common variant, the 5AT, introduced in 1928, accommodated 13 passengers in its
The Ford's most
common variant, the 5AT, introduced in 1928, accommodated 13 passengers in its
earliest model and was modified to seat up to 17. With no air conditioning and
little heating, the plane was hot in summer and cold in winter, and with no
circulation system, its environment was made even more unpleasant by the smell
of hot oil and metal, leather seats, and disinfectant used to clean up after
airsick passengers. Opening a window was the only way to escape the smell. The
Boeing 80 was somewhat more comfortable, equipped with forced-air ventilation and hot and cold running water. However,
no plane at the time could fly high enough to escape the turbulence encountered
at lower altitudes, and passengers were equally suspect to airsickness. The
Ford Trimotor could reach about 6,000 feet (1,829 kilometer), but its climb to
that altitude was slow, and the plane would surge upward, level off, bump
around, and drop repeatedly before it reached its cruising altitude. The Boeing
Model 80 had a higher 14,000-foot (4,267-meter) ceiling but was still subject
to turbulence.