The Pan Am Podcast

Send us a textIn this episode we explore the life of legendary Hollywood costume designer Edith Head who designed uniforms for Pan American World Airways introduced in 1975 and used until the early 1980s. Then we will be joined by actor Susan Claassen who plays the Hollywood legend in her one-woman production called A CONVERSATION WITH EDITH HEAD. In her storied career in Hollywood, Edith Head won a record eight Academy Awards for Best Costume Design between 1949 and 1973, making her the...

Send us a textIn this episode we celebrate the Archer’s...a family of aviators. 89-year-old Pan Am Captain Stu Archer joined the airline in 1965 as an engineer after serving in the U.S. Air Force. Stu began flying the 727 and then was promoted to captain on the 747 and later Airbus A300 and A310. He stayed with Pan Am until 1991 and then went on to work for Delta Air Lines as a captain. When he reached the then mandatory retirement age of 60 after three years as a Delta captain, he ...

Send us a textThe Pan Am Museum Foundation recognizes the month of May as Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month and in this episode we explore the history of Pan Am’s “Nisei” Stewardesses with Dr. Christine R. Yano, retired professor of anthropology at the University of Hawai’I and author of the book, Airbourne Dreams: “Nisei” Stewardesses and Pan American World Airways.This book is the story of an unusual personnel program implemented by an American corporation ...

Send us a textIn this episode we welcome back to the program Captain Mike Bannister, the chief pilot of British Airways' Concorde fleet from 1995 to 2003.He is also the author of a recently published book titled Concorde. This book is available through your favorite bookstore or online retailer.Also coming out to great fanfare in 2023 was a special Lego set of the Concorde designed to be built by adults. This special detailed replica from Lego of the world’s most famous supersonic commercial ...

Send us a textPan American World Airways acquired National Airlines in 1980 and preserving the history of National is now the responsibility of the Pan Am Museum and we take this duty seriously.In this episode we explore the fascinating history of National Airlines. Then we will be joined by four veterans of National Airlines: Captain Roy Berube and flight attendants Fran Smith Boros, David Hinson, and Mari Bacon. Captain Roy Berube was never a stranger to aviation. His father was an airline ...

Send us a textIn this special episode we will be exploring the incredible life of Pan Am Captain Robert Ford, a trailblazing flying boat aviator that found international fame with an unscheduled flight round the globe. And we welcome back to the program Pan Am 747 Captain John Marshall that knew Pan Am legend Captain Robert Ford and recorded an interview with him in 1994 shortly before he died.Excerpts of this rare interview are played and you will get to hear the actual voice of Captain Ford...

Send us a textThis is a special memorial edition of this program and recognizes the 50th anniversary of the Rome airport attack. We are joined by two survivors that were on a Pan Am plane that was firebombed at the Rome airport on December 17, 1973: Pan Am Flight Engineer Ken Pfrang and Pan Am passenger B.J. Geisler.B.J. is the author of the recently published book, Terror on Pan Am Flight 110. This episode is a follow up to "Episode 6: Hijackings and the Dawn of Global Terrorism." If y...

Send us a textIn this episode we explore Operation Babylift, the historic April 1975 evacuation of more than 3,000 Vietnamese war orphans just before the fall of South Vietnam.We are joined by Thoa Bui, Vice President of Programs and Services for Holt International and Al Topping, Pan Am’s Country Director for South Vietnam.This episode is a follow up to Episode 4: Evacuation of Saigon, Wings of Freedom Mission. If you haven’t heard that installment, we encourage you to do so after listening ...

Send us a textIn this episode we are joined by Nell McShane Wulfhart, author of the book The Great Stewardess Rebellion: How Women Launched a Workplace Revolution at 30,000 Feet.Nell is a frequent contributor to the New York Times travel section and wrote the column “Carry On” from 2016 to 2019. She has written for Travel + Leisure, Bon Appétit, Condé Nast Traveler, The Wall Street Journal Magazine, and T Magazine. She is also the author of the Audible Original Off Menu.Her recent work, The G...

Send us a textIn this episode we are turning the tables…the interviewee becomes the interviewer. Guest host Phillip Keene interviews the host of The Pan Am Podcast, historian Tom Betti to bring our listeners his story. Phillip is a podcast guest in episodes 18, 29, and 30.This program is marking a milestone as this is the 40th episode and the beginning of season three.Tom Betti is dedicated to bringing history to life through entertaining and engaging storytelling. Although having a car...

Send us a textIn this episode we are joined by 98-year-old Madeline Smith and her daughter Valerie Smith O’Grady Skinner. Both were Pan Am flight attendants…Madeline joined the airline right after the war in 1946 and Valerie, following in her mother’s footsteps, joined the company in 1977.Madeline was a stewardess until 1951 when she resigned to marry the love of her life. But although personally leaving Pan Am’s employment, the airline was still an important part of her family as ...

Send us a textIn this episode we are joined by Dan Colussy who served as Pan Am’s President and Chief Operating Officer in the 1970s. Dan will share his experiences of working in the airline industry during a pivotal point in Pan Am history. This interview provides a unique look inside the workings of the executive leadership of the airline in the 1970s. After serving in the U.S. Coast Guard after college, Mr. Colussy began his career in engineering at General Electric and then wen...

Send us a textIn this episode we are joined by 99-year-old Lester Kappel. He worked for Pan Am during World War II beginning in early 1942 until mid 1946. He was stationed for the majority of World War II in Casablanca with the African-Orient division of Pan Am under the Air Transport Command. Lester provides a unique perspective of what it was like to be working for the airline during wartime in support of Allied forces that utilized Pan Am’s vast global network and resources making it ...

Send us a textIn this episode we are joined by legendary journalist Sam Donaldson where we will talking about traveling with Pan Am on assignment, covering presidents as White House correspondent, tracking down a Nazi war criminal, deregulation of the airlines, and everything in between. He is best known for his distinguished 52 year career at ABC News, where he covered stories and conducted investigations of national and international interest. In 1977, he was assigned the coveted Whit...

Send us a textIn this episode we continue to celebrate Black History Month and are joined by veteran Pan Am pilots Captain Perry Jones and Ed Moon.Perry was the first African American to be hired by Pan Am in late 1965 and Ed was the third to be hired in early 1967. The second African American hired by Pan Am was Otis Benjamin Young in 1966. "O.B.," as he was affectionally referred to, was born in 1938 and graduated from Howard University and then served in the United States Air Force. ...

Send us a textIn this episode we celebrate Black History Month and are joined by author Bruce Wolk to explore the inspiring life of sports legend Junius Kellogg and his incredible connection to Pan American World Airways. Junius Kellogg was born on March 16, 1927 in Haverstraw, New York to Lucy Lee Williams and Theodore Kellogg. Young Junius always excelled in the classroom as an outstanding student, but also was an exceptional athlete in every sport he attempted.While in high school, Ju...

Send us a textIn this episode we are joined by Dr. Johanna O’Flaherty.Johanna joined Pan American World Airways in 1970 as a flight attendant, and was later promoted to purser, trainer, and in 1986 was appointed Corporate Manager of Pan Am’s new Employee Assistance Program (also known commonly today as EAP).In this role, Johanna was responsible for the oversight of bio-psycho-social-spiritual aspects of the 1988 Lockerbie disaster.Her new book, a memoir called Flight With Weighted Wings, was ...

Send us a textOn December 11, 2022, Abu Agila Mohammad Mas’ud Kheir Al-Marimi (Mas’ud), the suspected bomb maker in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, was arrested by the U.S. Department of Justice and brought to the United States for prosecution. In this episode we are joined by two distinguished guests, Fred Burton and Mark Zaid, who discuss counterterrorism, the intelligence community, the Lockerbie investigation spanning more than three decades, and the quest for American justic...

Send us a textIn this episode we will be recognizing the 31st anniversary of Pan American World Airways ceasing operations and explore the lead up to and the tumultuous year of 1991 which ended with the shutdown of Pan Am.For the first interview, we are joined by the last CEO and Chairman of Pan Am, Russell L. Ray, Jr., and talk about his unpredictable and short time as the last leader of the airline. Mr. Ray has held senior positions with British Aerospace Inc., McDonnell Douglas, Pacific So...

Send us a textIn this 30th episode of The Pan Am Podcast we will be exploring the Art of Travel posters!We are joined by guests Phillip Keene, a Pan Am veteran flight attendant and collector and Meg Williams of the company Stick No Bills which restores and recreates high quality travel posters in stunning detail with rich and vibrant colors! Their posters range from affordable to exclusive, but all are the highest of quality and color vibrancy. For listeners of The Pan Am Podcast, Stick No Bi...

Send us a textIn this episode we will be discussing the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s and begins with a report from ABC News on the evening of December 17, 1982.Five veteran Pan Am employees (David Hinson, Phillip Keene, Linda Freire, Becky Sprecher, and Linda Reynolds) join us to share their experience during this time period and memories of their friends and co-workers that were lost to this terrible disease. This provides a unique and intimate look at how an American co...

Send us a textIn this episode we are joined by Captain Beau Brant of United Airlines. He started flying for United in 2005 and has flown regional jets, 757s, 767s, and 787s throughout his career. He currently flies the Airbus A320. When he is not in the air, his other passion is music…and today, in addition to being a commercial airline pilot, he is a celebrated classical pianist who loves to play the piano whenever and wherever he can...either in formal settings or playing in hotel and ...

Send us a textThis episode is a continuation of Episode 26 about the hijacking of Pan Am Flight 73. On September 5th 1986, at around 5:10am local time in Karachi, Pakistan, a Boeing 747 named Clipper Empress of the Seas was hijacked by four armed Palestinian commandos on the ground during the boarding process with almost 400 people on the aircraft. In this episode we will presenting interviews with three former Pan Am employees who were part of the aftermath: Viraf Daroga, Pan Am's Count...

Send us a textOn September 5, 1986 at around 5:10am local time in Karachi, Pakistan, a Pan Am Boeing 747 named Clipper Empress of the Seas was hijacked by four armed Palestinian commandos on the ground during the boarding process with almost 400 people on the aircraft. A total of 20 people, including two Pan Am crew members and 18 passengers, were ultimately killed in this act of terrorism.We dedicate this episode to all the 20 victims of this tragedy. They are remembered. Pan...

Send us a textIn this episode we are joined by Barbara Morris Wood and Karen Wallin Usas. Barbara will be celebrating her 100th birthday on September 13, 2022! A very special early happy birthday greeting from all of us here at the Pan Am Museum! Barbara worked for Pan Am for five years between 1944 and 1949. Her time at Pan Am, while short, was nothing short of exceptional as she pioneered a path for women to move up the ranks of the airline. She became the first woman to work the ...

Send us a textIn this episode we are joined by Frank W. Abagnale, Jr. to talk about his interesting background. He will also provide tips on protecting your identity and wallet and how to avoid scams. The 2002 academy award-nominated film by Steven Spielberg, Catch Me If You Can, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks was loosely based on Frank’s life. This blockbuster film introduced a whole new generation to the wonder, glamour, and nostalgia of Pan American World Airways. ...

Send us a textIn this episode Barbara Sharfstein, 92, a veteran Pan Am flight attendant, joins us to talk about her flying career, tragedy over the Amazon, and a concert in the sky with Louis Armstrong. Barbara joined Pan Am in 1951 and after 35 years of service with the airline as a flight attendant, purser, check purser, and 747 in-flight director, she was transferred to United Airlines in 1986 when the Pacific Division was sold. She then worked for United for another six years b...

Send us a textIn this special episode we are joined by Max Gurney, who will celebrate his 101st birthday on June 10, 2022! The Pan Am Museum and the entire worldwide Pan Am community wish him the happiest of birthdays! Max is a 45-year veteran of Pan Am and a living legend within the airline community. He is also the godfather to His Serine Highness, Prince Albert II of Monaco. Max was kind enough to invite host Tom Betti into his home for a chat.He tells us about his childhood, ser...

Send us a textIn this episode we will be exploring Pan Am’s prestigious role in White House Press Charters travelling as part of the entourage of the President of United States and his aircraft, Air Force One. Then we are joined by three special guests. Our first guest is Dwight Chapin who was a top aide to President Richard M. Nixon. He recently released a book called The President’s Man: The Memoirs of Nixon’s Trusted Aide. While at the White House, Mr. Chapin helped organiz...

Send us a textIn this 20th episode, we are joined by Mary Lou Bigelow, a former TWA air hostess from 1959–1962 and a Pan Am stewardess/purser from 1962-1964. She discusses working for the two airlines and what it was like to live in Afghanistan.In 1964, Mary Lou married a pilot, whom she met in Beirut, Lebanon while working a 14-day NYC-HKG pattern. Pan Am still had a policy that female flight attendants hang up their wings once they married, but she continued working for Pan Am in reservatio...

Send us a textIn this episode we explore the fascinating history of Concorde from British Airways. This episode is a direct follow up to “Episode 7: Supersonic Transports, An Angry JFK, and Flying the Line.” In that episode we explored the race for the first passenger supersonic aircraft between a British and French partnership, the United States, and the Soviet Union. Then we are joined by Captain Mike Bannister, the chief pilot of British Airways' Concorde fleet from 1995 to 2003....

Send us a textIn this episode we explore the history of Pan Am in the Movies! Then we will be joined by two guests to talk about Hollywood and Pan Am! Mark Carlson is our first guest. He is the author of the book, Flying on Film: A Century of Aviation in the Movies, 1912 to 2012. Legally blind, Mark also wrote the award winning book, Confessions of a Guide Dog - The Blonde Leading the Blind, about his first Guide Dog, Musket. And the second interview… From a Pan Am flight atte...

Send us a textWe dedicate this episode to all the 583 victims of this tragedy. They are remembered. To the family and friends of the victims...our sincerest condolences. Special Guest: Dorothy Kelly, a Pan Am Flight Attendant who survived the accident, tells her harrowing and heroic story of survival and helping those in need. On March 27, 1977 at 5:06 PM local time on the island of Tenerife in the Spanish Canary Islands off the Moroccan Coast…a KLM 747 attempted to take off witho...

Send us a textIn this episode we explore the founding of Pan Am and the early years of the airline.Juan T. Trippe is widely known as the principle founder of Pan Am and rightly so. However, the early history of Pan Am is very complex and at times quite confusing with multiple people and mergers involved. Then we are joined by George Hambleton, whose father John Hambleton was a co-founder of Pan Am and close friend and business partner of both Juan Trippe and Charles Lindbergh. &nbsp...

Send us a textIn this episode we explore the only division of Pan Am American World Airways that survived bankruptcy liquidation and emerged as an independent company called the Pan Am International Flight Academy headquartered in Miami, Florida. Then we welcome back Pan Am Captains Paul LaCheppelle and John Marshall. Captain Lachapelle is featured in Episode 6: Hijackings and the Dawn of Global Terrorism. Captain Marshall is featured in Episode 2: The First Preside...

Send us a textIn this episode we will be exploring another innovation of the early 1960s, Pan Am’s worldwide reservation and communications system called Panamac. Then we are joined by Julia Cooke, the author of the best-selling book Come Fly the World which was recently nominated for the Goodreads Best Books 2021 Choice Awards. To purchase this book and support the museum, click here.--------------------More about Panamac:Check out this 1962 Pan Am film titled "Across the World in 3 Sec...

Send us a textWelcome to a special TWA Edition of The Pan Am Podcast!In this episode we are joined by Pam Blaschum, the director of the TWA Museum in Kansas City, Missouri. Then we are joined by Tyler Morse of MCR Hotels who developed the former TWA Flight Center at JFK Airport in New York City into today’s TWA Hotel. It is important to point out that Pan Am history is not complete without TWA and TWA history is not complete without Pan Am. These two airlines were pioneers for most...

Send us a textWe dedicate this episode to all the 270 victims of this tragedy. They are remembered. To the family and friends of the victims...our sincerest condolences. Special Guests: John Reina, brother of victim Jocelyn Reina, with Pan Am veterans Linda Freire and Myron “Rosie” Rosenstein.Pan Am Flight 103 Memorial (Lockerbie Memorial Carin) Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia, USA Garden of RemembranceDryfesdale Cemetery, Lockerbie, Scotland, UKSyracuse University Reme...

Send us a textIn this episode we commemorate the sad 30th Anniversary of Pan American World Airways ceasing operations on December 4, 1991. To mark this special milestone, we are joined by Ed Trippe, the youngest son of Pan Am’s legendary founder Juan Trippe and his wife Betty Stettinius Trippe. Ed is the founder and chairman of our sister organization, the Pan Am Historical Foundation. In December of 1991, shortly after the company his father founded ceased operations, Ed work...

Send us a textIn this episode, we explore the history of the Pan Am Building in New York City. This 59-story skyscraper is located at 200 Park Avenue and shares a lot with the beaux-arts icon, and National Landmark, New York’s Grand Central Terminal.Later in the program we are joined by Richard Roth, Jr., the grandson of Emery Roth, a prolific New York City architect who designed many notable buildings in the 1920s and 1930s. Richard provides a firsthand account on the design and co...

Send us a textIn this episode, we will be exploring the history of the Pan Am WorldPort, and Unit Terminal Building (UTB), which was located at Terminal 3 within John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. Later we are joined by author Wendy Sue Knecht to discuss her book, Life, Love, and a Hijacking: My Pan Am Memoir. Wendy joined Pan Am in 1979, and was with the company until 1991, before joining Delta Air Lines.To purchase this book and support the museum, click here.-----...

Send us a textIn this episode we are joined by a very special guest: Pan Am Captain Dave Bridges, Centenarian. He celebrated his 100th birthday earlier this year and he just might be one of the oldest people to ever be on a podcast!A 37-year Pan Am veteran, Captain Bridges joined the company in 1943 and retired in 1981. He began as a relief co-pilot on the Boeing 314 flying boat during World War II, and after the war he flew a variety of land-based aircraft including the Douglas DC-3, DC-4, D...

Send us a textIn this episode we will be exploring the 1960s race for the first supersonic passenger aircraft between the United States, the Soviet Union, and a British-French partnership. Then we are joined by Becky Sprecher, a Pan Am flight attendant and co-author with Paula Helfrich of “Flying: A Novel,” a historical fiction book about Pan Am crews flying over the Pacific in the 1970s.To purchase the book, “Flying: A Novel,” please visit the Museum’s online store: https://shop.t...

Send us a textIn this episode we explore the coordinated terrorist hijackings of four passenger airliners all bound for New York on the same day on September 6, 1970. The events were a watershed moment and aviation would never be the same again. The four planes involved were: a TWA Boeing 707, a SwissAir DC-8, a El Al Boeing 707, and a Pan Am Boeing 747 named Clipper Fortune. A fifth plane, a BOAC Vickers VC 10, was hijacked three days afterward. Later in the progr...

Send us a textIn this episode we explore two of the subsidiaries of Pan Am: the InterContinental Hotels Corporation and the Pan Am Guided Missiles Range Division. Yep, you read that right, the airline company had its own hotel chain for about 30 years, and Pan Am did aerospace work for the U.S. government including the space program for almost 40 years. Why? Because the American government asked them to do both. Later we are joined by Jennifer Coutts Clay, a leader in the avia...

Send us a textIn this episode we are joined by Allan Topping, a Pan Am employee who evacuated almost 500 people out of Saigon days before the city fell. On April 24, 1975, at the conclusion of the Vietnam War, with time running out as Saigon was surrounded by North Vietnamese troops, a Pan Am 747 jumbo jet carried 463 American and South Vietnamese civilians to safety and freedom. At the center of this dangerous and desperate mission was Allan Topping. Mr. Topping is the author ...

Send us a textIn this episode we explore Pan Am’s Boeing 314 Flying Boats. Then we are joined by Margaret O’Shaughnessy of our sister museum, the Foynes Flying Boat and Maritime Museum in Ireland. Check out their website: https://www.flyingboatmuseum.com/Margaret will tell us all about her museum which has the only full scale replica in the world, of a Pan American Boeing 314 called the Yankee Clipper. She will also tell us about the origins of Irish coffee and its unique connection to ...

Send us a textIn this episode we explore the first presidential flight. Then we are joined by Pan Am Captain John Marshall to share memories of the very last flight of Pan Am. The mission of the Pan Am Museum Foundation is “to educate, celebrate,and inspire present and future generations by preserving historical and diverse personal stories of Pan American World Airways.”Pan Am was a pioneer in air travel and still stands as one of the most iconic and innovative airlines in aviation hist...

Send us a textOpened to the public in 2016 in Garden City, Long Island, New York (outside of NYC), the Pan Am Museum presents the Pan Am Podcast! The Museum’s mission is “to educate, celebrate, and inspire present and future generations by preserving historical and diverse personal stories of Pan American World Airways.”In this inaugural episode, Museum Director and Board Chair Linda Freire introduces the Pan Am Museum and talks about her career as a flight attendant, recruiter, and mana...

Send us a textWelcome to The Pan Am Podcast, the podcast series from the Pan Am Museum Foundation. Pan Am was a pioneer in air travel and still stands as one of the most iconic and innovative airlines in aviation history. That legacy lives on at the Pan Am Museum in Garden City, New York, where you can explore the rich history of the aircrafts and individuals at the heart of the company known as The World’s Most Experienced Airline. Support the show Visit Us for more Pan Am Hi...