Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
February 7, 1996 British Airways (BA) supersonic airliner Concorde G-BOAD took only two hours, 52 minutes, and 59 seconds to fly between the United States and England. “British Concorde Sets Atlantic Speed Mark,” announced a headline in the Tampa Bay Times a couple of days later. This trip continues to hold the record as the... Continue Reading →
February 6, 2006 A luxury sailing yacht built by the Italian company Perini Navi in Turkey was launched. This yacht is known as the Maltese Falcon, the title of a classic 1930 detective novel written by Dashiell Hammett. The eponymous bird figuring prominently in that novel and four film adaptations of it (including a 1941 version... Continue Reading →
February 3, 1862 The first railway line in New Zealand was opened with considerable fanfare. (At the time, New Zealand was a British colony; it gained semi-independent status as a dominion of the British Empire in 1907 and achieved full autonomy in 1947.) Horse-drawn train cars were used for this 13.4-mile (21.5-kilometer)-long privately owned and... Continue Reading →
February 2, 1954 A major milestone for Japan Air Lines took place with the nighttime departure of its Douglas DC-6B plane known as City of Tokyo from Tokyo International Airport, also known as Haneda Airport, for a pioneering flight to Oakland Airport (renamed Oakland International Airport a few years later) in California. Japan Air Lines... Continue Reading →
During his long engineering career, Archibald Alphonso “Archie” Alexander achieved widespread acclaim for the bridges and other transportation infrastructure that he helped create across the United States. Alexander was born on May 14, 1888, in Ottumwa, Iowa. He was the oldest of the nine children of Price and Mary Alexander, and they were all part... Continue Reading →
January 31, 1862 A railway bridge was inaugurated in an area of western England that is now entirely within the county of Worcestershire. This bridge, which went into regular service the day after it was it was officially opened, crosses the River Severn between the village of Upper Arley (part of the county of Staffordshire... Continue Reading →
January 30, 2009 The Santo Domingo Metro, a rapid transit system operating in the metropolitan area of the capital of the Dominican Republic, was officially opened for commercial service for the public. (Along being capital of the Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo is that country’s largest city; in addition, the metropolitan area bearing this city’s name... Continue Reading →
January 27, 1989 Aviation pioneer Thomas Sopwith died at his mansion near the city of Winchester in southern England. He was 101. “The Genius of Flight is Dead,” announced a headline in the London-based Evening Standard. Sopwith was born on January 18, 1888, in the Royal Borough of Kensington (now part of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea) in... Continue Reading →
January 26, 1962 The George Mason Memorial Bridge in Washington, D.C., made its debut in the midst of rainy weather. Washington Post reporter Paul Schuette noted that this newest structure to cross the Potomac River and connect the nation’s capital with Arlington, Virginia, “was dedicated under umbrellas” on that Friday afternoon. Schuette also stated, “More... Continue Reading →
January 25, 2011 A sail training ship built for the Indian Navy was launched at the port city of Vasco da Gama on India’s western coast. This ship was commissioned into the Indian Navy just a little over a year later by K.N. Sushil, a vice admiral of the Indian Navy and the flag officer... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 