Transportation Advancements during the 20th Century

Transportation Advancements during the 20th Century

Railways

The Automobile

Air Transportation cont.

-In 1947 the sound barrier broken by U.S. Air Force pilot Captain Charles "Chuck" Yeager.

-Became the fastest man alive when he pilots the Bell X-1 faster than sound for the first time on October 14 over the town of Victorville, California.

-In June 1938, the New York Central introduced new locomotives and Pullman cars.

- Streamliner trains were able to achieve greater speed on the storied New York to Chicago run due to engineering improvements that lightened the steel framework and increased the locomotive power

-First nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic on May 21, 1927 Charles Lindbergh completed the first nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic, traveling 3,600 miles from New York to Paris in a Ryan monoplane named the Spirit of St. Louis.

-In 1939, Russian emigre Igor Sikorsky develops the VS-300 helicopter for the U.S. Army, one of the first practical single rotor helicopters.

-Engineers had begun the innovation of motored vehicles in the late 1700's

-By the mid-1800's steam, combustion, and electric motors had all been tested

-The electric car was the most popular in the 1900's but didn't have enough power to move with much speed or for long distances during that time

-The steam driven car lasted into the 1920's

-American inventors like Ransom E. Olds and Henry Ford built reliable combustion engines that rejected the ideas of steam or electric power

Railways cont.

Air Transportation cont.

Automobiles cont.

Air Transportation

~20th Century Limited

- an express passenger train operated by the New York Central Railroad from 1902 to 1967

- it became known as a "National Institution" and advertised as "The Most Famous Train in the World"

-The NYC inaugurated it as direct competition to the Pennsylvania Railroad

- It was aimed at upper class as well as business travelers between the two cities

- In 1963 the prototype Learjet 23 made its first flight on October 7

- It was powered by two GE CJ610 turbojet engines, 43 feet long, with a wingspan of 35.5 feet, and could carry seven passengers (including two pilots) in a fully pressurized cabin - It became the first small jet aircraft to enter mass production, with more than 100 sold by the end of 1965

-In 1903, Wilbur and Orville Wright completed the first four sustained flights with a powered, controlled airplane. On their best flight of the day, Wilbur covered 852 feet over the ground in 59 seconds.

-In 1905 they introduced the Flyer, the world’s first practical airplane.

- 1918 Airmail service inaugurated

The U. S. Postal Service inaugurated airmail service from Polo Grounds in Washington, D.C., on May 15. On February 22, 1920, the first transcontinental airmail service arrives in New York from San Francisco nearly 3 days faster than mail delivered by train.

-America had automobile plants with assembly line operators

-In 1913 Henry Ford created the first mass assembly line to manufacture automobiles

-The U.S. had approximately 2,000 firms producing one or more cars in the 1900's

-By 1920 the number of firms had decreased to approximately 100, and by 1929 to 44 firms

Railways

Automobiles cont.

The Automobile cont.

Air Transportation cont.

- In 1922 the Duesenberg, made in Indianapolis, Indiana, was the first American car with four-wheel hydraulic brakes, replacing ones that relied on the pressure of the driver’s foot alone

- In 1985 the Lincoln became the first American car to offer an anti lock braking system (ABS), which is made by Teves of Germany

- The Cadillac was the first American car maker to offer automatic stability control, increasing safety in emergency handling situations in 1997

-The first automobile produced for the masses in the U.S. was the three-horsepower, curved-dash Oldsmobile

-425 were sold in 1901, and 5,000 were sold in 1904

-The firm prospered, and it was noted by others, and from 1904 to 1908, 241 automobile manufacturing firms went into business in the United States.

- One of these was the Ford Motor Company which was organized in June 1903.

-Burt Rutan crafted Voyager for flying around the world nonstop on a single load of fuel. The Voyager weighed less than 2,000 pounds (fuel for the flight added another 5,000 pounds).

-It was piloted by Jeana Yeager (no relation to test pilot Chuck Yeager) and Burt’s brother Dick Rutan, who circumnavigated the globe (26,000 miles) nonstop in 9 days in 1986.

- Around 1900, the passenger train achieved levels of dependability, comfort, and speed that passengers would enjoy for the next 50 to 60 years

-Trains became reliable and entire generations of business travelers were encouraged to schedule meetings in distant cities the next day

- The basic amenities of train travel: a comfortable lounge, dining car service, sleeping cars with restrooms and running water, and carpets became part of the train