WATSONVILLE — In the days before giant jet-fueled airliners traversed the globe, passengers made shorter journeys on smaller propeller planes.
One of these, a 1928 Ford Tri-Motor, will be at Watsonville Municipal Airport through the weekend, and available for flights for the public.
Also called the “Tin Goose,” the plane was part of the country’s first coast-to-coast air service in 1930. Tri-Motors had shorter ranges and slower speeds, but nevertheless had a style largely absent in modern-day, mass-produced passenger airliners.
Weighing in at nearly 12,500 pounds, the Tri-Motor has a 77-foot wingspan, compared to the Boeing 747’s 242-foot span. The plane can hold 10 people in seats complete with fancy reading lights.
While passengers today can travel at around 560 miles per hour, the Tri-Motor has a cruising speed of a comparatively poky 122 miles per hour.
But its slow speed, low altitude and large passenger windows are part of the charm of being a passenger, said Christopher Laws, president of the local chapter of the Experimental Aircraft Association.
“The view is amazing,” he said.
The Tri-Motor was used as part of Grand Canyon Airlines in Arizona and by TACA airlines out of Honduras. It was most recently purchased and restored in 2013 by the Liberty Aviation Museum of Port Clinton, Ohio.
“This is part of history,” Laws said.
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Flights aboard the Ford Tri-Motor are scheduled from Thursday through Sunday. Tickets are $77 for adults and $52 for children under 17. Walk-up purchases are available. For information and to book a flight online, visit www.flytheford.com.
