Make no mistake, these aircraft were built with a certain clientele in mind. Professional chefs were hired to provide quality meals from the inflight galley. A separate dining area and changing rooms were also fitted into the design. In essence, the Boeing 314 series was the flying boat of choice for the wealthy American during this time. Transatlantic flying had now undergone a rich evolution, offering up an inflight playground for passengers willing to brave the long overseas flights in style.
Two variations of the 314 Clipper existed as the base 314, fitted with 4 x Wright R-2600 Double Cyclone engines at 1,500 horsepower a piece and the 314A, which saw use of the more powerful Wright Double Cyclone 1,600 horsepower engine. Six of each variation were produced for a total of 12 full operational examples. Clippers were in service with distinguishable names from 1939 through 1951 and were represented as the Honolulu Clipper, Cape Town Clipper, Anzac Clipper, Pacific Clipper, American Clipper, Yankee Clipper, California Clipper and the Atlantic Clipper - all operated by Pan Am. The remaining three Clippers were flown with the British Overseas Airways Corporation and represented with the Bristol, Bangor and the Berwick. Unfortunately, no full examples of the Clipper exist today, with the preceding models being either purposely destroyed, dismantled or lost to accident (three such incidents in this case).
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