The first flight's pilot was Tony Jannus, an experienced test pilot and barnstormer, according to the International Air Transport Association.
The first flight's pilot was Tony Jannus, an experienced test pilot and barnstormer, according to the International Air Transport Association. The first paying passenger was Abram C. Pheil, former mayor of St. Petersburg. Their short flight across the bay to Tampa took 23 minutes. They flew in a "flying boat" designed by Thomas Benoist, an aviation entrepreneur from St. Louis, according to the State Historical Society of Missouri.