404 Eastern

The Martin 404 was a pressurized, air-conditioned passenger airliner produced by Glenn L. Martin Company. The 404 and its antecedent model, the 202, were the first modern airliners. These aircraft were designed to replace the Douglas DC-3 and were the first post war airliner designs to reach production. Compared to the 202, the 404 had a longer fuselage and more powerful engines. It was first announced in March 1950 and took its maiden flight on October 21, 1950. A total of 103 aircraft were built and placed in service: 60 to Eastern Air Lines, 40 to Trans World Airlines (TWA), two to the United States Coast Guard, and one to Howard Hughes for use as his personal aircraft.

The 404 could fly up to 312 mph at 14,500 feet. It had a range of 1,080 miles with maximum payload and could carry 40 passengers.The pressurized cabin allowed higher cruising altitudes. Improvements in the design meant that 80 percent of the plane was new and could not be built from leftover 202 parts. Costs rose under the impact of inflation from the Korean War which broke out three months after fixed-price contracts for the 404 had been signed. Production was slowed by wartime materiel priorities.

Eastern Air Lines was a major American airline that existed from the late 1920s until 1991. It began as a mail carrier for the US Postal Service and grew into a passenger carrier soon after its inception, dominating much of the domestic travel industry by the 1950s. Eastern began operations with the 404 in October 1951 and kept the aircraft for ten years before passing it on to second string operators. One 404 is available for viewing at the Glenn L. Martin Maryland Aviation Museum in Middle River, Maryland.