Three Anniversaries

Yesterday was the 52nd anniversary of my birth so it made me wonder what aviation-related events I might share with history. I found two. One celebrating an unusual baggage system and both from the Soviet era.

1980 – Aeroflot introduces the Ilyushin II-86. This was the USSR's first wide-body plane, but what draws my attention is the Soviet's "luggage at hand system." The Soviets needed the extra passenger capacity afforded the bigger plane, but the country's rulers also had to find a way around terminals meant for planes with smaller passenger loads.

Build bigger airports? Too capitalistic! The Soviets put the burden on the passengers. The first idea was to store the luggage train-style inside the cabin. That was nixed since it would have added about 10 feet to the length of the fuselage.

So why not just let passengers put their luggage in underfloor compartments as they entered the plane? Wikipedia, the source of all my short-term knowledge, is a bit sketchy on the details. Leaving the Soviet jokes aside, I was surprised to learn that Airbus thought about this arrangement in the mid-1970s and Lockheed used it in its L-1011 TriStar at the request of Pacific Southwest Airlines. Again, even Google has let me down finding out more logistics. If any aviation veterans remember how Pacific Southwest did this, do tell.

1975 – The Soviet's answer to the Concorde, the Tupolev Tu-144 begins operations for Aeroflot. At first glance – no, make that at any glance – the Soviet SST looks identical to the Concorde, which was under development at the same time. The Tu-144 first went into service flying mail and freight and didn't handle passenger service until 1977. Due to noise inside the cabin, passengers two seats apart had to pass notes to each other to "talk." Even passengers seated next to each other had a difficult time conversing. However, that was the least of the plane's performance issues. Simply put: This was one dangerous plane. Passenger service only lasted a year. The aircraft remained in use as a cargo plane until 1983.