers gathered on an airfield, standing in front of a large biplane. The men and women—dressed in period-appropriate coats, hats, and scarves—pose or move casually near the aircraft’s fuselage and engine.
A group of passengers pose in front of a Lawson C-2 aircraft. Second from the far right is Alfred Lawson, a former professional baseball player and aviation pioneer who founded the Lawson Aircraft Company that went on to develop the revolutionary Lawson C-2 aircraft. Image: George Rinhart / Contributor / Getty Images George Rinhart
Black‑and‑white photograph of a middle-aged woman, Ellen E. Church, standing in the doorway of a United plane in her flight attendant uniform.
 In 1930, an Iowa nurse named Ellen Church convinced Steve Stimpson at Boeing Air Transport that nurses should travel on passenger planes. Stimpson was convinced and that same year hired Church on as the world’s first-ever flight attendant. Church would go on to develop a unique training program for future flight attendants. Image: Bettmann / Contributor / Getty Images Bettmann
A black-and-white photograph showing a group of airline passengers beside the open door of a LOT Polish Airlines aircraft on the tarmac at Lydda (now Lod) Airport in Israel. A mix of men and women, dressed in period-appropriate attire—coats, hats, and long dresses—are stepping down the aircraft’s boarding stairs onto the airfield.
In 1935, the propeller-driven Douglas DC-3 plane revolutionized air travel. Carrying 32 passengers at 500 mph at top speeds, it was both larger and faster than earlier aircrafts. Here passengers disembark from a Douglas DC-3 in Israel. Image: Public Domain / Library of Congress / LC-DIG-matpc-22394
Black-and-white photograph of the passenger cabin aboard an Imperial Airways Handley Page HP42E 'Heracles' airliner, circa 1935. The cabin exudes a Pullman-style elegance, featuring plush upholstered seats with floral fabric arranged in rows along a central aisle. Inlaid wood decorates the walls. Wide windows line the walls, allowing light to softly illuminate the interior, giving a sense of early luxury in air travel.
In 1935, this luxurious interior met passengers who climbed aboard a four-engine British biplane on flights between London and Paris. Built for Imperial Airways, the Handley Page H.P.42 Heracles airliner was a state-of-the-art aircraft for its time and could carry up to 38 passengers. Image: Hulton Archive / Stringer / Getty Images Hulton Archive
A black and white image shows the interior of a vintage airplane. Seated closest to the camera, a young female passenger in a hat reads a book. Behind her another woman in a hat reads.
Following the end of World War II, Boeing (which was founded in 1916) introduced the first-ever aircraft with a pressurized cabin in 1938: The Boeing 307 Stratoliner. No longer did flying have to be a cold, uncomfortable experience. Now passengers could fly at a pleasant temperature and not have to worry about low levels of oxygen on board. Here passengers relax aboard a Pan Am Stratoliner. Image: Public Domain
A black-and-white interior photograph of an onboard plane bar fitted with a curved service counter surrounded by three stools. Plush chairs are arranged nearby, although largely out of frame.
Film producer, business tycoon, and Trans World Airlines (TWA) owner Howard Hughes supped up his own Boeing 307 Stratoliner with a kitchen, sleeping quarters, powder room, and even a fully equipped bar. The plane was reportedly called the flying penthouse. Image: Bettmann / Contributor / Getty Images Bettmann
Black-and-white photo of a mid-20th-century commercial airplane cabin, likely a Douglas DC-6, featuring a sleeping compartment. On the left, three women dressed in tailored suits sit and chat in upholstered seats; one holds a magazine. In the center, another woman smiles while seated on the edge of a lower bunk bed, adjusting her shoe. On the right, a flight attendant in a uniform and cap demonstrates the upper berth, lifting the bedding. Curtains frame the bunks, and the space exudes the elegance and comfort of postwar luxury air travel in the 1940s or 1950s.
A flight attendant aboard a McDonnell Douglas DC-6 aircraft helps passengers settle into their cabin. The image, which features the aircraft’s sleeping compartments, was taken sometime between 1945 and 1955. Image: Bettmann / Contributor / Getty Images Bettmann
Black-and-white photo of a stylish mid-century airplane lounge aboard a Pan American World Airways (PAA) flight, circa 1958. A smiling flight attendant in a tailored uniform pours drinks from a metal pitcher onto a tray table stocked with ice, glassware, and snacks. In the background, well-dressed passengers—two women and a man in a suit and bow tie—chat on a curved couch in front of a decorative panel featuring whimsical hot air balloons. Another attendant serves a tray to a man in the rear. The setting exudes the glamour and social atmosphere of luxury air travel during the golden age of commercial aviation.
With the 1950s came the advent of the jet engine, further transforming air travel. At the time, Pan Am was at the forefront of luxury travel, offering passengers gourmet meals, spacious lounges, and attentive service. Image: Pictorial Parade / Staff / Getty Images Pictorial Parade
The interior of a crowded airplane with passengers seated closely together. On both sides, flight attendants are pouring drinks for the passengers. Some passengers are smoking, and a small TV monitor has descended from the ceiling, showing a movie that the passengers are watching. The overall atmosphere is lively and nostalgic, reflecting a bygone era of air travel.
For decades, passengers were able to enjoy a smoke on planes. Beginning as early as 1969, consumer advocates, such as Ralph Nader, started demanding smoking bans on flights. But it wasn’t until 1994 that Delta became the first U.S. airline to ban smoking on all domestic and international flights. It then took another six years until every single U.S. airline banned smoking on their flights. Image: ullstein bild / Contributor / Getty Images ullstein bild
A smiling middle-aged man, identified as airline pioneer Freddy Laker, stands in an empty airplane cabin with closely spaced seats. Slightly balding, he gazes toward the camera, embodying the no-frills, accessible air travel he helped popularize. The sparse cabin layout highlights the utilitarian design of early budget airlines. The airplane seats have a splotchy pattern.
In 1966, English entrepreneur Freddie Laker founded one of the first budget airlines offering low cost, no frills flights. Laker Airways saved money by cutting free meals, adding seats, and scrapping other inflight services. Although Laker Airways went bankrupt in the 1980s recession, the budget airline model continues to flourish today. Image: John Williams / Stringer / Getty Images John Williams
A tray of luxurious in-flight food aboard the Concorde. The meal includes lobster, asparagus, a hard-boiled egg, a dinner roll, a small Caesar salad, salt and pepper shakers, two empty cups, and a rolled napkin. Behind the tray, the narrow cabin of the Concorde is visible, with passengers seated two-by-two on either side of the aisle. All the passengers appear to be men, dressed in business attire. Closest to the tray is a man in a blue shirt and tie, seated and looking forward. The image evokes the exclusivity and refinement of supersonic air travel.
In September 1973, the Concorde, the world’s first supersonic commercial passenger airplane, flew from Washington D.C. to Paris in only three hours and 33 minutes. For the next 27 years, numerous airlines, such as British Airways and Air France, offered express international flights aboard Concorde aircrafts. Sometimes passengers even dined on lobster aboard the luxury aircraft. Image: Jim Sugar / Contributor / Getty Images Jim Sugar
View from the back of an airplane cabin showing the backs of passengers’ heads as they sit quietly in their seats, facing forward and waiting for takeoff. The aisle runs down the center-left of the image, flanked by overhead luggage bins. Seatback monitors are visible. At the front of the cabin, an illuminated exit sign and bathroom sign can be seen. The scene captures a typical pre-flight moment inside a commercial aircraft.
The Dutch airline Airvision was the first to introduce seatback screens in 1988. Airvision’s tiny monitor measured less than three inches wide. Since then, seatback screens have become an almost ubiquitous part of flight travel, offering on-demand entertainment and even live TV from the skies. Image: (c) by Cristóbal Alvarado Minic / Getty Images (c) by Cristóbal Alvarado Minic
A semicircular bar area inside an Emirates airplane cabin, featuring a variety of snacks such as breadsticks, sandwiches, and other bite-sized foods arranged on the counter. Surrounding the bar is curved seating. Behind the bar, shelves hold glasses and bottles of alcohol, creating a sleek and inviting onboard lounge space.
Depending on how much you’re willing to dole out for a ticket, flying today can come with a range of experiences. If you’re willing to pay some $12,000 for a roundtrip ticket from New York to Dubai, Emirates offers full lie-down seats, a lounge (shown here), showers, and state of the art entertainment for first class passengers. On the other end of the spectrum, budget airlines, like Ryanair, are everywhere today, and savvy fliers can nab cheap international tickets for less than the cost of a sandwich. Image: NurPhoto / Contributor / Getty Images Nicolas Economou

 

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Sarah Durn is an associate editor at Popular Science, where she oversees the Ask Us Anything column and contributes to the magazine’s science and history coverage. She is the bestselling author of The Beginner’s Guide to Alchemy, published by Rockridge Press in May 2020, and her work has appeared in The New York Times, National Geographic, Smithsonian, WIRED, among others. Previously, Sarah worked on staff as a writer and editor at Atlas Obscura.

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