It appeared in the Miami Herald the same month — November 1946 — that the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) initiated hearings on whether or not Pan American Airways should be given permission to start flying domestic routes within the continental United States.

“Latin American Decision” alarms Miami

On May 23, 1946 Miami was jolted by a Civil Aeronautics Board ruling that gave several domestic airlines routes to Latin America which bypassed Miami. The CAB ruling, known as the “Latin American Decision,” was intended as a postwar effort to expand and regulate international air travel, particularly in Latin America. Braniff was given direct routes from Houston to Havana, the Canal Zone and the west coast of South America. Eastern Air Lines got new routes from New Orleans through Mexico and Cuba. Chicago & Southern airlines got a route from New Orleans to Caracas. Pan Am got a direct route from New York to San Juan.

Rivalry for routes reaches new heights

For commercial aviation, the rulings marked the beginning of a new era of wide expansion and sharp rivalries among the dominant U.S. airlines. For Miami, the new routes were seen as a major threat to Miami’s ability to continue to enjoy its status as the “gateway” to Latin America. In the brave new competitive world of postwar aviation, with domestic AND international airlines applying to the CAB for multiple new routes (and getting them), how could Miami hang on to its dominant position? Houston, New Orleans and New York were perceived as Miami’s most dangerous rivals. Much self-criticism was aired in the press as to how Miami could have allowed these other cities to have jockeyed their way into this position and daily editorials were published on the subject of what Miami needed to do to defend itself. As the CAB hearings continued, the Dade County Port Authority agreed to intervene in support of individual airlines, first on behalf of Eastern Air Lines (which had been denied a direct Miami/Panama route and was appealing the decision) and then on behalf of Pan Am, which was applying to the CAB for permission to fly U.S. domestic routes.

Pan Am wages solitary battle

The hearings on Pan Am’s domestic routes were deemed to be the most significant in the battle. They were held from November 1946 to January 1947. Standing alone against 11 domestic carriers (and the U.S. Postal Service, which claimed that allowing Pan Am to fly domestic routes would divert Air Mail revenues from domestic carriers), Pan Am’s highest hopes for the award of the routes hinged on the spectacular service that new aircraft on order would provide — namely, the 450 mph Rainbow, a prototype of which was then being tested. The Rainbow would be the fastest aircraft built to date. Pan Am had placed orders for six of them.

Competitors disparage reliance on Rainbow

One of the most caustic of Pan Am’s opponents at the hearings was EAL’s attorney, Smythe Gambrell. He charged that Pan Am’s advertising campaign showcasing the new aircraft on order was a blatant attempt to get public support for routes it was not yet authorized to fly. Pan Am’s representative at the hearings, John Leslie, countered that the ads were simply smart merchandising. When Smythe Gambrell held up a copy of the newspaper ad, feigning outrage that Pan Am was attempting to present itself as a “transportation Messiah,” Leslie responded facetiously that the ad had only been placed as a service to Smythe Gambrell.

American Airlines stymies Rainbow orders

The manufacturer of the Rainbow, Republic Aviation, was counting on 26 orders of its prototype to build its new plane — six from Pan Am and 20 from American Airlines. The domestic carriers were united in their opposition to seeing competition from Pan Am in the domestic sphere. C.R. Smith, American Airlines’ president, began to consider what would happen if he canceled his order. He could live without the new planes as long as no one else got them. He knew that Republic did not have the resources to put together an assembly line to build only six planes for Pan Am. In February 1947, American canceled its order. Though Pan Am immediately ordered 6 more planes, it was not enough to save the project and Republic aborted. Pan Am had to advise the CAB that it would not be able to fly the plane on the domestic routes it might eventually be awarded.

Pan Am denied

When the CAB’s examiner reports eventually came down, it recommended that Pan Am only be awarded the New York-Miami route it had requested — and even that decision was later disallowed. Pan Am’s petition for domestic routes was denied and the case was closed.

Lingering questions