Excerpt

Between December 1903, when the first sucessful flight was made by a heavier-than-air machine and the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, little development of th aeroplane as a means of transport occurred. In Europe, some enthusiasts participated in the provision of joy-riding facilities for the public, but the main vehicle was the airship, which gained great popularity in Germany.

The first scheduled passenger air service with heavier-than-air machines was the St. Petersburg to Tampa Airboat Line in Florida. The company was formed by Paul E, Fensler on December 4, 1913 and began flying on December 17, 1913.

World War I ended any plans for or hopes of extensive internal or international air services in Europe with the exception of Germany. In the areas that they had occupied in Russia, the German military authorities listed an air mail service along the axis of St. Petersburg (Leningrad) to the Crimea. A regular air mail service linked Bermin, Hanover, and Cologne in association with the German Post Office in 1918.

The USA made little impaact on the international air transport scene until 1926 and it was a grand entry. The aircraft that held the spotlight was the Fort Tri-Motor, another of aeronautical history's memorable aeroplanes.