Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
July 3, 2014 A new transportation record for India was set when a WAP-5 electric locomotive hauled a passenger train from the urban district and nation’s capital city of New Delhi to the city of Agra within 90 minutes and at a speed of 100 miles (160 kilometers) per hour. (The distance between those locations... Continue Reading →
June 27, 1998 In Malaysia, a record-setting airport was officially opened about 28 miles (45 kilometers) south of the central part of the capital city of Kuala Lumpur. The Saturday night inaugural festivities for Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), which is specifically located in the Malaysian state of Selangor, took place five years after the... Continue Reading →
April 4, 2016 In Indonesia, Merah-Putih Bridge was dedicated in the province of Maluku less than five years after construction on it had begun. Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo formally opened the red-and-white bridge, which spans Ambon Bay in Maluku’s capital city of Ambon. Other public officials attending this ceremony included Basuki Hadimuljono, Indonesia’s minister... Continue Reading →
January 10, 1987 A major transportation milestone for India was achieved when the nation’s first crew to sail around the world completed their ambitious journey, returning to Bombay (now known as Mumbai) 470 days after leaving from there. All 10 of the crew members were from the Indian Army Corps of Engineers. The vessel they... Continue Reading →
November 8, 2008 Construction began on a new and record-setting dual carriageway (divided highway) toll bridge in the Malaysian state of Penang. The Sultan Abdul Halim Muadzam Shah Bridge was formally designated Expressway 28 (E28) and is also known as the Penang Second Bridge. The building of this bridge was originally expected to be done... Continue Reading →
October 1, 1979 Hong Kong’s Mass Transit Railway (MTR) made its debut with the opening of the first five miles (8.1 kilometers) of the Kwun Tong Line. “As champagne corks popped and a Chinese dragon danced for luck,” reported the Associated Press later that week, “Hong Kong christened its new subway system on Sunday and sent... Continue Reading →
September 26, 1944 With the United States still fighting the Axis powers during World War II, the U.S. Navy cargo ship USS Beltrami was launched. Beltrami, which had been named after a county in northwestern Minnesota, was built by the Kaiser Shipbuilding Company at its shipyards in Richmond, California. The launch of Beltrami at Richmond... Continue Reading →
September 24, 1946 Cathay Pacific Airways was officially established in Hong Kong. The airline’s founders were Roy C. Farrell of the United States and Sydney H. de Kantzow of Australia. Both of these men had served in the military during World War II and were among the pilots who regularly flew over “The Hump,” a vital Allied... Continue Reading →
June 26, 1967 Civil engineer John G. Claybourn, who made significant contributions to river and harbor improvement projects in a number of countries, died Ann Arbor, Michigan, at the age of 81. He had been born in Albert Lea, Minnesota, in 1886. His uncle Ephraim S. Claybourn was an engineer who played a prominent role... Continue Reading →
A group consisting of seven officers and 13 sailors from the Bangladesh Navy began training on board a vessel that had recently been obtained by that military branch. The vessel was USCGC Jarvis, which had been commissioned by the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) in 1972. During her years of service as a USCG cutter, the... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 