Pan Am "panair" seaplane tender/service boats

[G_Mendes]

Hello,

I had post this on another forum, bust as this are directly related to wood boats, I thought to post here too.

When the Pan American airways used seaplanes in their flights, there were some boats used to assist the their operations in the bases around the world.

While searching about the Pan Am seaplane operations in the Horta harbour, in Faial island , Azores, I start to be interested by these boats.

From some research, I learned that when possible, Pan Am use local shipyards to build these boats, but also had used some standard designs.

Despite all the web search, I have identified only one boat/boatbuilder. I looked for vintage boats, and compared with the old seaplane images. I find some boats that share the "looks", but not a single "match".

So I thought in sharing some images, and see in anyone knows more information or have an idea of the boat type, and the shipyard/builder. More photos of boats of the same type are welcome to. They were built in 1933-1939 era.

Panair XVI-A (type)
From a 1942 Boat Review,a "Julius Peterson" ad, a 36' boat


From a VanBlerck exaust ad


Unknow:


Pan Am boat at pontoon pier at the Seaplane Base, Noumea (panair XVN?-P)



Other identified boat, Panair XI-P
This was made in the Stephens Bros. shipyard, in California.
Hull nº 634, cruiser, 36 ft, 23 October 1937
(source: http://shipbuildinghistory.com/histo...l/stephens.htm )


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[G_Mendes]

Unknown type:
In New York and Florida seaplane bases (Life photos)




Seems to be this this type (from Sterling engines ad, Back cover of Aug 1944 Yachting), with some diferencies in the stern.


It looks a Chris-Craft cabin cruiser, or a Century deluxe sedan type.

Other unknown, used in Dinner Key, Miami

(source: http://fotolog.terra.com.br/jban:1866)

In Brasil

(source: http://fotolog.terra.com.br/jban:510)

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[G_Mendes]

In Hawaii ( from Hawaii history website)






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[G_Mendes]

In the Horta harbour, Faial Island, Azores (Life photo):





(from a personal souvenir photo - FotoJovial)


In the Lisbon harbour, Portugal. We can see only the cabin roof an sides.


If anyone has more information, could name the builder/shipyard, have more photos of identical boats, I would like to know.

G_Mendes



Sources:
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1562505
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showt...1562505&page=2
http://www.shipmodels.info/mws_forum...?f=52&t=102877
http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/.../bases-24.html
http://www.ptnauticmodel.net/forum/v...hp?f=51&t=5805 (in portuguese)

[skuthorp]

Here are a couple of tender pics for Empire flying boats, slightly off your topic though.

[Ian McColgin]

Great pix. Dad got in on the last days of the flying boat Clippers when he seperated from the USAAC as a Lt Col in 1945 and became one of Pan American's first post WWII hires - no seniority for flying time in the war and as fourth officer he was essentially the door closer - and the guy who had to reach out the little fore hatch with a boat hook to catch the mooring. His trip diaries from those days involved Horta for so very many trips.

Dad had been the sort of officer who took care of his enlisted men, the mechanics who kept his planes up and handled the realities of base operations, and he carried that habit to Pan American, taking a major interest in the station operations everywhere. This was great for me as a child because everywhere Pan American flew there was someone to whom I could turn when I started traveling semi-independently from age 12 on. But by the time I came along Dad was flying the DC6 and the flying boat clippers were gone and Dad had no photos of the tenders, so I can enjoy what you're finding but have no way to contribute

G'luck.

[G_Mendes]

Hello,

Thanks for the reply!

The BOAC photos are new to me!
Ian, I envy your childhood! I love to fly, and your experience when young must have been fantastic!
I hoped that some of the boats were from standard types, and possibly that some still exist today, so maybe someone can identify them better. Maybe I can get some information that allow me to build some models.

Best regards,

G_Mendes

[pcford]

As I understand it, there are no remaining Pan Am Clippers...However, one was intentionally sunk at the beginning of WWII...It is in deep water in the Pacific. But there are plans afoot to raise it...Cannot recall where I heard this. I have vague connections to the area aviation museums...probably heard it from one of those guys.

Thanks for posting!!!

[ron ll]

A good novel featuring the Pan Am Clipper is, "Night Over Water" by Ken Follet.

http://www.amazon.com/Night-Over-Wat.../dp/0451173139

[Ian McColgin]

Ah, a Pan American childhood was golden. Since we represented the company in our small way, we dressed properly - suit or at least coat and tie - and were as quiet, undemanding, and calm as possible. Many of us Pan American kids in the '50s and '60s were in fact very good influences, helping other passengers feel fine about things.

I used to take holiday by going to the airport with Dad sometimes flying with him and sometimes going somewhere else. Family flew "SUBLO" which I once thought meant under the lowest. Actually SUBject to LOad. It meant there was an added risk going someplace really popular as there might not be space, an especially acute issue for getting home. And of course the props - DC6 and DC7 - were more weather dependent. Amazing how much fun can be had for a few days weathered-in at Gander or Reykjavik.

Since I never knew exactly where I was going, I brought just spare shirt, shorts and sox in a small rucksack and if I needed something at my destination - swimsuit or tropical cloths or ski gear - I would rent or buy. The dollar was so strong it was still cheaper than what it cost to feed me at home. It also made for a totally open-minded approach to travel, almost like Dirk Gently’s approach to detecting.

I got to be in Berlin shortly after the wall went up. With all the insouciance of an American preteen I pulled a piece off - the first wall was very high aggregate poor quality junk. Got time in Africa when things looked possible - Kenya not yet corrupt, Senegal groovy. And Beirut - the only city I ever loved - where Christians Jews and Moslems mixed business, philosophy and coffee into the most cosmopolitan life. So much so that I'd tease my French friends if they were from Paris, oh yeah, that city that's the Beirut of Europe.

And better than the US State Department, if I was in trouble with Greek police for having a Kazantzakis novel in my sack, or being grilled by Vopos for taking a bit of paper into East Berlin, someone from Pan American would appear and smooth it all out.

The Sky Gods were cool and being a Sky God Kid was pretty close.

[Andrew Craig-Bennett]

Even better than being a BOAC VYP (Very Young Passenger - unaccompanied small children flying from boarding schools in Britain to join their expatriate parents for school holidays).

Saunders-Roe, who famously built the last flying boats, the Princesses, for BOAC, also built tenders, in aluminium.

[G_Mendes]

Ian, those were indeed the wonderfull days! Today, that kind of simple joy and life is almost impossible! Not to mention freely walking in some places, being an american...
Andrew, that is new to me! I did a rapid search, but didn't find anything related.

However I did find some more images from the Pan Am seaplane tenders, from CriticalPast movie stills, (low resolution), and watermarked. :-)

I will select and crop a few and post them.

G_Mendes

[Dave Hadfield]

I was an Air Canada kid in the 60s and 70s. (A Crown Corporation and proud of it.) I know what you mean, Ian -- a vanished time. Huge fun. Vacations would sometimes start with a look at the Flight Board, and a discussion like: "Well, the Barbados flight is full -- shall we try Bermuda?"

Actually, I'm still an Air Canada kid, although after the current round of "Big-Airlines-Race-To-The-Bottom", it isn't quite the same thing.

I remember what a surprise it was when Pan-Am went downhill. The first batch of Captains I flew with, when I was a sprog FO, were ex-RCAF, and many had friends who had gone to Pan-Am. Initially they were greatly envied, but by the late 70s the writing was on the wall....

I can't add anything to the tender photos, which are fascinating (airplanes and boats, how could it get better?), but they certainly padded the gunwales heavily, didn't they? Those fragile aluminum airplane skins...

Dave

[skuthorp]

Thought you might like these old posters for QANTAS Flying Boats from the past. There are a series of pics on the Lord Howe Island service here. http://members.ozemail.com.au/~telic...g%20boats.html

[G_Mendes]

Thought you might like these old posters for QANTAS Flying Boats from the past. There are a series of pics on the Lord Howe Island service here. http://members.ozemail.com.au/~telic...g%20boats.html

Hello, many thanks for the link!

Some more interesting photos !!!!

G_Mendes