Pan Am Boeing 747-212B Departing LAX 

Not sure what " Say what you will" means because Pan Am was THE Aviation Pioneer They were the inventors of First Class, Business (Clipper Class) and Economy Class lowering airfares so the average citizen could afford to fly. Their International Service was award winning, Pan Am was the leader in innovation in aviation, which all other airlines in the world just copyed. But Unions prevented them from cutting costs to adapting to the marketplace. If they were to have just held on a little longer, they would still be here. That company has CLASS and dignity and it was the American Brand.

@@AA-flyguy Oh sure, blame the unions. 🙄

Michael Douthitt I agree Michael, she still would be operating today had it not been for that horrific crash over Scotland. I always felt that had the American SST been fully developed, Pan Am would been the main buyer. But, she still could have bought into the technology with the British/French collaboration.

Rodney Morgan Brown Pan-Am’s troubles began years before Lockerbie. It may have been the final nail in the coffin but not the single event that took it out of the sky. It took years for Pan-Am to recover from the 70’s gas shortage because they owned so many fuel hungry first generation Boeing 747’s. Once they started getting a grip on that deregulation and the inflated purchase price of National Airlines pushed them over the edge. To remain competitive they had to cut back on things. Selling profitable routes and cutting back on security just to name a few. I flew Pan-Am 1 month before Flight 103 and noticed that Pan-Am of old was no longer the Pan-Am of today. Everything was dirty and worn out. I was only 8 years old when I flew in 88 but even at a young age the plane just seemed worn out and uncared for. So unfortunately Pan-Am 103 only sped up the process of her demise but it was coming regardless it was just a matter of time.

The 1970s oil crisis started the end not Lockerbie. Pan Am had all of these first generation 747s that weren’t exactly fuel efficient and no domestic route system to offset the costs so Pan Am never returned to pre oil crisis profits. That would be rear its ugly head when Lockerbie happened. They had mega insurance to cover lawsuits and their property damage so the Lockerbie crash was bad but that wasn’t the straw that broke the camels back. When 103 crashed it hurt PA in respect to public trust. The NTSB basically blamed the airline for the extremely lax security which in turn resulted in the bomb being placed on the Maid of the Seas 747. Had PA not been in such a financial mess before the bombing they should’ve been able to recoup the losses and bad publicity and grow into a better more safe airline but PA had a bunch of bad luck way before Lockerbie. The massive decrease in air travel during the first Persian Gulf War was the final straw because air travel was way down everywhere but PA had placed all of its eggs in one basket and only flew international routes. Then, in order to get those desperately needed domestic routes they bought the way overpriced National Airlines. Pan Am just made really bad business decisions and NOBODY after Juan Trippe made any bold or good decisions. I totally agree with you that Lockerbie was two black eyes for Pan Am but the beginning of the end happened almost 2 decades before and War and Delta wanting to stop dumping more money into them and the PG war was the straw that broke the camels back. I only flew them one time in 1989 when I was 8 but I remember the 747 was dirty inside and out. The PA Clipper Class lounge was the same way. They use to offer practically a 5 course meal in their lounges with filet, prime rib, lamb, salmon and everything in between. When I arrived at the lounge with my folks they only had sodas, Budweiser and Taylor wine. I mean even at a young age I knew Pan Am had a reputation for pampering its first class passengers......but by the time I flew with them those days had come and gone. Looking back I remember just how iconic of a brand they were so it was a shock to the public when PA was no longer around but I think people expected it. Everyone but Pan-Am employees...........Because Pan-Am employees all thought they were a close family business they thought surely the higher ups would let them know if they were getting ready to close their doors forever. That didn’t happen so those employees really were caught off guard but it’s their fault for not being able to read the writing on the wall. Pan-Am had been in trouble for years. Just think about all of those employees who had worked their entire lives for them and retired with them at the mandatory age with the hopes of having their medical benefits and being able to live off their retirement..........ALL OF THAT DISAPPEARED OVERNIGHT!! Most had to go back into the workforce at an old age but the ones who had retired when the FAA forced them to were SOL. Flying was all they knew and were too old to do it. My next door neighbor was a retired Pan-Am pilot who had just retired in 1989. He lost everything ; no benefits or retirement and ended up committing suicide in hopes of being able to still provide for his family with his life insurance policy. We personally knew them and their kids. The death benefits did help them but the family was absolutely devastated. And that was only one story out of a thousands!! Looking back, they were THE last unofficial flag carrier and there hasn’t been an airline quite like Pan Am since and probably never will be again......hopefully!!

@@apieceofdirt4681 Very touching and detailed testimony on what really happened. I don't doubt you since i have heard similar stories before else where about what really killed Pan Am and what Pan Am's service was actually like before it closed its doors on December 4th, 1991. Pan Am was struggling financially before Flight 103 was bombed and they were helpless to recover at that point. I don't think management at that time knew that they were going to close for good since they felt that Delta was going to invest more money to keep them afloat. I really hoped that other airlines learn from this especially now in the COViD19 environment.

The end: (1) the Energy Crisis / Oil Shortage of the early 1970s, (2) the purchase of National Airlines in 1980, (3) Lockerbie in 1988, and (4) the depressed travel market as a result of the Gulf War in 1991.

@Steve H Aloha and Mahalo to you too.🤙

how old are u now?

Business -C- class on Pan Am in a 747, if be like, yep that's right, big pimping coming thru... LOL..

J Roberts It was great and it didn't cost me a cent. I had it much better than that guy in, Catch Me If You Can.

What kind of work were you doing ?? That would be so cool... :)

J Roberts I'll let you know when my book comes out! It wasn't anything illegal but something I invented.

This is not the video I first made a comment to about the 707.

How cool is that? Beautiful aircraft.

RyanBomar well it’s no longer in PanAm livery but still looks pretty good. I believe this aircraft worked its way to retirement through at least three more airlines. Started as Singapore airlines prior to PanAm. Here’s link to what it looks like now. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-wlZYWn29I08.html

many many factors. remember, there are no 2 same take offs.

is Pan Am not pan nam

Most of the major cities in Asia and Latin America.

Actually, at one point they covered the entire world with the 747 and 747SP (and even JFK to LAX or SFO had 747 service). Many people do not understand this, but every day Pan Am had two flights [001 and 002] that went around the world (starting in the 1940's) and met up on the other side in Delhi I believe. The route went: Honolulu, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Delhi, Beirut, Istanbul, Frankfurt, London and finally New York. So to fly a 747 from JFK to SFO, it was then going to continue on around the world, again. One left JFK, the other SFO. They would meet in When Pan Am went out of business in the early 90's, they had 42 or 45 747's. Keep in mind a handful went to United when they sold the Pacific routes to them.

if they ordered the 747-8 tho if they still existed so dont start a war in the replies

WannaplaythisDavid ha-ha you make no sense...

Yes.

They were bought by united

NOT RETIRED ITS BANKRUPT. COMPANIES CAN ACTUALLY GO ON FOR OVER 180 YEARS OR MORE

Damn can't believe I left this comment 7 years ago. I think I was 9 when I posted this? Anyways, Pan-Am was a horrible airline.

@@FireKeep just bc it went bankrupt doesn't mean its horrible

Agreed. That was just another bad and desperate move by PAA management...it was to serve as free advertisement; people on the ground could read it when the plane was in the air, but in airports...UGLY.

NextUp get a life liser, just another jerk off wannabe, still on the outs, lmnfao

NextUp

NextUp Wow you hate Pan Am in 1990 just because of its livery and one disaster that is already solved?

It’s not ugly wtf are you talking about?