Special Report

50 Ways Air Travel Has Changed Over the Last 100 Years

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Over the 113 years since the first airplane passenger, Leon Delagrange, climbed aboard with French pilot Henri Farman, air travel has gone through drastic changes. Commercial aircraft have seen incredible technological developments. Many airlines have come and gone. And the procedures passengers go through, including the way they board jets, are almost nothing like they were back in the day.

But a few of the things airline customers have come to expect had their beginnings a century ago. The first flight attendant was aboard a zeppelin in 1912. The first onboard meal, a cold one, was served on a flight from London to Paris in 1919, according to Fortune magazine. Aeromarine Airways showed the first in-flight movie, a film called “Howdy Chicago,” in 1921 as its amphibious airplane flew passengers over Chicago, CNN said.

Passengers didn’t get their first frequent-flyer program until 1979, but they were allowed to smoke on domestic flights until 1990. (This is the world’s busiest air route.) 

Check out the list of changes in air travel below.

Click here to see 50 ways air travel has changed over the last 100 years

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1908: First airplane passenger

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1912: First flight attendant (on a zeppelin)

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1914: First scheduled passenger service

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1919: First on-board (cold) meal served

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1921: First in-flight film

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1922: First airplane flight attendant

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1928: First hot in-flight meal served

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1928: First female airline co-pilot (volunteer)

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1930: First female flight attendant (“stewardess”)

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1933: First modern airliner built

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1934: First female airline co-pilot (official)

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1935: First air traffic control tower

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1939: First airport lounge

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1939: First nonstop trans-Atlantic flight

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1940: First pressured cabin

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1948: Coach fares introduced

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1949: First domestic “no frills” airline

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1951: First commercial jet airliner

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1953: First nonstop transcontinental flight

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1958: First covered airport jet bridge

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1958: First Black flight attendant

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1960: First automated reservation system

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1965: Overlapping nationwide radar system completed

1965: First Black commercial airline pilot

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1966: First trans-Atlantic “no frills” airline

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1968: Mandatory flight attendant retirement age lifted

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1969: Wide-body jet introduced

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1972: Passenger screening begins

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1975: First in-flight video games

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Express / Hulton Archive via Getty Images

1976: First female airline captain

Evening Standard / Hulton Archive via Getty Images

1978: Airline industry deregulated

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Central Press / Hulton Archive via Getty Images

1979: First frequent-flyer program

1988: First seat-back video screens

1990: Smoking banned on all domestic flights

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Getty Images / Getty Images

1994: First e-ticket issued

1995: First self-service check-in kiosk installed

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1996: First independent flight reservation service

Tim Boyle / Hulton Archive via Getty Images

2000: First in-flight wifi

David Silverman / Getty Images News via Getty Images

2001: Transportation Security Administration (TSA) formed

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David McNew / Getty Images News via Getty Images

2001: Food service stops on most major airlines

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2003: Reinforced cockpit doors installed on major U.S. airlines

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Justin Sullivan / Getty Images News via Getty Images

2005: Superjumbo jets introduced

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2006: Limits on carry-on liquids introduced

2007: Smartphone boarding passes accepted for first time

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2008: Checked baggage charges introduced

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2008: Global Entry begins at some airports

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2011: TSA PreCheck introduced

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2018: Airlines begin charging for seat assignments

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2021: U.S. requires passengers and crews to wear masks

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