Pacific Aerial Surveys- Historic Flight to Hawaii

The history of flight from the mainland to Hawaii began August 31, 1925 with a Navy attempt using two PN-9 seaplanes. Both set down in the Pacific and were rescued. The first successful flight to Hawaii was the "Bird of Paradise" in 1927. Charles Lindbergh said at the time, "The flight from California to the Hawaiian Islands was the greatest air feat in history." Over the next eight years 16 pilots would attempt the feat but only 11 would successfully make it to the Islands.

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The "Bird of Paradise" on takeoff from Oakland Field
view detail	Date:	June 28, 1927
	Photographer:	unconfirmed
	Description:	The first successful flight from the U.S. to Hawaii was accomplished by Lt. Albert F. Hegenberger and Lt. Lester J. Maitland of the Army Air Corps on June 28-29, 1927 in the "Bird of Paradise", a Fokker tri-motor. At the time it was the longest flight over water ever completed.
	Number:	HST-3

The "City of Oakland"
view detail	Date:	June 28, 1927
	Photographer:	unconfirmed
	Description:	A young airmail pilot named Ernie Smith and his navigator Emory Bronte were the first civilians to fly to Hawaii. The plan was to make the attempt at the same time as the Bird of Paradise and both planes are pictured here at the Oakland Airport. Their Travelair monoplane named the "City of Oakland" would eventually take off on July 14, 1927 and land in a breadfruit tree on Molokai 26 hours 36 minutes later.
	Number:	HST-8A

The Dole Race winner "Woolaroc"
view detail	Date:	August 1927
	Photographer:	unconfirmed
	Description:	Pineapple magnate James Dole put up a cash prize for the first and second civilian aircraft to make it to Honolulu. Fifteen planes entered, seven started and two made it to Wheeler Field in Oahu on August 17, 1927. In the end, after the deaths of 10 aviators, the race was won by Art Goebel in the Travelair "Woolaroc" in 26 hours 17 minutes. "Aloha" came in second.
	Number:	HST-8D

The Southern Cross
view detail	Date:	May 31, 1928
	Photographer:	Clyde Sunderland
	Description:	The fifth aircraft to reach Hawaii and the first to make a trans-Pacific crossing was "Southern Cross" piloted by Charles Kingsford-Smith with a crew of three including Charles Ulm. The aircraft was a modified Fokker tri-motor. The flight from Oakland to Australia was considered "one of the greatest achievements of modern times." Ulm would later die in his December 1934 attempt piloting the "Star of Australia" to Hawaii from Oakland.
	Number:	HST-9A

Navy P2Y Squadron on way to Hawaii
view detail	Date:	January 10, 1934
	Photographer:	Clyde Sunderland
	Description:	The Navy sent six P2Y-1 flying boats to Honolulu in the first mass flight across the Pacific. The planes left from San Pablo Bay and made the crossing in 24 hours and 46 minutes.
	Number:	APN-114