The first "Airliners of America" aircraft, and the current AOA flagship, is the classic 1950's airliner, the Martin 404 Skyliner.
The Martin 202/404 was truly the first "modern" airliner. Designed to be a replacement for the Douglas DC-3, the Martin Skyliner was the first post-war airliner design to reach production.
First flown in November of 1946, the Model 2-0-4 gained full airliner certification in August, 1947. A total of 43 Model 202 and 202A's were built.

The Martin 4-0-4 "Skyliner" followed in 1950. Refinements included a longer fuselage, a pressurized and air-conditioned cabin, and more powerful engines. 103 Model 404's were placed into service: 60 - Eastern Airlines; 40 - Trans World Airlines; 2 - U.S. Coast Guard; and 1 - Howard Hughes.

While the passengers enjoyed the spacious cabin, the crews appreciated the pressurized cabin, which allowed higher cruising altitudes. The Skyliner's cruise speeds of 280 m.p.h., nearly 100 m.p.h. faster than the Douglas DC-3, were very popular with airline marketing and sales departments.

Eastern and TWA sold their Martins to the nation's smaller "trunk" carriers, most going to Ozark, Piedmont and Southern Airways. Here, the Skyliner performed admirably, with some airplanes flying sixteen legs a day. The Martin's rugged reliability kept it in service long past its peers, the Douglas DC-6 and DC-7 series and the Convairliners, with not less than sixteen Martin 404's still in scheduled passenger service as late as 1986.

MARTIN 404 SPECIFICATIONS

Wingspan: 93 ft. 3 in.

Length: 74 ft. 7 in.

Height: 28 ft. 5 in.

Wing Area:864 sq. ft.

Empty Wt.:29,129 lbs.

Loaded Wt.:44,900 lbs.

Max. Speed:312 mph @ 14,500 ft.

Cruise Speed: 280 mph @ 18,000 ft.

Climb: 1,905 fpm (initial)

Range: 1,080 miles

Powerplant: 2 - Pratt & Whitney R-2800 CB-16 Double Wasp engines, 2400 hp each.

© Copyright Airliners of America, Inc.,
unless otherwise marked.
All rights reserved.